Users of the popular insecticide PROCLAIM® will have noticed a change, since June, with the introduction of the new PROCLAIM® OPTI. It contains the same active ingredient (Emamectin), so it retains its Group 6 Insecticide status. However, users will benefit from the new technology formulation and expanded label that includes more crops and more caterpillar pests. 

PROCLAIM OPTI is a water-dispersible granule, formulated using the advanced Pepite Technology process developed by Syngenta. This unique manufacturing method produces a product that dissolves immediately in water for greater convenience and efficiency. The way the new granules dissolve is quite exceptional. 

As part of the PROCLAIM OPTI submission to the APVMA, Syngenta sought to expand the PROCLAIM label. The original PROCLAIM label included use in brassica vegetables, grapes, capsicum, tomatoes, sweet corn and lettuce. 

PROCLAIM OPTI is now also registered for use in cucurbits, legume vegetables, both leafy vegetables and leafy brassicas, as well as root and tuber vegetables and strawberries. It’s worth noting that both field grown and protected cropping fruiting vegetables are now also registered (this including tomatoes, eggplants, capsicum and chilies). 

There are now eight insect pests on the PROCLAIM OPTI label: Diamondback Moth; Cabbage White Butterfly; Cluster Caterpillar, Heliothis, Loopers, Cucumber Moth, Lightbrown Apple Moth and Grapevine Moth. Obviously check the label to see which caterpillars are registered in each crop. 

As a Group 6 Insecticide, PROCLAIM OPTI is an ideal tool for resistance management. It should always be used in rotation with other insecticide modes of action. In brassicas and fruiting and leafy vegetables, PROCLAIM OPTI is a perfect choice following an application of DURIVO as it offers an alternative mode of action for resistance management 

So how does PROCLAIM OPTI work? 

After application, PROCLAIM OPTI shows excellent translaminar movement (which means it penetrates the leaf surface quickly and moves into the plant tissue, protecting both top and bottom leaf surfaces) where it forms a reservoir within the treated plant material. 

This reservoir provides residual activity against foliage feeding larvae. Ingestion is the main way that PROCLAIM OPTI controls lepidoptera pests, although it does also show some limited contact activity. 

Larvae die after consuming a lethal dose when chewing their way out of treated eggs, or, they die as soon as they begin to feed on treated plant material. Although feeding and damage stops immediately when larva become irreversibly paralysed, it can take up to four days for the caterpillars to effectively disappear in the paddock. For best results growers should target the larvae when they are small and as soon as local spray thresholds are reached. 

The way PROCLAIM OPTI moves into and is locked-up within the plant offers substantial advantages: 

• It provides relatively long residual control (in fact up to 14 days), controlling larvae that may have hatched after the product was applied;
• PROCLAIM OPTI is effectively protected from being washed-off the plant by rain or irrigation; and,
• Once the active is locked inside the leaf, foraging beneficial species are free to do what they do best. PROCLAIM OPTI surface spray residues degrade within a few hours of application, therefore beneficial species do not come into contact with the active ingredient once it has been absorbed into the plant.

PROCLAIM OPTI has excellent crop safety and a short 3 day withholding period in vegetables, so it can be used to reduce the risk of pest damage close to harvest. 

At a Glance | Product Highlights 

• PROCLAIM OPTI is a selective insecticide that controls lepidopteran pests, while sparing beneficial insects, making it suitable for Integrated Pest Management programs
• Translaminar movement locks the active ingredient inside the plant, delivering residual control for up to 14 days
• After ingesting a toxic dose, larvae are completely paralysed and no longer able to damage the plant, protecting future yield and quality
• With a unique mode of action, PROCLAIM OPTI acts as a resistance breaker controlling larvae that are no longer susceptible to other chemistry
• PROCLAIM OPTI is formulated using PEPITE^® granule technology, offering superior handling, user safety and application properties