RNAi Technology

RNA interference — RNAi — is quietly reshaping how we think about insect control in row crops. The technology is already commercial: corn growers have had an RNAi rootworm trait since 2022, and potato growers got the first sprayable RNA product in 2024. But for soybean and cotton? Nothing is registered yet — and there are real biological reasons why. In this episode, we break down how RNAi actually works, why beetles responded first while caterpillars and sucking insects are a harder problem, what's in the pipeline for soybean and cotton pests, and what a realistic timeline looks like for row crop farmers. We also sort the independent university data from the manufacturer claims — because in a category this new, that distinction matters.