Figure: BRS 437 B2RF is a transgenic cultivar with multiple resistance to diseases, especially ramularia leaf spot, considered the main cotton disease in the country. Photo and caption from Embrapa.

The BRS 437 B2RF and BRS 500 B2RF are transgenic cotton cultivars that feature multiple resistance to diseases and pests, and other favorable agronomic traits. Both were pre-launched on June 2, 2022, by the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) and Fundação Bahia during the Bahia Farm Show, the largest agricultural fair in the north and northeastern parts of Brazil.

B2RF stands for Bollgard II Roundup Ready Flex technology and confers resistance to the main species of caterpillars that infest cotton and to glyphosate at all stages of crop development. BRS 437 B2RF has multiple disease resistance that mainly targets ramularia leaf spot disease, a major cotton disease that requires around eight applications of fungicides per crop on conventional cotton varieties. BRS 437 B2RF is also resistant to blue disease bacteriosis, common mosaic disease, and root-knot nematode. It has the potential to produce as much as 6,015 kilos per hectare of seed cotton and 2,425 kilos per hectare of lint.

BRS 500 B2RF, on the other hand, is a transgenic cotton cultivar that also features high productivity and production of medium-length white fiber. It also has resistance to caterpillars, glyphosate, ramaluria leaf spot disease, and root-knot nematode.

Read more about these new transgenic cotton cultivars in Embrapa.