Biagro Foli-Stop: Systemic Chelated Copper Fertiliser

03 August 2026, Valencia: Copper holds a dual identity in crop production: it is both an essential plant micronutrient, required for numerous enzymatic processes, and one of the longest-standing tools in disease management, valued for centuries for its activity against a range of fungal and bacterial pathogens. Foli-Stop was formulated to serve both of these roles simultaneously, combining copper salt with EDTA-chelated copper into a systemic fertiliser product that addresses copper nutrition while supporting the plant’s broader defensive capacity.

The combination of two copper forms in Foli-Stop’s formulation — a standard copper salt alongside EDTA-chelated copper — reflects a formulation strategy designed to balance immediate availability with sustained delivery. The copper salt component offers relatively rapid initial availability, while the EDTA-chelated portion provides greater stability and more consistent, sustained uptake, resisting some of the precipitation and fixation reactions that copper is prone to in various soil and foliar application conditions. This combination approach helps ensure both a prompt initial nutritional response and continued copper availability over an extended period following application.

As a plant micronutrient, copper plays essential roles in several critical enzymatic systems, including those involved in lignin synthesis — a structural compound that contributes to cell wall rigidity and, by extension, physical resistance to pathogen penetration — as well as various oxidative enzyme systems and photosynthetic electron transport components. Copper deficiency, while less commonly diagnosed than deficiencies in some other micronutrients, can manifest as reduced vigor, poor lignification, and generally increased susceptibility to various stress factors, including disease pressure, given copper’s role in structural and defensive plant functions.

The “systemic” characterization applied to Foli-Stop’s formulation is a particularly important formulation detail, distinguishing it from purely surface-level, contact copper products. Systemic movement within the plant means that copper applied through Foli-Stop can be translocated to some degree beyond the immediate point of contact, potentially offering more comprehensive coverage and protection compared to strictly contact-based copper formulations that only protect the specific plant surfaces directly reached by the spray application.

Copper’s long history in plant disease management, particularly against various fungal and bacterial pathogens affecting a wide range of crops, stems from its broad-spectrum mode of action — copper ions disrupt fungal and bacterial cellular processes in ways that make the development of resistance considerably slower and less common compared to many single-target synthetic fungicides. This characteristic has helped copper-based products maintain their relevance in modern disease management programs even decades after their initial adoption, often serving as a valuable rotation partner alongside newer synthetic chemistries specifically to help manage resistance development in pathogen populations.

Because Foli-Stop combines nutritional and defensive functions, its application timing can be relevant to both objectives simultaneously — supporting copper nutritional status during periods of active growth while also providing a layer of protective activity during conditions favorable to disease pressure. Many growers integrate copper-based products like this into preventive spray programs, applying ahead of anticipated disease-favorable weather conditions rather than purely reactively after disease symptoms have already appeared, reflecting the generally preventive rather than curative mode of action characteristic of copper-based products.

Practically, Foli-Stop’s liquid formulation supports foliar spray application, integrating into standard spray programs alongside other crop protection and nutrition products where compatibility allows, offering growers a dual-purpose tool that addresses copper nutrition and supportive defensive activity within a single application.

For growers looking to maintain both adequate copper nutritional status and a broad-spectrum layer of disease-suppressive activity within their crop protection program, Foli-Stop offers a systemic, dual-form copper solution designed to deliver both benefits together, complementing broader integrated disease management and nutrition strategies.

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