Independent trials by the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) have shown that Univoq fungicide from Corteva Agriscience continues to be one of the leading treatments against septoria and rusts.

The trials, which entered their 30th year, monitor the performance of different fungicides, both as straights and as coformulations, to help guide product choice for farmers and agronomists.

Containing the Inatreq active molecule and the patented i-Q4 formulation, Univoq has a unique site of action, meaning there is no cross resistance to any other chemistry used on farms today.

“Univoq has consistently proven its ability to control key diseases, most notably septoria,” says Corteva’s Field Technical Manager Craig Chisholm.

“The 2023 AHDB fungicide trials back up what farmers have seen in the field for the past three seasons – Inatreq provides robust control against key diseases and great yield returns.”

Designed to maximise differences between treatments, the AHDB trials take place at high-risk locations, using highly susceptive varieties and data is collected from a range of sites, seasons and leaf layers to show average performance.

Individual trial data is not published, but the AHDB report says that, as in previous years, Univoq consistently demonstrated a superior yield return to many other fungicides on the market.

“2023 was the third year on the trot where the across years yield summary has shown clear daylight between Univoq yields and those of the next closest competitor,” says Mr Chisholm. “This demonstrates just how reliable the performance of Univoq is across seasons with varying characteristics.”

Fungicides faced a tough septoria test in 2023 with a relatively wet March and cool April driving early disease.