Press Room
PBI/Gordon and Ishihara Sangyo Kaisha Announce Katana™ Herbicide
Marketing Agreement
August 2009
PBI/Gordon Corporation, a Kansas City, Missouri, company, and Ishihara
Sangyo Kaisha Ltd. (ISK) of Osaka, Japan, have recently announced
an agreement to market Katana™ Herbicide in the United States’ professional
turf management industry. Katana™ Herbicide contains flazasulfuron,
a fast-acting sulfonylurea herbicide compound. The label is held
by ISK’s United States subsidiary, ISK Biosciences Corporation
with headquarters in Concord, Ohio.
“We have been working
with flazasulfuron for some time,” says Tom Hoffman, senior
vice president and general manager for PBI/Gordon Corporation. “The
speed of ryegrass control for transition was our first interest,” he
continues. “But Katana™ provides significant sedge,
kyllinga and broadleaf control as well. We are quite pleased that
ISK has chosen PBI/Gordon as their marketing partner in the United
States professional market,” Hoffman stated.
Katana™ will
be marketed for sedge, broadleaf weed and grass weed control as well
as a ryegrass transition-aid product for bermudagrass, zoysiagrass
and centipedegrass turf in golf course fairways and roughs, commercial
turf, athletic fields, cemeteries and sod farms, according to Doug
Obermann, product manager for Gordon’s Professional Turf and
Ornamental products.
In university tests, Katana™ has excelled
in removing cool-season grasses from warm-season turf, including
ryegrass, clumpy ryegrass, Poa annua, Poa trivialis and annual ryegrass.
In addition to kyllingas, sedges and clumpy ryegrass, Katana™ also
controls a broad spectrum of broadleaf weeds, reports Obermann. Katana
has both foliar and root uptake and, like other sulfonylurea products,
is effective at very low rates. Katana’s speed is second to
none for this class of herbicides. Applications of Katana also have
some residual control.
“Katana will be a great addition to
our ProFrom® product line,” says Obermann. “Like
our other ProForm® products, Katana™ is fast-acting and
provides superior cool-weather performance,” he continues.
Katana™ Herbicide is undergoing extensive cooperator trials
this summer and will be in nationwide distribution for the 2010 season.
PBI/Gordon Corporation, a 100% employee-owned company founded in
1947, is based in Kansas City, Missouri. PBI/Gordon, best known for
the Trimec®, SpeedZone® and Q4® herbicide brands, has
been formulating products that maximize performance and efficiency
for over 60 years. PBI/Gordon is a national leader in the professional
turf and ornamental management industry.
ISK Biosciences Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ishihara
Sangyo Kaisha, Ltd of Osaka, Japan. With headquarters in Concord,
Ohio, ISK Biosciences has primary responsibility for development,
registration and logistics for ISK’s products in the Americas.
ISK, founded in 1920’s, is one of the leading manufacturers
of organic and inorganic chemicals with core businesses in titanium
dioxide pigments and proprietary agrochemicals and organic intermediates.
The company has a fully integrated agricultural chemicals business
with research and development, marketing, registration and production
operations. For additional information concerning ISK Biosciences,
visit www.iskbc.com or www.iskweb.co.jp/eng/company/history_02.html.
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Mr. Richard Martin, (left) president and chief executive officer
PBI/Gordon Corporation and Mr. Yoshiaki Hishitani, (right) general
manager and marketing division of Ishihara Sangyo Kaisha Ltd. |
Press Contacts
Mary Ellen Scheib
Marketing Specialist
(816) 460-6216 |
