Field trials conducted by Cornell AgriTech found a Costa Rica-based company’s crop treatment controlled multiple diseases in vegetable crops, according to the manufacturer.
ClearLeaf announced Wednesday that trials of its product, GotaBlanca, were carried out during the 2025 growing season at Cornell AgriTech in Geneva.
Researchers evaluated the product on watermelon, table beet and sweet corn. The trials were led by Dr. Sarah J. Pethybridge and her team in Cornell’s Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology Section.
In watermelon trials targeting anthracnose, a fungal disease, the company said GotaBlanca provided disease control and produced the heaviest individual fruits among treatments tested, including conventional fungicides.
Trials in table beets focused on bacterial diseases that can reduce yield and quality. According to ClearLeaf, treated plants showed improved foliage development and root yields compared with untreated crops. The company said no phytotoxicity was observed.
In sweet corn, researchers evaluated the product’s performance against northern corn leaf blight. ClearLeaf said results showed disease control levels equivalent to conventional fungicide programs.
“Testing GotaBlanca on vegetable crops revealed an important dimension beyond disease control—the relationship between pathogen management and crop productivity,” Pethybridge said. She added that in the watermelon trial the treatment “produced the highest canopy readings and the heaviest individual fruits among all treatments.”
The company said the trials build on previous research involving apples and grapes and support the product’s potential use in row crops.
GotaBlanca is not currently registered for use or sale in the United States. The company said U.S. Environmental Protection Agency registration is in process.
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