Strengthening its rice crop protection portfolio, UPL’s Ricebeaux, a early post rice herbicide developed over 10 years of research and validated through multi-locational trials offers broad-spectrum control of grasses, sedges and broadleaf weeds in rice cultivation

UPL Sustainable Agri Solutions, a global leader in crop protection and agri-business, today announced the launch of Ricebeaux, a smart herbicide designed for modern rice farming. Ricebeaux reflects UPL’s strong research and development capability and its focus on delivering advanced technology solutions for farmers. The product has been developed after more than 10 years of dedicated R&D and validated through extensive multi-location trials across major rice-growing regions in India.

Rice farmers today face rising weed management challenges due to erratic monsoon patterns and limited labor availability. Higher labor costs are increasing dependence on post-emergence herbicides, often leading to tank mixes, repeated sprays, or higher doses for effective control. At the same time, tough weeds such as Echinochloa crusgalli and Cyperus iria and difformis are becoming more widespread and harder to manage.

These challenges are driving the need for smarter and more efficient weed management solutions. Farmers are looking for a single application that can control grasses, sedges, and broadleaf weeds together. They want a solution that ensures crop safety, is easy to apply, and helps improve yield. There is also a growing need for solutions that can reduce complexity in the field and provide consistent performance.

Ricebeaux has been developed to meet these needs. It is a smart, broad-spectrum, systemic, early post-emergence herbicide that provides effective control of major weeds in rice. The product combines two proven active ingredients, Propanil and Penoxsulam, with different modes of action. This combination delivers strong and reliable weed control across key weed flora of grasses and sedges. Ricebeaux represents an advancement in herbicide technology from UPL. It offers a dual mode of action which helps in improving performance as well as managing herbicide resistance. The formulation provides both contact and systemic action, ensuring better and long-lasting control of weeds.

The product offers excellent crop safety and does not cause stress to the crop. It supports healthy crop growth and reduces crop-weed competition during critical stages. Ricebeaux is suitable for different rice cultivation methods, including transplanted rice and wet direct-seeded rice (Wet DSR). It is recommended for application at the 2–3 leaf stage of weeds for best results. Ricebeaux comes as a ready pre-mix formulation, which removes the need for tank mixing. This makes it easy to use and reduces operational complexity for farmers. Its smart formulation ensures convenience, flexibility, and consistent performance in the field. By providing effective weed control in a single application, Ricebeaux helps farmers save time, reduce cost, and improve productivity.