Syngenta to develop high-sugar-content technology in cane

Date:12-17-2009


• Technology will raise sugar yields in cane
• Company signs SugarBooster™ licensing agreement with CSR Sugar
• Development to strengthen Syngenta technology offer in sugar cane

Syngenta announced today that it will be accelerating the development of innovative technology that will dramatically increase the sugar content of cane. The technology will be based on Syngenta’s own biotech research in combination with SugarBooster™ a technology that uses genetic modification to introduce an enzyme into a plant to help increase sugar content. Syngenta has signed an exclusive license agreement for SugarBooster™ with CSR Sugar, a sugar and renewable energy company from Australia.

"The combination of SugarBooster™ with our own sugar cane biotechnology will help accelerate our effort to maximize the yield of sugar per hectare of sugar cane. The development of sugar boosting technology will bring our customers productivity gains and economic benefits in meeting the increased demand for sugar and ethanol,” said Marco Bochi, Head of New Technologies in cane for Syngenta in Latin America.

Syngenta has acquired exclusive global rights, Australia excluded, to SugarBooster™ for key sugar crops. The license agreement includes milestone payments and royalties on product sales to CSR Sugar. Additional terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Syngenta has more than 40 on-going projects at various stages aimed at improving agronomic performance, insect control, weed control and sugar elevation. In 2008, the company announced the development of Plene™. Through the planting of four centimeter buds treated with Syngenta products, this technology will bring significant reduction in planting costs per hectare, in addition to environmental benefits due to reduced soil compacting.

According to FAO, by 2050 the world population will grow to nine billion people and global food production will have to increase by 50%. Syngenta invests in innovative technologies to grow more from less land in order to respond to the global challenge of increasing demand for food, feed and energy.