ENVIRONMENT – Have your say on application for new fungicide

We want your feedback on an application to import or manufacture Rhapsody, a new fungicide for use on apples, grapes and pears.

Rhapsody is used to control blackspot or powdery mildew on apples and pears, or Botrytis on grapes.

UPL New Zealand have applied to introduce the new fungicide, which contains 218 g/L ipflufenoquin.

UPL says Rhapsody will provide growers with an alternative to older products which may be becoming less effective due to increasing resistance to current fungicides.

The orchard industry estimates that up to 10 per cent of their costs can be spent on controlling blackspot.

While ipflufenoquin would be new to New Zealand, it has been approved in other countries, including Australia, Canada, Japan and the USA.

If approved for use in New Zealand, Rhapsody could only be used by professionals in commercial settings and applied using ground-based methods.