Expiration Date Prediction of Biocontrol Agent Prepared with Bacillus subtilis B579 Using the Accelerated Aging Method.

The expiration date of biopesticidal products is an essential feature of their use and storage. In the present work, the expiration date of biocontrol agent was predicted using the accelerated aging method. The available bacteria in Bacillus subtilis B579 biocontrol agent were 3.7 +/- 0.2x10(11)CFU/g. It is calculated that the expiration date of the agent was about 17 months at 25 degrees C. During this period, the available bacteria retained more than 90% of the value in the initial product. Thus, this work suggests the expiration date of biocontrol agents composed with spores could be estimated using the accelerated aging method.