Here’s how Corteva Agriscience is looking to introduce seed treatments in India

By Partha Sarathi Biswas

Ravinder Balain, President, South Asia, Corteva Agriscience, speaks to The Indian Express about the company’s plans on introducing Seed Applied Technologies (SAT) in India. The company, which is into both seed and crop protection, has plans to introduce best practices in India from other countries as well.

Q: What would be the division between crop protection and seed business?

A: We have been in India for about 50 years through the footprint of our company. In the seed segment, we operate in key crops – corn, rice, millets, and mustard — and we are in a leadership position in many of those. In the crop protection segment, we have solutions that focus on rice, corn, fruits and vegetables and span the whole gamut of herbicide, fungicide, insecticide and seed treatment categories. India is one of the key growth markets and we are committed to the long term.

Additionally, we offer Seed Applied Technologies (SAT) to provide the solution by coating the seeds with relevant treatment. (Seed treatments involve the application of chemical or biological substances, such as fungicides or insecticides, directly to the surface of a seed, safeguarding the seeds and seedlings against insects, fungal diseases and soil-borne pathogens). Seed treatment is used for paddy and maize crops in Indonesia and it has already been introduced in Thailand and China in the Asia Pacific region. We are gearing up to introduce similar seed-applied technology in India. We have already started field trials with rice farmers and have submitted our products for registration.

Q: What kind of investment has gone in for such development in India?

A: India is one of the key growth markets and we are committed for the long term. We think of it as a strategic supply base and not just for products today. Moreover, we also have one of the best pipelines.

We have been majorly involved in four key crops — corn, rice, millet and mustard. We breed hybrids for all these crops and have our breeding stations in different climatic zones with an advanced research Centre based out of Hyderabad. After breeding a hybrid, it is tested in varying growing conditions at farmers’ fields before getting commercialised. In addition to high levels of hybridisation in corn and millet crops, we are seeing increasing hybridisation in rice and mustard as well. Our unrivalled pipeline of crop protection innovations is designed to deliver solutions with unique differentiation and to enable enhanced crop management. Corteva molecules and formulations feature properties such as low effective use rates, favourable environmental impact and minimal toxicological profile.

We have been partnering with multiple external manufacturing companies across the country, including two figuring in a list of our five key strategic suppliers globally. We would continue to pursue a strategy of both in-house and third-party manufacturing.

Read more at The Indian Express.