It's rare when you hear about a truly new approach to crop protection. Usually, it's just two existing products that have been reformulated together, and the name updated with Gold, Plus or Pro.

Well, here's a new crop protection category - biological seed treatments. And they're green - that's right… sustainable and safe to the environment.

Never heard of a biological? You're not alone - a biological is a living or non-living organism from a natural plant extract that provides protection to a seed or young plant from fungi, insects or nematodes.

Biologicals offer a different avenue that is a more natural approach. According to Dr. Jennifer Riggs, Bayer CropScience Product Development, even in the absence of pests, use of a living or natural product can induce or cause a plant to be healthier, and they do that by turning on a gene or protein in the plant that can trigger a growth response.

With the anti-biotechnology stance in Europe, it should come as no surprise that the use of biologicals is gaining momentum, especially in EU countries. In North America, use is expanding which is building a platform for the value that biologicals can bring. When the industry sees products become successful, that always opens the door to more products coming into the marketplace.

Dr. Joe Kloepper, plant pathologist at Auburn University, agrees, noting that he is part of a very active international PGPRs (plant growth promoting rhizobacteria) community. There is also strong interest in biologicals/PGPRs in the developing world, and Kloepper expects to see strong growth in China's research and development of biologicals as well.

Since Bayer CropScience is the first multi-national agricultural chemical company to market a biological product as a seed treatment, there is strong international interest in their technology, he said. Everyone's watching.

To read more about biologicals, click here.

In my inaugural edition, I told you that I'd always give it to you straight, so I will add that I didn't just hear Dr. Riggs speaking and learn about biologicals. Prior to my editorial position, I helped the Bayer team launch VOTiVO, one of the products in their biological portfolio.

So, I've seen biologicals in action under a microscope; I've walked the university field plots; I've seen the yield data. And I believe that biologicals are going to be important to agriculture in the future.

Dr. Kloepper's comment "Everyone's watching" is very telling. The global agricultural industry is seeking ways to be more sustainable. And that is important to all of us.