Eden Research confirms emergency use authorisation for 'Cedroz' in Italy

Biopesticide developer Eden Research announced on Friday that its commercial partner, Eastman Chemical Company, has received a 120-day ‘emergency use’ authorisation for its nematicide formulation, marketed as ‘Cedroz’ by Eastman, from the Italian Ministry of Agriculture.

The AIM-traded firm said such emergency authorisations were allowed by EU member states when local regulatory authorities judged that they are needed in the local market in order to meet the requirements of growers in the absence of suitable commercially-available alternatives.

During the period, Italy and other member states would continue to process Eastman's request for the authorised use and sale of Cedroz following Malta's earlier authorisation.

Cedroz was described by Eden Research as an “innovative and sustainable” solution designed to fight plant parasitic nematodes - pests that are known to cause severe damage to crops globally in both open field and greenhouse horticulture - resulting in significant yield losses and increasing growers' costs.

In line with consumer demand and a policy push for products that supported sustainable agriculture with greatly reduced or no pesticide residues, the firm said Cedroz was an “attractive alternative” for farmers looking to fight plant parasitic nematodes in a safer and more sustainable way.

Unlike many other products, Cedroz would have no set maximum residue level and a zero-day pre-harvest interval, thereby allowing applications right up to harvest, when required.

As the company had previously announced, Malta recently authorised the use of Cedroz on a wide range of crops, including cucumbers, courgettes, melons, aubergine, peppers, tomatoes and strawberries, marking the initial authorisation for Cedroz in the EU.

Following the authorisation by Malta, the concerned Member States became required to grant their individual approvals for the sale and use of Cedroz within their jurisdictions.

The pending approvals would cover Spain and Italy, for outdoor uses, and would also cover France, Belgium, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, as well as Spain and Italy, for professional greenhouse uses.

Once approved, Cedroz would be the first of Eden's formulations to be sold and used in the United Kingdom, where the company is headquartered.

“Following Eden's initial investment in the formulation and patent protection of this important product, Eastman has invested significant resource over the past three years in the further development of Cedroz, and it is pleasing to see our collective efforts coming to fruition,” said Eden Research chief executive officer Sean Smith.

“Traditional crop protection products are increasingly coming under threat from global regulatory pressures based upon the potential impact these products may have on the environment.

“There is significant and increasing demand for biopesticides as alternatives to conventional pesticide treatments due to their health and environmental safety profiles.”

Smith said the company was “looking forward” to working with Eastman to capitalise on the growing demand and helping them to launch Cedroz in a number of new territories, including the UK.

“The Italian market represents a significant opportunity for Cedroz and, as such, it is great to see the regulatory authorities respond positively by granting this emergency authorisation.

“This also verifies that there is a limited number of alternative products available to tackle nematodes in the Italian market and consequently growers need new tools to help control this damaging pest on a range of important high value crops.”