Three Trends from the American Chemical Society Fall Meeting

Solito Sumulong of AgriThority® attended the American Chemical Society Fall Meeting from Aug. 12–17 in San Francisco. Sumulong was a co-chair of the Agrochemical Division session entitled “Agrochemical Formulations and Application Technology: Challenges and Innovation.”

1. Product registration on the global scale still requires planning and strategy.

Many common problems early in the product development process have consequences in the commercial launch and registration stages. Registrants need to understand roles and responsibilities of Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) Study personnel, reporting requirements and traceability of study materials and equipment. Understanding the evolution of FDA, EPA, and OECD standards from where they began to where they are today will help your global registration strategy and regulatory studies be more globally accepted.

2. New formulation methods are emerging, particularly with bio-based and food grade materials leading the way to more sustainable methods of nutritional and pesticide delivery.

Depending on label claims, registration status and basic data on product safety, these materials can be very promising for minimum chemical release into  the environment per pound of material applied. In Sumulong’s session on formulation and in others, encapsulation technologies through materials such as alginates and clays were presented for controlled and enhanced release of agrochemicals, nutritional products and biologicals.

3. The “mode of action” concept has different meanings to different stakeholders: discovery scientists, formulation scientists, customers, marketers and regulators, to name a few.

Such misunderstandings can lead to problems in commercial launch and registration stages.  Sumulong is developing a session on the challenges of commercializing a new “mode of action” from those multiple perspectives for next summer’s American Chemical Society meeting in Denver.


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