New slug pellet with novel active ingredient available

A new slug pellet with a novel active ingredient will be available to UK farmers in autumn 2026, offering greater choice and efficacy for slug control.

Ferrabait developed by Adama UK contains 1% w/w Feralla (elemental iron) to deliver rapid stop-feeding of slug species.

The molluscicide marks the first new active available on the market since the loss of metaldehyde in 2021, which left ferric phosphate as the only chemical slug bait control.

See also: Study suggests silicon spray reduces cereal slug damage

Ferrabait is approved for use on all cereals, grass leys, vegetables and high-value broad-field crops.

The pellets contain a complex proprietary formulation of 12 ingredients.

This includes a blend of wheat flour to ensure optimum palatability and humic acids to stimulate feeding and encourage ingestion.

The molluscicide is manufactured using a wet processing and two-stage drying technology, which prolongs pellet persistence and resistance to moulding.

Adama’s product development manager for Central and North Europe, Catherine Whaley, says: “This produces the ideal balance of persistence in wet weather and palatability over a longer duration, so pellets remain mould-free and palatable for longer.”

How Ferrabait works

Less than one pellet of the product provides a lethal dose, with field trials showing a considerably faster speed of kill compared to other commercially available molluscicides.

 “When a pellet is ingested, the elemental iron is solubilised in the slug’s stomach and lobes of the digestive gland,” says Catherine.

“This makes the slug less mobile and causes feeding to stop almost immediately, ultimately leading to the death of the slug or snail.”

Application rates

A 5kg/ha application rate is sufficient for low to moderate pressure, which is the equivalent to 42 pellets/sq m.

“There is a maximum dose rate of 8kg/hа, in response to higher infestation pressure and/or in high-value crops, with a maximum of six treatments/crop a year,” she says.

There is a minimum application interval of five days.

The pellets can be applied as a broadcast treatment as soon as damage is seen or indicated by test baiting. This can be applied by hand or mechanical applicator.

At 2.5×2.1mm in size, the pellets provide an optimal number of baiting points (40-50 pellets/sq m) when applied at typical field rates.

“In contrast, smaller ‘mini’ pellets – which have a larger comparative surface area – tend to degrade more rapidly in wet conditions, while larger pellets provide too few baiting points.”

Smaller pellets can also be less effective as slugs need to ingest more than one pellet to receive a lethal dose.

“Trials have shown slugs need to eat less than one pellet of Ferrabait to receive a lethal dose, leaving the remainder of the pellet available for the next slug to feed on, giving greater longevity of control from one application,” says Catherine.

For some crops, such as cereals and oilseed rape – where slug activity is present prior to crop emergence – it is advised to treat the crop before emergence and after seed-bed preparation.

Application timing should be based on likely pest presence and the part of the crop attacked by the pest, such as seeds, seedling plants or harvestable produce.