[Product Spotlight] What's New?

Editor’s Note: Manufacturers spend millions of dollars every year developing innovative new products for the pest control industry. Some feature enhanced formulations of existing products, while others represent never-before-seen technology. More often than not, suppliers unveil these product innovations at NPMA PestWorld, an annual conference and trade show sponsored by the National Pest Management Association (NPMA). In the coming months, PCT will feature brief profiles of new products that were on display at PestWorld 2012. This month, we’re featuring editorial contributions from Bell Laboratories about FINAL Soft Bait with Lumitrack and BASF about Termidor Foam termiticide/insecticide. If you would like to see a product your company launched at NPMA PestWorld featured in a future issue of PCT, send a product release and photo to PCT Editor Jodi Dorsch at jdorsch@giemedia.com.

Bell Laboratories Expands Product Line

FINAL Soft Bait with Lumitrack proves attractive to finicky rodents.

Bell Laboratories offers a wide array of rodent control products to the pest management industry. The newest addition to its portfolio is FINAL Soft Bait with Lumitrack, which causes rodent droppings to fluoresce when exposed to ultraviolet light.

“Our technical staff combined their formulation expertise, chemical prowess and engineering know-how to develop an advanced soft bait with a multitude of benefits,” said Bell President Steve Levy. “A hallmark of FINAL Soft Bait is its sustained palatability.”

“Soft baits have typically demonstrated solid initial palatability but long-term results were less impressive,” added Bell Product Manager Kate Mella. “Bell’s FINAL Soft Bait was developed to achieve both fast acceptance and to hold a rodent’s interest. It’s a new rodenticide formulation containing a carefully balanced matrix of proteins and fats that delivers unrivaled results,” she said. “It works well for long-term applications, especially in situations where rodents are accustomed to fatty or oily diets.”

Once rodents eat FINAL Soft Bait, its powerful, single-feed active ingredient, brodifacoum (0.0025%), goes to work, controlling even difficult-to-control mice, according to the manufacturer.

The product also is formulated to remain effective in extreme hot and cold temperatures. In cold climates, the bait won’t freeze or become brittle. When temperatures and humidity rise, FINAL Soft Bait is both mold- and heat-resistant, according to Bell. “Even in very hot conditions, the bait maintains its shape on the bait rods,” Mella said.

The company recommends that PMPs use soft baits in a variety of treatment situations including:

• when rodents have grown accustomed to oily or fatty diets in or around an account;
• when slugs or snails are prevalent;
• as an alternative to traditional baits in cases of extreme temperatures; and
• whenever soft bait is the preferred bait form of a client.

“FINAL Soft Bait also features a hole in the center of each bait, allowing easy and consistent bait placement on bait securing rods,” Mella said.

In addition, fewer sachets per placement are required since each packet contains 15 grams of bait. “With the addition of Lumitrack, which aids PMPs in identifying and tracking rodents by making rodent feces glow bright neon green under UV lighting, we think FINAL Soft Bait is going to be a valuable addition to the marketplace,” Levy said. Rodent droppings help identify species type and track rodent activity (i.e., entry points, pathways, harborage areas, etc.).

“This product is intended to complement our existing range and is another tool pest management professionals can use to control rodents,” he said.

FINAL Soft Bait is available in 16-pound pails. For more information about the product or to download a copy of the label or MSDS, visit www.belllabs.com.
 

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BASF Introduces Termidor Foam

Ready-to-use formulation kills termites and carpenter ants in wall voids, galleries and other localized areas.

As termite control techniques have become more sophisticated over the years, PMPs have turned to a range of cutting-edge products to win the battle — if not the war — against this destructive pest.

The newest addition to the PMP’s control arsenal is Termidor Foam, a ready-to-use formulation of BASF’s rapidly expanding Termidor product line, which includes Termidor SC, Termidor WG, Termidor DRY and Termidor HE High-Efficiency Termiticide Copack.

“With Termidor Foam, PMPs can now apply Termidor in a formulation that is ideal for a localized treatment of an existing infestation or as a supplemental treatment in a more comprehensive structural protection program,” says Tom Nishimura, BASF market development specialist.

“If you look at where termites commonly take up residence (wall voids, galleries, interior expansion joints), it’s often difficult to get to the source of the problem,” Nishimura observed. “Termidor Foam allows you to treat those hard-to-reach areas quickly and easily.”

PMPs simply drill a small hole into the suspected harborage site, gallery or void, insert the injector tip, and discharge the foam. When dispensed, the formulation rapidly expands, generating dry foam with an expansion ratio of approximately 30:1, thoroughly covering the treatment zone.

“If you can isolate the problem, it may be all you need in some circumstances,” says Termidor Product Manager Chad Reese. “Using as part of the localized interior component of a PerimeterPLUS Exterior Perimeter/Localized Interior (EP/LI) treatment, Termidor Foam is another key component to an effective termite and ant elimination strategy.”

“Such applications are intended as supplemental treatments to, but not a substitute for, mechanical alteration, soil treatment or foundation treatment,” the label states. Termidor Foam should not be used as a stand-alone treatment for structural protection.

Development of Termidor Foam grew out of BASF’s commitment to innovation, particularly as it relates to its flagship product Termidor, in addition to feedback from its customers. “Our field sales people were telling us they were getting customer requests for a foam formulation of Termidor,” Nishimura said. “There were instructions on the Termidor SC and Termidor WG labels about how to perform foam applications, but a ready-to-use formulation was not available, so we decided to move ahead with developing the product.”

More than three years in development, the ready-to-use formulation — labeled for subterranean, drywood, dampwood and arboreal termites — is ideally suited for treating localized infestations in structures or “non-building elements” around buildings such as bridges, fencing, landscape timbers and wooden retaining walls. “Extending the use patterns outside has great utility for PMPs when designing a control program,” Nishimura observed. “This is an important feature of the product.”

The primary reason PMPs apply termiticidal foam is to improve coverage of the chemical, according to the Handbook of Pest Control. Foam readily disperses over and around obstacles (i.e., pipes, posts, etc.), as well reaches deep into insect galleries, making it a useful tool for performing localized treatments. In addition, Termidor Foam can be applied to previously treated sites if activity is found 30 days after the previous application.

Nishimura, a 26-year veteran of the industry, said BASF scientists worked overtime to create a foam formulation designed to meet the needs of modern-day termite technicians. “You want foam to push through treated areas and remain stable for an extended period of time in order to provide better surface contact and prevent run-off,” he said. “You don’t want it to go back to liquid too quickly; otherwise it could create a moisture problem.”

Nishimura said that’s particularly important when one considers the “range of substrates” PMPs encounter on a daily basis (i.e., untreated wood, sheet rock, plastic, etc.). “If foam dissipates too quickly, it’s going to run off, which is something PMPs want to avoid,” he said. “The longer it remains as foam the better the adsorption rate to receptive surfaces and the better the control.”

In addition to creating a long-lasting foam formulation, Nishimura said BASF scientists worked hard to “manage the chemical load” delivered to the treatment site. “You have to be careful not to have such high levels of active ingredient in the foam that the insects die too quickly,” he said. “If you kill social insects like ants and termites too quickly, you’re not giving them enough time to socialize with their nest mates and transfer a lethal dose of the product,” one of the key benefits of Termidor.

Nishimura also warned technicians not to over apply the product, but to carefully monitor the application to ensure efficient use of the termiticide, thereby controlling chemical costs. “You don’t always know what obstructions may divert the flow of the foam, so you need to apply the product judiciously,” he said.

Termidor Foam is also finding utility in the ant market, particularly for carpenter ants, another serious wood-destroying pest. “Controlling ants is all about identifying the nesting sites,” Nishimura said. Carpenter ants, for instance, typically overwinter in voids, where large populations can actually be heard if PMPs listen carefully with a stethoscope or acoustic emission detector. “If you can identify an ant problem in a void during the winter, it’s the perfect time to do these kinds of services,” Nishimura said.

“It’s a quick and easy treatment,” he said. “As a ready-to-use product you’re addressing the customer’s problem right now, so homeowners feel better about your service. You can mitigate these insects within 4 to 24 hours with Termidor Foam.”

In addition to ants and termites, BASF added a number of other wood-destroying insects to the label, including old house borers, powder post beetles and wharf borers. “Termidor Foam gives us an opportunity to have an even stronger presence in the general insect control market,” Nishimura observed.

The product comes packaged in six 20-ounce pressurized cans per case. Each ready-to-use can comes with an actuator tip and dispenser tube that works even when the can is inverted.

BASF is currently developing a variety of training and marketing materials for Termidor Foam, which will be available this spring, according to BASF. “We consider it part of our charter as a company to provide good stewardship of all of our products,” Nishimura said.

For more information about Termidor Foam or to download a label or MSDS, visit pestcontrol.basf.us.