Summary:
At the turn of the year, the fungicide and insecticide industry is undergoing dual transformations driven by policy adjustments and market demand. From late 2025 to early 2026, a series of industry regulations have been intensively implemented, and demand for spring ploughing preparation has gradually released, accelerating the optimization of the industry competition pattern and leading to differentiated adjustments in the supply and demand dynamics of core technical materials. This report focuses on key industry trends, providing insights into spring pest control prospects and the market direction of technical materials.
1. Accelerated Policy Implementation Pushes the Industry into a New Stage of Standardized Development
Starting from January 2026, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs’ "One Product One Certificate" policy has been fully implemented, completely addressing the long-standing industry issues of "multiple names for one pesticide" and "license borrowing and counterfeiting". By strengthening the binding of product registration, trademarks and production entities, the policy has achieved full product traceability, forcing enterprises to shift their focus from OEM competition to R&D innovation.
The industry’s competitive landscape now centers on technological advancement, product quality and service upgrading, further highlighting the market advantages of high-quality leading enterprises.
In the meantime, adjustments to the export tax rebate policy for pesticide technical materials have taken effect, with tax rebates cancelled for some varieties. While this adjustment will restructure the industry profit pattern in the short term, it will accelerate the phase-out of backward production capacity in the long run. It also guides enterprises to upgrade to high-end technical material varieties and extend their business to downstream formulated products to enhance product added value, making the industry’s trend toward formulation and branding increasingly clear.
2. Supply-Demand Differentiation of Core Varieties: Clear Market Trends for Azoxystrobin, Abamectin and Other Key Products
From late 2025 to early 2026, the supply and demand patterns of core technical materials for fungicides and insecticides have shown differentiated characteristics, with market trends changing according to inventory adjustments and demand expectations.
Fungicides Sector
As a broad-spectrum core variety, azoxystrobin currently has sufficient market supply. Coupled with year-end inventory clearance by enterprises, its price has remained weak in the short term.
However, with the launch of pest control demand for cash crops in spring, the demand is expected to recover gradually, leading to improved market conditions. High-quality supplies of prothioconazole are tight, and the supply of chlorothalonil is constrained, making them noteworthy segments in the fungicide market.
Insecticides Sector
The abamectin market has not yet seen full demand activation, with stable enterprise operating rates and reasonable inventory levels, resulting in weak short-term market performance.
After the concentrated release of pest control demand for food crops during spring ploughing, the market supply-demand balance is expected to improve gradually, driving a rebound in industry prosperity.
Cross-Border Variety
Glufosinate-ammonium, which has both herbicidal and insecticidal properties, is currently in a tight supply-demand balance.
Although it faces slight downward price pressure in the short term due to rising cost sensitivity among growers amid low global bulk agricultural commodity prices, its long-term market prosperity will remain high, supported by the expansion of genetically modified crop planting areas and spring farming demand.
3. 2026 Spring Pest Control Outlook: Rigid Demand Release and Precision Prevention as the Mainstream
Spring is a peak period for crop diseases and insect pests. The prevention and control pressure of wheat scab, stripe rust, rice sheath blight, rice planthoppers, vegetable downy mildew and aphids is prominent. As a key material for ensuring agricultural production, pesticides have strong rigid demand.
January to March each year is the critical window for spring ploughing preparation, when the fungicide and insecticide market will witness the first demand peak of the year. In the food crop sector, the prevention and control of wheat and rice diseases and pests will drive the demand for fungicides such as azoxystrobin and difenoconazole. In the cash crop sector, pest control for vegetables and fruit trees will boost the sales of insecticides like abamectin.
Meanwhile, the green transformation of agriculture and the development of precision agriculture have formed a synergy. The promotion of intelligent pesticide application equipment and the deepening of precision prevention and control technology application are advancing steadily.
Policy support for precision pesticide application has also been further strengthened, driving the efficient, low-consumption and green application of fungicides and insecticides, and facilitating the high-quality development of the industry.
4. Notable Recent Developments of Leading Enterprises
On December 12, Hailir released its 2025 H1 and Q3 earnings briefing and held an online conference, focusing on core topics including production capacity layout and project progress. As of H1 2025, the company has built a full industrial chain layout with a total production capacity of 111,200 tonnes (including 32,700 tonnes of core technical materials and 78,500 tonnes of formulated products). It is a key global supplier of several core technical materials such as imidacloprid and will launch its new wheat fertilizer product Fudi Feng® in Q4 2025. The Phase II project of its core production base Hengning has entered trial production, while Phase III is scheduled for implementation in 2026–2027. Its innovative product fluchlordiniliprole is still under registration. The company invests over 5% of its annual revenue in R&D, focusing on technologies like green technical materials. Its market strategy adopts a dual-drive model of "technical materials + formulated products, domestic + international operations", with business covering more than 100 countries and regions, over 2,100 product registrations, and strategic cooperation with multinational enterprises such as Bayer.
On December 8, CAC Nantong Chemical Co., Ltd. obtained registration approval for four new compound formulations of cyproflanilide, a novel insecticide independently developed by the company, which are exclusively for export to the Cambodian market. Cyproflanilide is a new phthalimide-class insecticide classified under IRAC Group 30, featuring high efficacy, low toxicity and broad-spectrum control. Its 98% technical material and two formulations were officially registered in China on September 30, 2025, for use on crops such as Chinese cabbage and kale against pests like striped flea beetle, diamondback moth and beet armyworm.
The company’s flagship product Bestiga® was launched nationwide in Kunming on November 8, 2025. CAC had already obtained export registration for the technical material in 2024; among the 9 existing cyproflanilide-related registrations in China, 6 are for export-only purposes.
The company is advancing the global expansion of cyproflanilide through a dual-cooperation model: domestic partnership with CP Group and global strategic collaboration with UPL Crop since 2024 to jointly promote the R&D, registration and commercialization of cyproflanilide in over 40 countries. To date, cyproflanilide has been registered in markets including Cambodia and Paraguay, demonstrating its growing international presence.
5. Industry Outlook: Leading Enterprises Drive Pattern Optimization, with Innovation and Service as Core Competitiveness
Looking ahead to 2026, the fungicide and insecticide industry will demonstrate a development trend of pattern optimization and demand upgrading, driven by both policies and market demand.
Policies will continue to accelerate the phase-out of backward production capacity, further increasing the market concentration of leading enterprises with R&D advantages, compliant production capacity and sound distribution channels.
Industry competition will shift from price-based involution to comprehensive competition based on technological innovation, product quality and service capabilities. Full industrial chain layout and precision plant protection service capabilities will become the core competitiveness of enterprises. With the release of spring farming demand and the recovery of the global market, the supply-demand pattern of core technical materials will gradually improve.
The industry will steadily move toward R&D innovation, green production and precision services, providing solid support for safeguarding national food security and promoting the high-quality development of agriculture.
Sources: CCM-Cnchemicals, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of the People's Republic of China Official Website, China Pesticide Information Network, Hailir Pharmaceutical Group Co., Ltd. Official Website, CAC Nantong Chemical Co., Ltd. Official Platform, China Crop Protection Industry Association Official Website
About CCM
CCM is the leading market intelligence provider for China’s agriculture, chemicals, food & feed and life science industries. Founded in 2001, CCM provides price monitoring, trade analysis and customized market research.CCM also offers advertising and promotional services for herbicide producers and formulation suppliers, helping companies enhance visibility and connect with global distributors.
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