Data indicates a landmark year driven by new regulations, expiring patents, and strategic corporate shifts.
In 2025, China’s pesticide registration market experienced unprecedented growth, establishing a defining milestone for the industry. According to analysis of public data, the total number of newly approved pesticide product registrations for the year is projected to exceed 4,800, representing an increase of over 80% compared to the 2,622 registrations approved in the full year of 2024. This historic “registration wave” is the inevitable result of a unique convergence of policy, technology, market forces, and corporate strategy at a critical juncture.
This report, based on official and authoritative industry sources, cross-verifies and interprets the core drivers. The data confirms that this surge is not uncontrolled expansion. Instead, it represents a strategic reallocation of resources by the industry in response to clear expectations of “regulatory reset,” aiming to capitalize on “patent dividends” and pre-empt a “market reshuffle.” Its impact will profoundly reshape the competitive landscape of China’s pesticide industry.
A Panoramic View of the Core Drivers: A Four-Pillar Model Validated by Data
1. The Policy Compliance Wheel: The New Regulation “Window Period” as the Direct Catalyst
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Policy Core: Announcement No. 925 by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs mandates that, starting January 1, 2026, a “one registration certificate, one product (one brand)” policy will be enforced. This means products under the same registration certificate number must bear the same trademark, and commissioned manufacturing products cannot carry the contractor’s brand. This aims to eradicate the long-standing practice of “one certificate for multiple products” and unauthorized subcontracting.
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Market Reaction: The policy set a definitive compliance deadline, triggering an industry-wide “race for certificates.” Companies widely view registration certificates as a “strategic weapon” determining product viability for the next 5-7 years. By the end of November 2025, over 4,800 new certificates had been issued for the year—a staggering increase compared to the total of 2,053 certificates issued in 2023 and 2024 combined.
2. The Technology Dividend Wheel: Concentrated Patent Expiries Provide the “Ammunition”
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Data Validation: Active ingredients whose patents expired or entered the public domain around 2025 became the dominant force in new registrations. Registration data for technical materials shows leading numbers for components like Pyroxasulfone (20 registrations), Fluxapyroxad (14), Fluopyram (11), and Cyantraniliprole (10). These ingredients rapidly transitioned from a “patent-protected blue ocean” dominated by multinationals to an “open red ocean” fiercely contested by domestic companies.
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Industrial Significance: The rapid generic imitation and registration of these proven, efficient ingredients significantly reduced R&D risks and market education costs for companies, enabling a large number of firms to quickly expand their product portfolios in a short period, directly fueling the surge in total registrations.
3. The Market Resistance Wheel: Dominance of Mixtures Reveals Real Demand
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Structural Feature: Among new formulated product registrations in 2025, mixture formulations (2,601) far exceeded single-ingredient formulations (1,477), accounting for 63.8% of the total. Registration numbers were particularly high for combination programs centered on “Chlorantraniliprole +,” “Emamectin benzoate +,” and “Prothioconazole + Tebuconazole.”
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Underlying Logic: This is not mere product stacking but a direct response to the increasingly severe problem of pest, disease, and weed resistance in the field. Registration behavior has evolved from securing “market access permits” to a necessary step in building an “anti-resistance management toolbox” and providing systematic solutions.
4. The Corporate Strategy Wheel: Registration Certificates Become Core Competitive Assets
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Scale & Concentration: From January to September 2025, 90 pesticide companies had publicly announced registration quantities of 10 or more products, collectively accounting for 1,428 products or 40% of the total during that period. Leading firms such as Foshan Yinghui Crop Science Co., Ltd. (50 registrations) and Henan Hans Crop Protection Co., Ltd. (42) saw dramatic increases.
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Strategic Rationale: Under the new “one certificate, one product” rule, the previous business model reliant on leasing registration certificates will become unsustainable. The rush for certificates is essentially a scramble for future market “entry tickets” and “shelf space.” The number of certificates directly correlates with a company’s bargaining power in channel negotiations and OEM partnerships.
Key Data Cross-Verification and Insights
1. Clear Growth Trajectory, High Growth Set in First Half
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Registrations approved in the first half of 2025 reached 2,291, already nearing the total for all of 2024 (2,622).
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Publicly announced registrations from January to September totaled 3,491, surpassing the full-year 2024 approval count.
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These figures align with the year-end statistic of “over 4,800 certificates,” clearly outlining a trend of “high early activity, sustained momentum, and continuous surge” throughout the year.
2. Surge in Technical Material Registrations (+40%) Signals Upstream Competition
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Registrations for pesticide technical materials (active ingredients) in H1 2025 grew by approximately 40% year-on-year, reaching 119.
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Resources were highly concentrated in herbicides (54% share) and star compounds like Pyroxasulfone. This indicates that corporate competition is no longer limited to formulation development but is shifting upstream to secure technical materials, aiming to build long-term cost advantages and supply chain security.
3. Diverging Corporate Behavior Reveals Evolving Industry Structure
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“Leapers” & “New Entrants”: Companies like Anhui Meilan Agriculture (0→36) and Zhengzhou Zhengshi Chemical (2→19) achieved registration growth from zero or multiples of their previous counts, aiming to secure market positions during the policy window.
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“Steady Expanders”: Established leaders like Shaanxi Meibang and Shandong Weifang Runfeng maintained substantial growth on already large bases, solidifying their leading positions their product matrices.
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This divergence suggests the industry is evolving from a “pyramid” structure towards a “spindle-shaped” one, with a rising middle tier, foreshadowing intensified competition.
Conclusion & Outlook: From “Certificate Frenzy” to “Value Return”
The 2025 pesticide registration surge is the inevitable outcome of three historic forces converging on China’s pesticide industry: a regulatory paradigm shift (from “access management” to “structural management”), a technological cycle transition (concentrated patent expiries), and deepening market competition (resistance-driven formulation needs). At its core, it represents a pan-industry “preemptive reserve” and “strategic positioning” of resources critical for future survival and growth.
Looking ahead 1-2 years, the industry will undergo profound changes:
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Homogeneous Product Battles & Market Consolidation: Fierce, homogeneous competition surrounding popular certificates (e.g., for Glufosinate-P, Emamectin benzoate + Chlorantraniliprole) will lead to a significant number of certificates becoming “dormant assets,” triggering the first wave of industry consolidation through market mechanisms.
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Multi-Dimensional Competition Upgrade: The criteria for evaluating core competitiveness will fundamentally shift towards:
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Primary Competitiveness: Control over core technical materials and cost advantages.
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Secondary Competitiveness: Differentiated formulation technology and registration capabilities based on deep agronomic knowledge.
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Tertiary Competitiveness: Strong branding, distribution networks, and full-cycle crop solution service capabilities.
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Regulatory Focus Shifts to “Quality & Efficacy”: Following the registration peak, regulatory authorities will inevitably strengthen post-market supervision regarding the authenticity, efficacy, and safety of registered products, cleaning up “zombie certificates” and guiding the industry from pursuing “registration quantity” back to pursuing “product value.”
The Ultimate Revelation: The 2025 data represents a watershed. For companies, the “certificate race” has merely secured a ticket to the game.
