An cheaper off-patent alternative to one of the most common grassweed herbicides will be available from next January. 

Irish chemical manufacturer Life Scientific is the first to replicate Atlantis (iodosulfuron + mesosulfuron) from Bayer, after the expiry of its patent protection.

It is bringing an exact replica of the sulfonylurea-based product to the market via two different product formulations. 

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Bill Lankford, Life Scientific’s UK country manager, explained that the two products are aimed at different times of the year. Niantic is a post-emergence autumn herbicide for use in winter wheat, while Cintac is for use in the spring. 

Mr Lankford explained that Niantic is ideally applied in the autumn at 0.4kg/ha to small, actively growing weeds and provides good control of blackgrass, ryegrass, wild oats, meadow grasses, common chickweed and mayweeds in winter wheat.

For blackgrass control, Niantic should always be used as part of a programme with residual herbicides, he added.

Cintac has a choice of two rates depending on target weeds and can be used over a wide application window up to crop growth stage 39.

At the highest rate of 0.5 kg/ha Cintac offers excellent control of brome species, in addition to useful control of some key broad-leaved weed species, Mr Lankford said.

The products will be available exclusively for distribution in the UK through Hutchinsons and Procam from January 2018 and pricing is still to be confirmed.