Nunhems: Over a century of seeds

Editor's note: This article was originally published in Italian. This English summary has been prepared with Google Translate and edited for clarity.

A story born in 1915, that of Nunhems , when a merchant named Herman Meddens started looking for a house in the country. He spotted it in the Dutch Limburg, in the castle of Nunhem. In 1916 Meddens used the land annexed to the castle to start the production of fruit and vegetables, but the disappointing prices of that time made him realize that there was another way to go.


From there began the epic of Nunhems, a company that has expanded to touch the 200 varieties recorded between 1952 and 1977, up to now 24 crops for about 2,600 varieties . Nunhems is currently present directly in about 40 countries in the world and still sells its seeds in at least one hundred.

After the acquisition in 2002 by Bayer CropScience, the brand has now moved to BASF, which continues to enrich the offer of its Agricultural Solutions division. The operation has a significant impact also in Italy, strengthening the segment of vegetable seeds.

In Italy it has been operating for more than thirty years and today has an organization of 80 collaborators, of which over 40 are involved in R & D. The Sant'Agata Bolognese site, the company's administrative and production headquarters, hosts a center of excellence for research and development of horticultural species of worldwide importance, supported by a phytopathology laboratory that carries out analyzes on the various pathogens.

Nunhems Italy will continue to operate on the Italian market with its own brand and will continue in the processing of seeds, with the aim of obtaining valuable seeds also with the aid of advanced technologies, in compliance with the standards required by the market.

Strong satisfaction with Alberto Ancora, BASF's head of business management crop protection South Europe, who declared: "We are very proud to welcome new Nunhems colleagues into our team. This operation has a particularly significant value for the Italian market, where horticultural crops are an excellence and offers us new opportunities for growth and development. The entry of a reality of proven success and innovation extends the offer of BASF solutions for the farmer: with today our customers will have access to an even greater number of tools and professional skills to increase yield, quality and profitability of the crop " .

For his part, Jose Antonio Reyes Salinas, country head of Nunhems Italy, added: "We are really happy to be part of BASF because we share values ​​and passion for agriculture and innovation . It is a matter of pride and of great responsibility to be part of this great group. The synergies within the Agricultural Solutions division will be a great opportunity for growth for the two businesses that will allow us to be an even stronger reference point in the Italian scenario ".

Original article:Oltre un secolo di sementi----Nunhems è entrata a far parte di BASF, rafforzando considerevolmente la presenza del colosso tedesco nel settore delle colture orticole