Leading With R&D

You’re busy running day-to-day business operations. You’re slammed with customer requests, HR issues, marketing challenges—the list is endless.

You’re probably not thinking about research and development (R&D).

But Syngenta is. It’s driven to bring cutting-edge resources to market to help pest management professionals (PMPs) succeed.

Great R&D helps you maintain a competitive edge. It delivers breakthrough solutions to meet changing regulations, customer needs and evolving pests.

New AI To Raise Your Game

An example of the commitment Syngenta has to R&D is PLINAZOLIN® technology, the first significant and new active ingredient (AI) and mode of action to be introduced to the pest management industry in more than 20 years.

As a non-repellent, non-pyrethroid chemistry, PLINAZOLIN technology works through contact and ingestion for broad-spectrum pest control. Upon registration by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), it will be a tool for resistance management for pests like cockroaches, bed bugs and mosquitoes.

“It will control all major resistant species. Exposed insects are quickly affected and it provides residual activity, with low environmental impact because it’s a very targeted mode of action,” says Lisa Eppler, technical services manager for Professional Pest Management (PPM) at Syngenta.

The first product to feature the new AI—to be marketed as Vanecto^® Cockroach gel bait—is expected to launch in early 2026, pending EPA registration.

It took about 12 years and $320 million to get here.

“Bringing a new active ingredient to market is complex. It’s time consuming, and it’s expensive,” says Eppler. She spent the first seven years of her career at Syngenta helping to develop PLINAZOLIN technology.

Listening to Make Products Better

More formulations of PLINAZOLIN technology are in the works. And that’s where formulation scientists like Dr. King Nelson, formulations development chemist at Syngenta, get involved.

“We put an AI into a form that can be readily used by PMPs in real-world conditions,” he explains. Does it work best in liquid or solid form, in a suspension concentrate or as water-dispersible granules? And how can we make it hold up in hot or freezing temperatures, rainfall and sunlight?

“The right formulations make it possible. Most of the time, you can work around these issues.”

Formulations are tested in the field. Syngenta technical services experts work with university researchers and sometimes PMPs to evaluate a product’s real-world performance.

Feedback at this point can turn a good formulation into a great one. That’s what happened while field-testing Advion® Trio cockroach gel bait. Customer insights inspired Nelson to tweak the formulation, and PMPs approved.

“It’s been one of our best launches of any cockroach baits,” says Marshall Gaster, head of marketing for PPM at Syngenta.

The technical services team is the bridge between R&D and customers. “They’re on the frontlines with PMPs; they get real-life feedback every day. They provide that insight back to our research and development colleagues,” says Gaster.

Improving Ease of Use

Even packaging gets reimagined based on customer feedback.

“Packaging is a big part of our products,” says Nelson. It keeps the product stable and makes it easy to handle, measure and use. Good packaging supports sustainability by reducing plastics use.

A recent example is the Demand® CS insecticide 10-gallon drum. It’s designed for PMPs who want to buy in bulk and access product from a central location. The drum has a built-in impeller for mixing and a square shape for easy stacking and storage. Additionally, purchasing one Demand CS 10-gallon drum unlocks membership in the 2026 PestPartners^SM 365 Program. (Learn how the program saves you money on page 12.)

A major investment in advanced 3D printers at the Syngenta facility in Greensboro, North Carolina, lets engineers quickly design full-size packaging prototypes, which are then tested for durability.

“If somebody has a unique packaging idea, the Syngenta team can typically have a new prototype printed within a few days, so it can be tested in the field,” explains Eppler.

What Syngenta Does Best

Bringing a new AI like PLINAZOLIN technology to market is no easy feat.

“Syngenta is one of the few companies left in pest management that actually does this kind of AI research,” says Gaster.

Investments in R&D facilities include a new Customer Engagement Center in Vero Beach, Florida, which has modern laboratories and space for internal training and product trials.

At the Greensboro facility, Syngenta upgraded 100,000 ft.² of existing lab space and added 36,000 ft.² of new lab space. Now multiple departments collaborate under one roof, creating solutions to help customers thrive.

PMPs are encouraged to visit. “We bring customers in and take them around to our labs. We do demos showing formulation and packaging innovations. It really is world class,” says Gaster.

Syngenta invests $2 billion annually to support R&D. It leverages 100 global research centers, knowledge from thousands of experts and ties to agriculture.

“We’re not just investing for success today, but investing for the future,” says Gaster.

Learn more about innovative Syngenta products and services at SyngentaPMP.com.