Repurposing of Marine Raw Materials in the Formulation of Innovative Plant Protection Products

Abstract

Over the years, the growth of the world population has caused a huge agricultural production to support the population’s needs. Since plant protection products are essential to preserve agricultural crops and to optimize vital plant processes, it is crucial to use more sustainable, biodegradable, and biocompatible raw materials, without harming the environment and human health. Although the development of new plant protection products is a costly process, the environmental benefits should be considered. In this context, marine raw materials obtained as byproducts of fishing industries, possessing a wide variety of physicochemical and biological properties, can serve as a promising source of such materials. They have a high potential for developing alternative and safe formulations for agricultural applications, not only as biocompatible excipients but also as effective and selective, or even both. It is also possible to promote a synergistic effect between an active substance and the biological activity of the marine polymer used in the formulation, enabling plant protection products with lower concentrations of the active substances. Thus, this review addresses the repurposing of marine raw materials for the development of innovative plant protection products, focusing on micro- and nanoparticulate formulations, to protect the environment through more ecological and sustainable strategies.

Disalicylic Acid Provides Effective Control of Pectobacterium brasiliense

“…In recent years, there has been an ongoing search for new compounds that can be synthesized in quantities sufficient for commercial use. One approach to this has been the re-purposing of compounds whose safety and other properties have already been examined, to effectively control bacterial pathogens [41]. Compounds that have multifunctional control mechanisms (e.g., those that employ a multi-hurdle approach) may be able to overcome the development of resistance traits.…”