Karl Christian T. Caracas, May V. Tampus, Francis Dave C. Siacor
The growing demand for sustainable disease management in agriculture has driven continuous development in biofungicide formulation. Despite advances in microbial discovery and screening, the formulation stage remains a bottleneck for commercialization due to limited shelf life, low field efficacy, and scalability. This review critically examines the performance, suitability, and scalability of biofungicide formulations, encompassing conventional (dry and liquid) and alternative forms (cell-free supernatants, microbial metabolites, and encapsulated systems). Dry formulations provide stability and ease of handling, while liquid formulations enable rapid microbial deployment but require protective additives. Alternative approaches, including the use of purified metabolites and encapsulated microbes, address issues of microbial viability and delivery but face challenges in formulation standardization and large-scale production. This paper also highlights formulation improvement strategies that revolve in the use of sugars as cosolutes in encapsulated formulations and the use of spore-based agents to enhance field survival and efficacy. Future research should focus on linking formulation design with microbial physiology and ecological performance to develop scalable, stable, and high-performing biofungicides. © 2026, Thaksin University. All rights reserved.
Department of Chemical Engineering, University of San Carlos, Cebu, Cebu City, 6000, Philippines
