There are a lot of soybean inoculants to choose from. Why buy premium soybean inoculant? Soybean inoculants have been around for a century in one form or another. But in that time the technology has changed. Today premium inoculants can save time, money, and stress while boosting yields and profitability.
With the costs of inputs still high and commodity futures trending lower experts are predicting thinner margins for soybean growers for the 2024 growing season (1, 2). In this environment it can be tempting to buy the cheapest inputs or even forgo inputs all together. However, when margins are thin is when slight benefits from premium products can increase net ROI. Like an Olympic runner, small percentages in crop production can be the difference between winners and losers.
“Inoculating your soybean seed is a simple and cost-effective insurance policy that ensures good nodulation,” says Doug Tigges US Sales Manager at XiteBio. As recently as 2023 experts have estimated that using inoculant can increase your yields by up to 2 bu/ac even on fields with a history of soybean cultivation (3). “A premium inoculant can give you a 1-2 bu/ac advantage over generic competitors,” says Tigges (4). “This can mean a difference of between 2-3 bushels an acre overall for a product that costs less than half a bushel an acre to apply.”
Producers are often looking for more than just yield in their inoculant. For retailers and seed dealers who choose to offer premium inoculants it is important to understand and promote all the features they can provide. These can include things like:
- Ease of Use
- Flowability
- All-in-one packaging
- Shelf Life
- Time on Seed
Dual inoculants that not only fix Nitrogen (N) but also access Phosphorus (P) are gaining in market share. Access to adequate P is linked to good pod development and resistance to abiotic stress in soybean crops (4).
XiteBio® SoyRhizo® offers all the benefits of a premium liquid inoculant (listed above) and is now CFIA approved for 120 days on-seed. XiteBio® OptiPlus® is an N-fixing and P-solubilizing dual inoculant that is popular with custom planters and liquid kit afficionados. This season we are seeing increased demand for our products. So don’t hesitate, order your premium inoculants today and join us on the road to healthier plants and better yields.
References
- https://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/farm-management/production-economics/pubs/cop-crop-production.pdf
- https://farmdocdaily.illinois.edu/2024/01/revised-2024-crop-budgets.html
- https://eupdate.agronomy.ksu.edu/article_new/inoculating-soybeans-is-a-good-insurance-policy-542-1
- https://xitebio.ca/xitebio-soyrhizo-premium-liquid-inoculant/
- https://extension.sdstate.edu/sites/default/files/2020-03/S-0004-25-Soybean.pdf