b'AkasproutsCompatibility on the Surfaceby Shaun Mueller Over the years, seed treatments have become an essen- looks to also increase problems like dusting, decreased tial part of responsible and sustainable agricultural practic- flowability, as well as potentially reducing germination rates. es. When the coloring of seeds became mandated as anSeeds treated with Akasprout as the colorant have shown identifier, the market had little choice when choosing adecreases in dusting, on various seed types, with some slight colorant to use. The only requirements were that the colo- increases of flow! Initial soybean trials also show that replac-rants formulation met EPA requirements. Suppliers of theseing standard colorants and effect polymers with Akasprout colorants were more than happy to offer products, whichproducts, in a typical soybean treatment formulation, led to met the EPA guidelines, but may have been designed witha 5% increase in plants per acre, a 4% increase in emer-other markets and applications in mind. Were these colo- gence, a 4% bushel per acre increase, and a 4% increase rants developed with the surface of the seed, the interplay ofharvest plot weight: all these improvements by a simple active and inactive ingredients, dusting, flowability, andchange of colorant. Akasprout is not solely responsible for microplastic content in mind? Or were they developed forthese improvements, it simply does not interfere with the markets like flexographic inks or water based latex paints?important products our customers have developed and Unfortunately, in most cases, it may have been the later.allows the seed to do what it wants to do naturally. Colorants typically offered to the seed market might have Uncoated Soybean Industry Standard Akasprout Red BBCNCSurface magnification shows how the compatibility of Akasprout leads to a smoother, more even surface. We believe this leads to a reduction in dusting and more even absorption of water and nutrients, with no negative effect on flowability.performed remarkably well in a packaging ink, but were they Vivify has developed a wide range of colors and special the best we can do for one of the worlds most valuableeffect dispersions that help formulators create a visual resources? At Vivify we knew the answer to that question,appeal that lets farmers know they can expect a quality and we thought the seed and you deserved better, so ourtreatment throughout. Vivify have developed enough colors R&D team developed Akasprout. to help with any of your branding needs, regardless of color space, but if there are specialty colors you require, our R&DAkasprouts development began with one simple idea,labs are always open to further development work. All create a microplastic free colorant that doesnt interfereAkasprout colorants are approved for use under 40 CFR with what the seed treatment was meant to do. We knew180.920; and as an added level of comfort, Vivify has had that if we could build around this one idea, we could help befourteen of our Akasprout colorants added to the EPAs Trade the color portion of a truly holistic treatment, but the resultsName Database.* Isnt it time to see what a change of color we found were even more than we had expected. Because ofcan bring? Color is the first thing your customers see, should Akasprouts unique formulation, which was designed specifi- it be the last thing you think about?cally for seed treatments, our customers found that their colored treatments remained stable for twice as long as*Most Akasprout colorants are listed under our previous before, thereby saving money and reducing waste. Thename, Aakash Chemicals.design specificity of the Akasprout formula is responsible for the wide compatibility seen across various treatment types, and it is this compatibility that practically eliminates agglomerates from forming on the surface of the seed. Studies indicate that agglomerations, forming on the surface of the seed, can not only affect the visual appearance, but'