DuPont Pioneer, Bunge to double plenish soybean acres

DuPont Pioneer and Bunge North America announced recently they will double acreage in 2014 of Pioneer® brand soybeans with the Plenish® high oleic trait.

For the 2014 growing season, Pioneer will again contract with soybean farmers in the Delphos, Ohio, region to grow Plenish® high oleic soybeans that will be delivered to Bunge’s facility for processing or to a participating elevator. Growers will be eligible for a processor-paid incentive for producing and delivering high oleic soybeans. The 2014 contract program will support ramping up of supply to meet increasing oil demand from food companies.

“Ohio growers have been successful with these innovative soybean varieties developed in Ohio, for Ohio fields,” said Randy Minton, DuPont Pioneer business director. “They offer a strong agronomic package and comparative yields to other Pioneer® soybean varieties. Doubling Plenish® acres for 2014 is confirmation that high oleic soybean oil is in demand from the industry. The opportunity to support market demand and earn more income per bushel is an offering we’re proud to partner on, and provide to Ohio growers.”

“We are pleased to be working closely with DuPont Pioneer and our farmer customers near Delphos to bring innovative products to market to meet the evolving demand of food manufacturers and consumers,” said Tim Gallagher, executive vice president, Bunge North America.

The development of Plenish® high oleic soybean oil is an important milestone for Pioneer in its efforts to bring product innovation to the food industry and complements solutions offered by DuPont Nutrition & Health to address the world’s challenges in food. High oleic soybean oil provides a soy-based trans fat alternative for food companies and foodservice operators. Plenish® high oleic soybeans from Pioneer contain the highest oleic content (~7 percent or higher) of any soybean product under commercial development.

The high oleic content significantly increases the stability of the oil and provides greater flexibility in food applications. Plenish® high oleic soybean oil has 0g trans fat per serving and 20 percent less saturated fat than commodity soybean oil, making it a more attractive ingredient for consumer food products.

The high oleic soybeans from Pioneer are developed using elite genetics and cutting-edge technologies. Field testing has confirmed yields on par with elite commercial products.
Plenish® high oleic soybeans are approaching completion of global regulatory approvals with over 96 percent of U.S. soybean export markets now approved.

Bunge North America (www.bungenorthamerica.com), the North American operating arm of Bunge Limited (NYSE: BG), is a vertically integrated food and feed ingredient company, supplying raw and processed agricultural commodities and specialized food ingredients to a wide range of customers in the livestock, poultry, food processor, foodservice and bakery industries. With headquarters in St. Louis, Mo., Bunge North America and its subsidiaries operate grain elevators, oilseed processing plants, edible oil refineries and packaging facilities, and mills in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.