Bayer CropScience plans to double seed treatment revenues in Brazil by 2016

Bayer CropScience as a market leader in Brazil plans to further invest heavily in innovative and costumer-centric solutions for growers, breeders and seed companies. “We are growing strongly in Brazil, the second largest market for Bayer CropScience worldwide bringing new solutions to our customers generating added value for their business”, said Sandra E. Peterson, Chairman and CEO of Bayer CropScience, speaking at the opening ceremony of the new Seed Treatment Application Center (STAC). “To further strengthen our business in Brazil, we plan to double our seed treatment revenues in Brazil by 2016”, added Peterson.

The recently completed building is located at Bayer CropScience's Center for Research and Innovation in Paulínia, state of São Paulo. “To enhance our offering in Brazil, we are sharpening our focus on core fields such as portfolio enhancement in Crop Protection, investments in seed treatment, new solutions in our seeds & traits business and operational excellence”, explained Peterson the key elements of Bayer CropScience’s strategy also reaffirming the company's commitment to the country. Excellent agro climatic conditions and significant acreage reserves, coupled with rising prices for agricultural commodities and an increasing demand for renewable raw materials speak for Brazil’s strong agricultural market.

Bayer CropScience will continue to focus its innovation efforts on novel crop protection products with new modes of action, new seed varieties of its established core crops and the development of agronomic traits with improved yield potential and higher quality. With one of the largest research & development expenditures in the industry (2010: €722 million), Bayer CropScience is investing significantly in customer based solutions from seed to harvest, in order to help safeguard harvests and increase yields of agricultural crops.

Investments in seed treatment in Brazil

"We are aiming to be a leader in the seed treatment market in Brazil”, Sandra E. Peterson pointed out. “With our new STAC, we are even closer to the Brazilian market, a key to the company, and increasingly focused on the needs of our customers," Marc Reichardt, Head of Business Operations Latin America Region at Bayer CropScience added. The STAC will serve as a center for the transfer of knowledge and technology, and will primarily aim to provide training to seed companies and breeders in soybean-, corn-, cereals- and cotton-producing regions.

The work of the STAC is based on four pillars: products, coating solutions, support and expertise in equipment as well as providing training, qualification and consultancy services. Marc Reichardt said that with the STAC, the company will further consolidate its position of going beyond providing innovative products. “Bayer CropScience is a company that offers complete solutions, from crop protection products to specialized services tailored to the customer's need, from training, application technology and capacity building to achieving top crop yield potential.”

Furthermore, the STAC specialists will work on optimizing new formulations and to adapt the seed treatment solutions to local conditions aiming to better serve farmers in Brazil, according to their needs. "With the Brazilian unit of the STAC, we will be able to meet the farmers' demands for customized seed treatments, providing all necessary support and increasingly contributing to the sustainable development of agriculture”, concluded Reichardt.