AgroPages-Bayer CropScience opens multi-crop breeding station in Hyderabad, India-Agricultural news

Marking yet another important milestone towards leadership in hybrid seeds, the Seeds business unit of Bayer CropScience India has inaugurated a multi-crop breeding station in Chandippa, located 46 kilometers from Hyderabad. The modern facility will focus on breeding and development of core germplasm for high performing hybrids in Rice, Cotton & Millet.

Spread over 36 acres, the high-tech breeding station will be equipped with all aspects of R&D infrastructure in the same location. These include - labs, open fields for trials, screenhouses and fully automated greenhouses built with international technology, which will be used to speed up breeding cycles. State-of-the-art laboratories will support activities in resistance breeding, tissue culture and qualitative testing. The new facility will also have a cultivable area of 25 acres for field experimentation.

“This is one of the most significant investments made by Bayer CropScience India over the last three years. Chandippa will serve as a strategic site for product development activities in India and Asia Pacific markets" emphasized, Stephan Gerlich, Country Group Head, Bayer in India, during the inauguration.

“Bayer CropScience strives to be a leader in its chosen crops, such as rice, cotton and millet. Our focus is on providing integrated crop solutions to the farmer. By developing a stronger footprint in Seeds, we aim to further strengthen our presence in Indian agriculture with our combined offering of state-of-the-art seeds & traits and modern crop protection products based on chemical and biological modes of action,” said Joerg Rehbein, Head of Bayer CropScience, Indian Subcontinent.

Earlier this year, Bayer CropScience announced that it will increase capital expenditures by Euro 1 billion to Euro 2.4 billion globally to expand capacities between 2013 - 2016. The investment in Chandippa is a proof point of Bayer CropScience's commitment towards this goal in India. Over the last three years, Bayer CropScience India has invested nearly Rs. 100 crores in various projects.

These include capacity expansion at its existing Seed Processing plant in Toopran near Hyderabad, a new mustard breeding station in Palwal, Haryana and the multi-crop breeding station in Chandippa. The Chandippa breeding station will have approximately 80 employees stationed at the site, who will work on developing key trait and breeding targets in the fields of yield assurance through insect and disease tolerance and yield enhancement etc.

A key highlight of the Chandippa breeding station is its rain water harvesting pond, which is a first of its kind facility in India and has been imported from the Netherlands. This fully automated system will harvest rain water, which will be filtered and utilized for cooling in the greenhouses.