Rotenone is a plant-derived contact pesticide with good future application prospects.

Rotenone, also known as rotenol, is a natural toxic substance extracted from plants of the genus Roten and Buddleia of the Fabaceae family. It is also found in sweet potato seeds, bitter sandalwood, Kunming Millet Spatholobus root and other herbal medicines. Rotenone is soluble in acetone, chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, ether and other solvents, and is easily decomposed under light. Rotenone has a short half-life and does not pollute the environment. It is a natural, low-toxic, efficient and broad-spectrum pesticide.

Rotenone is a plant-derived contact insecticide and acaricide. Its mechanism of action is to affect the respiration of pests. By inhibiting the mitochondrial respiratory chain, the pests will have difficulty breathing, convulsions and other respiratory disorders, which will lead to sluggish movement, paralysis and slow death. Rotenone has the effects of contact killing, gastric poisoning, growth inhibition and antifeeding. It can be used to control tea loopers, cabbage caterpillars, tea caterpillars, tea silkworms, lion moths, black spiny whitefly, tea aphids, etc. Applicable crops include tea, fruit trees, vegetables , rice, cotton, etc.

According to the “China Rotenone Market Feasibility Research Report 2022-2026” released by the Industrial Research Center, rotenone is easy to decompose when exposed to light. It has no residue and has good environmental friendliness. It is an ideal medicine for green and pollution-free agricultural products. In my country, there are currently more than 25 rotenone pesticide registrations. The registered dosage forms include emulsifiable concentrate, microemulsion, soluble agent, technical substance, suspension concentrate, etc., among which the emulsifiable concentrate dosage form is the main one.

In terms of registered companies, registered companies for EC rotenone include Guangdong Xinxiutian Chemical, Guangxi Xerox Agrochemical Technology, Shandong Rushan Hanwei Biotechnology, Hebei Haoyang Chemical, etc.; registered companies for microemulsion rotenone include Guangdong Yuantian Bioengineering, Inner Mongolia Qingyuan Baobao Biotechnology etc.; registered companies for soluble rotenone include Yunnan Nanbao Bio; registered companies for suspending rotenone include Guangdong Yuantian Bio; registered companies for the original drug rotenone include Guangxi Xerox Agrochemical Technology, Hebei Tianshun Bio, etc.

Rotenone is easily decomposed when exposed to light, air, water and alkaline substances, so rotenone cannot be mixed with alkaline substances. In terms of compounding agents, rotenone can be compounded with fenvalerate, matrine aqueous agent, pyrethrin, imidacloprid, trichlorfon, phoxim and other products. Compound products can not only improve the efficacy and insecticide rate of rotenone, but also help solve the problem of resistance of garden plants and economic crops to commonly used pesticides. Rotenone compound products have great potential for development in the future.

Rotenone is a member of the rotenone plant family. The pure product appears as colorless rhombic flake crystals and has two enantiomers. Industry analysts said that rotenone is a plant-derived contact pesticide that is natural, broad-spectrum, environmentally friendly, and low-toxic. It is an ideal drug for green and pollution-free agricultural products. Under the background of increasingly strict environmental protection supervision, the application prospects of rotenone are promising.