Stine Seed Company: Advancing innovation with Enlist E3 soybeans

Date:11-28-2024

Stine^® Seed Company was one of the first companies in the U.S. to offer a large supply of Enlist E3^® soybeans when the trait first launched in 2019. As a company that prides itself on supporting innovation to improve the future of farming, Stine knew the need for the trait was significant. This is why Stine invested heavily in producing high-yielding Stine brand Enlist E3 soybean seed before many others in the industry. Since then, the percentage of U.S. acres planted with Enlist E3 each year has grown immensely. Enlist E3 soybeans now represent more than 50% of U.S. acres planted, and as of 2024, Stine is the second-largest Enlist E3 brand in the country.

″Our early investment in developing Stine Enlist E3 soybeans has allowed us to breed more new generations of seed than many of our competitors,″ says Tyler DuBay, soybean technical agronomist for Stine. ″This approach gives us the advantage of offering more unique Enlist E3 lines in a wider array of maturities to the market. Early adaptation allowed us to collect more data, such as differences between parents, brand placement, and combining technology with traits customers want within their soybeans.″

To break down the specific value of Stine brand Enlist E3 soybeans, it’s important to understand the Stine advantage.  

Elite research

Stine Enlist E3 soybeans originate from one of the most robust soybean breeding and research programs in the world. For more than six decades, Stine's research has focused on developing new, high-yielding material then building stock of it, prioritizing speed, efficiency and volume to ensure it’s delivered to growers’ fields faster than ever before.

″For the upcoming season, Stine is delivering 45 new Enlist E3 brands to the market. I like to say we’re the home of the new Enlist E3 varieties.″

--TYLER DUBAY, STINE SOYBEAN TECHNICAL AGRONOMIST

Stine’s ability to mass-produce the highest-yielding Enlist E3 lines comes down to numbers.

″In 2024 alone, we conducted 20,000 soybean crosses, 50% of which was Enlist E3-driven,″ says DuBay. ″We’ve been conducting Enlist E3 crosses for 12 years now; that’s seven years before anyone else started.″

Each Stine product goes through a rigorous journey before reaching its Elite Yield Trials program, beginning with its nurseries across North and South America. After crosses are completed, soybean lines move to Stine's development phase and are sent to Stine's off-season production facilities in South America where they turn as many generations as possible — upward of four generations in a year. Once a product reaches the F4 stage, it enters the Pre-Elite and Elite Yield Trials.

″We are extremely selective in our Elite Yield Trials program,″ says DuBay. ″We want to have extremely high confidence that our products stand well and yield uniformly. Our Elite Yield Trials give us the data to back each product. We test each one between 30–300 times to confirm performance and reassert confidence in all our offerings.″

Of the products that go through the Pre-Elite Yield Trials process, only 5% make it to the next phase, the Elite Yield Trials. From there, roughly only 2% of those evaluated make it to market. In 2024, only 0.88% were selected for advancement out of all varieties tested.

″We know what products will bring the most value to growers, and that’s why we immediately saw the potential of the Enlist E3 trait platform,″ says DuBay. ″Our breeding and research programs give us the competitive edge to bring better, newer Enlist E3 genetics to market faster than others.″

Better performance and easier management

There’s no question that Stine Enlist E3 soybeans deliver high-yielding, elite genetics for powerful season-long performance, but there are other important benefits that bring value to Stine growers.

″The three trait modes of action in the soybean provide extra defense against problematic weeds,″ says DuBay. ″Additionally, with the Enlist herbicide program, we see very little drift and reduced volatility compared to other herbicide programs when applied at the appropriate time and in accordance with label directions.″

Tolerance to a 2,4-D choline, glyphosate and glufosinate allows growers to use Enlist Duo^® or Enlist One^® herbicides for outstanding weed control. As part of the Enlist herbicide system, growers can lean on the powerful performance of Enlist Duo^® herbicide with Colex-D^® Technology, which is labeled for use over the top of Enlist E3 soybeans and contains a proprietary blend of glyphosate and Corteva Agriscience’s 2,4-D choline. This innovative technology offers near-zero volatility and has minimized potential for physical drift. Enlist Duo herbicide also boasts the same wide application window growers are used to with their normal glyphosate program.

Stine Enlist E3 soybeans feature outstanding plant health and agronomics, too.

″Our Enlist E3 soybean offerings have the Stine mentality,″ says DuBay. ″The plants are shorter and more upright, and they produce more branches and nodes. This design allows them to be planted in narrower rows and higher populations, equating to more plants per acre and more yield.″

DuBay also notes that Stine Enlist E3 soybeans are ″consistently easier to harvest.″

″The plants’ shorter stature and less biomass ensure the combine doesn’t get bogged down as badly as other trait platforms,″ he adds.

The STINE HAS YIELD advantage

The Stine Enlist E3 advantages come down to high-yielding genetics, more generations of material and the Enlist herbicide platform.

″To put the Stine advantage into perspective, our newest Enlist E3 lines provide, on average, a $26.00+/acre advantage compared to other Enlist E3 products in the industry,″ says DuBay. ″This is in part because we have more generations of material, so we’re also able to produce more yield data.″

This data also allows us to confidently report Stine Enlist E3 soybeans have trended +2.5% compared to other industry offerings in Stine's expansive Elite Yield Trials program.

″The STINE HAS YIELD advantage is clear. I’m really excited for growers to experience the powerful performance of our Enlist E3 lineup next year and all the value that Stine brings to the table.″

--TYLER DUBAY, STINE SOYBEAN TECHNICAL AGRONOMIST