Syngenta Thrive

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Lower interest rates and longer repayment periods make the annual burden of servicing debt easier. This is an intuitive management concept, and it is exactly what we’ve observed over the last several decades in U.S. agriculture.

To illustrate this concept, the adjacent graph shows the annual payment required to service $1,000 of farm machinery debt. At the extreme, the Farm Machinery Debt Service Index exceeded $1,600 in 1982 and spent the first half of that decade above $1,000. This occurred because of high interest and extremely short repayment terms. In the early 1980s, the interest rates on farm machinery peaked at 17.9% in 1981, and repayment terms were a low of 8.36 months in 1982. Not ideal times to carry significant amounts of debt.

Since 2013, the index has been below $400. This is significant as the Index previously dipped below $400 in 1994 ($387) and in 2011 ($384). In 2020, the annual data reached an all-time low of $287. For 2021, the Index remains historically low at $305 but turned higher due to shorter repayment terms (43.1 months in 2021 versus 46.7 months in 2020).

A line chart showing declining annual debt service for farm machinery
Farm Machinery Debt Service Index, annual. 1977-2021. Data Source: KC Fed and AEI.ag calculations.

Interest Rates Versus Repayment Periods

Between 2020 and 2021, the Index jumped from $287 to $305. Within the underlying data, interest rates fell (4.78% to 4.18%) while repayment periods contracted (46.7 months to 43.1 months). This raised the question: which factor — interest rates or repayment terms — was the driving force behind small annual payments?

In 2000, the Farm Machinery Repayment Index was more than $600. By 2021, however, the index fell by roughly half, to $305. Comparing the terms for those two periods, you’d find that of the roughly $300 decline in the Index, $40 can be attributed to lower interest rates (13%), while $267 (87%) is attributable to longer repayment terms. More specifically, the terms in 2000 were a 9.3% interest rate repaid over 22.4 months, and the terms in 2021 were a 4.18% interest rate repaid over 43.1 months.

Why are repayment terms so important? It’s easy to overlook, but moving from a roughly two-year to a four-year repayment period significantly reduces the annual repayment of principal. The Farm Machinery Index is a bit unique in that the repayment periods have roughly doubled since 2000. While repayment periods have likely extended for other types of farm loans, it seems unlikely that the terms across the sector have doubled for, say, real estate loans.

Wrapping it Up

While much attention in 2022 has focused on rising interest rates, and with good reason, don’t overlook repayment periods. Over the last two decades, farm machinery repayments have nearly doubled, which has also reduced the annual debt service burden.

Low interest rates make extended repayment periods attractive for borrowers. However, higher interest rates may make short repayment periods appealing, given concerns about interest expense. A combination of higher interest rates and a short repayment period would cause the index to jump significantly. In this scenario, a farm with the income to service, say, $50,000 of debt annually would find itself utilizing less debt.

David and Brent are the co-founders of Ag Economic Insights (AEI.ag). Founded in 2014, AEI.ag helps improve producers, lenders, and agribusiness decision-making through 1) the free Weekly Insights blog, 2) the award-winning AEI.ag Presents podcast – featuring Escaping 1980 and Corn Saves America, and 3) the AEI Premium platform, which includes the Ag Forecast Network decision tool. Visit AEI.ag or email David (david@aei.ag) to learn more. Stay curious.

 

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  • HI-Edit™ technology quickly introduces genetic changes in crop varieties.
  • The goal is to deliver better seeds to growers, faster.
  • The program is currently focused on corn, but it can be expanded to other crops.

 

Consider your smartphone. It places more computing power at your fingertips than people 20 years ago could imagine, and it’s right there in your pocket. The first computers were the size of entire rooms, immensely expensive, and required specialized training to operate. Computer technology wasn’t widely distributed, but thanks to the invention of the microchip and other technological improvements, smartphones are commonplace. The smartphone is amazing because of what it can do, but also because it’s right there in your pocket.

Tim Kelliher suspects HI-Edit™ technology will revolutionize seed production in a similar way.

“HI-Edit is basically a faster way to bring biotech to farmers,” says Kelliher, Ph.D., head of technology development and science fellow with Syngenta Seeds and one of the inventors of the HI-Edit technique. “It allows us to make genetic changes to commercial varieties without a lot of lab and greenhouse costs and time.”

How HI-Edit Helps

HI-Edit, or Haploid Induction EDITing, introduces genetic changes in crop varieties quickly. This new biotechnology cuts the genome-editing process down to one step by installing CRISPR, a protein enzyme that allows researchers to precisely alter DNA sequences and modify gene function, in a haploid induction line. Researchers then cross the HI-Edit line to commercial crop varieties, and the CRISPR makes a precise modification in the DNA sequence of those varieties. Because it’s in a haploid inducer line, the CRISPR enzyme and the haploid inducer DNA are eliminated from the resulting seed, which contains only the original crop variety’s genetic material with the modified genetic sequence.

Rather than inserting CRISPR to edit all commercial varieties or making edits and breeding them into commercial varieties, a CRISPR insertion to a HI-Edit line need only be made once. The researchers then use that line to fertilize plants from the commercial varieties. The resulting embryos inside the seeds match the original commercial varieties except for the desired trait. This process removes the need for generations of selection and backcrossing or making individual CRISPR edits to many commercial varieties, saving vast amounts of time and resources.

“Where HI-Edit comes in is when we want to make specific changes to a bunch of different varieties,” Kelliher says. “If we tried to use CRISPR on all commercial varieties it would take too much time, money, technology and expertise. So instead of making the edit in a donor line and crossing it in, we make it in the haploid inducer line, cross it once and put the edit directly into those commercial varieties.”

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HI-Edit is basically a faster way to bring biotech to farmers. It allows us to make genetic changes to commercial varieties without a lot of lab and greenhouse costs and time.

Tim Kelliher, Ph.D. Head of Technology Development and Science Fellow Syngenta Seeds

HI-Edit cuts down the time of introducing new traits by years and at a much lower cost. It will potentially offer growers quicker access to commercial seed varieties with traits like better protein, drought tolerance, disease resistance and more. The goal is to deliver better seeds to growers, faster, through innovation.

“This is good news because growers are going to get the latest and greatest traits by a simple change in the genetic sequence years sooner than they would otherwise,” Kelliher says.

Genome Editing vs. GMOs

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs), according to traditional thinking, are organisms that have had a foreign piece of DNA, a piece that’s totally different from what’s in the natural organism, inserted into them. A well-known example is Bt11 corn, which uses a gene from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), a common soil bacterium that produces several insecticidal proteins.

The Bt gene is responsible for producing a protein toxic to European corn borer. The Bt11 corn, now producing this protein, kills European corn borer larvae when they feed on the plant. This sort of modification, the insertion of a completely foreign bacterium gene into the corn genome, is a traditional GMO.

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Genome editing, on the other hand, is when scientists make slight alterations to a genetic sequence already within the organism. The HI-Edit process falls under the genome editing category, rather than GMO.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued regulatory guidance on genome editing that establishes exemptions for plants modified by genetic engineering where the modification could otherwise have been made through conventional breeding. At this time, regulatory guidance on HI-Edit will depend on the type and size of the edits. This guidance is currently evolving as the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) replaces the current review process. Under the new process, developers voluntarily submit information on genetically modified plants to APHIS, which then determines if the modified plant requires USDA approval.

Exportation of genome-edited products is also influenced by the fact that regulations vary from country to country.

“If we are to foster an environment that supports continued innovation and maintains the U.S.’ leadership role at the global level, we must ensure that USDA works closely with the Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency to ensure consistent, science-and risk-based policies across the U.S. government, while continuing to take a leadership role in working towards alignment at the international level,” says Mary Kay Thatcher, senior manager, federal government and industry relations at Syngenta.

The HI-Edit process is currently focused on corn but can be used on other crops like rice and wheat. Syngenta hopes to expand the process for use on other crops. The anticipated release date for gene-edited seeds using this process is still a few years away, but Syngenta sees the promise a biotechnology like this has for helping farmers get the most from their land. Kelliher says he is hopeful that in the not-too-distant future, this exciting biotechnology will deliver the latest and greatest seed traits to farmers on a larger scale than ever before.

Kelliher believes new technology is wonderful. Distributing it widely to those it benefits is even better.

PLANT BREEDING 101

In the context of plant breeding, a trait is a characteristic exhibited by a plant. It could be something like drought tolerance, stalk strength, resistance to a specific disease, or increased yield. The ag science community constantly researches which genetic sequences impact traits that bring value to farmers. Scientists usually learn about the genetic sequence responsible for a desirable trait while studying one specific variety. The challenge becomes how to transfer that desirable trait into many varieties.

Traditionally, the variety with a desirable trait is bred with other varieties in which scientists also want it to appear. Plant breeders carefully select and backcross the offspring of those varieties that exhibit that trait and then repeat that process with each generation until eventually a stable variety with the trait emerges. That process typically takes six or seven plant generations, requiring a significant investment over several years.

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Syngenta currently invests about $1.5 billion in research and development each year. If Syngenta discovered a genetic sequence that improved drought tolerance and decided to add that trait into the many existing varieties optimized for specific geographies, the traditional process would require breeding and backcrossing each existing commercial variety.

HI-Edit, however, makes it possible to move those lines more efficiently. The HI-Edit process leans into the basics of sexual reproduction:

When a sperm with its male chromosomes fertilizes an egg with its female chromosomes, together they form a zygote, which contains chromosomes from each parent. The sperm or the egg is a haploid, containing only a single set of chromosomes. The zygote is a diploid, containing a complete set of chromosomes from each parent.

But some plants are haploid inducers. Haploid inducers cause female plants to produce seeds containing embryos that include only one parent’s genetic material, or a haploid embryo.

That’s where HI-Edit goes to work.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This document contains forward-looking statements, which can be identified by terminology such as ‘expect’, ‘would’, ‘will’, ‘potential’, ‘plans’, ‘prospects’, ‘estimated’, ‘aiming’, ‘on track’ and similar expressions. Such statements may be subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from these statements. For Syngenta, such risks and uncertainties include risks relating to legal proceedings, regulatory approvals, new product development, increasing competition, customer credit risk, general economic and market conditions, compliance and remediation, intellectual property rights, implementation of organizational changes, impairment of intangible assets, consumer perceptions of genetically modified crops and organisms or crop protection chemicals, climatic variations, fluctuations in exchange rates and/or commodity prices, single source supply arrangements, political uncertainty, natural disasters, and breaches of data security or other disruptions of information technology. Syngenta assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, changed assumptions or other factors.

© 2022 Syngenta. HI-EditTM and the Syngenta Logo is a trademark of a Syngenta Group Company. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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  • Seeds well-suited to a specific geography help maximize yield potential.
  • Traited seeds also meet growers’ insect/disease pressure needs.
  • While traited seeds cost more up front, they contribute to a better bottom line.

 

Those who ask Tim Main about challenging decisions on his farm today can expect a conversation on seed selection. He and his brother, Todd, maintain a 50-50 corn and soybean rotation in a no-till production system in Altona, Illinois.

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We expand the geographic footprint for seed as it goes through testing. We determine what works and share that data with our seed partners so they can help each farmer rank seed on performance and tweak product selections for their fields.

Judd Maxwell Corn Product Placement Head, Syngenta

“Seed selection for both crops has changed so much over the years,” says Main, who has farmed for more than 35 years. “I used to sell seed, and that meant meeting with farmers after harvest to take orders for the next year. Now, with traited seed that works with specific herbicides and insecticides, we are choosing systems and seed for the following year well before harvest.”

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Expert Insights

Main increasingly relies on local seed representatives to learn which hybrids and varieties are mostly likely to perform well in his fields. He counts on their first-hand knowledge of seed performance in company trials.

“They know what will work geographically and has the right traits to help us increase yield potential, reduce input use, and add to our profitability,” Main says.

Wesley Hancock, Ph.D., Syngenta soybean breeding project lead, says his teams analyze data from test plots to determine which growing environments and geographies work best for each variety. They evaluate seed for two seasons and match varieties to the specific conditions the seed is most likely to face — for example, disease pressures in the Midwest versus those in the Southeast.

“We always look ahead to assure we breed for changes in pest resistance and other production factors,” Hancock says. “Soybean growers currently have two main soybean herbicide trait choices from Syngenta, Enlist E3® soybeans and XtendFlex® soybeans. We aim to be a provider of choice by testing each trait in the same geography to match genetics for each environment. With performance-based testing, nothing that fails is released.”

Selection Scenarios

As is the case with soybeans, selecting corn seed well-suited to a specific geography helps farmers maximize yield potential and take advantage of growing-season length.

Judd Maxwell, Syngenta corn product placement head, says his team broadly tests seed products as they move through the pipeline, determining where products best fit. Nationwide testing and local weather adaptation provide regional performance data.

“We expand the geographic footprint for seed as it goes through testing. We determine what works and share that data with our seed partners so they can help each farmer rank seed on performance and tweak product selections for their fields,” Maxwell says. “Each hybrid in our broad-based portfolio has two years of genetic and trait combination evaluation, just like soybeans.”

Maxwell agrees with Main that while yield potential is critical to seed selection, potential return on investment is the broader, and more significant, consideration.

“Seed is priced on yield potential. A farmer that uses a lot of inputs may want to spend more on seed with a higher-yield starting value to generate top yields, while farmers with a less intensive management style should choose seed based on potential for consistent return,” Maxwell says.

Main sets high profit goals. “Traited seed costs are higher, but we find the bigger investment has a bigger impact on success,” Main says. “It all trickles down — ultimately — to a better bottom line.”

Product Performance Factors

In addition to geography, Maxwell advises farmers evaluating corn seed to consider trait technology needs that fit their management practices, such as crop rotation, or insect and disease pressure. “Every trait has a different impact on product performance,” he says. “For example, if corn rootworm is a problem, select seed with traits to manage underground insects. If a specific disease is a challenge, look for hybrids with protection from that specific disease.”

Products from Syngenta can address several corn challenges. Duracade™ trait stacks offered in elite genetics provide multiple modes of action to battle corn rootworm. DuracadeViptera™, on the other hand, controls above-ground insects, including western bean cutworm and corn earworm. Combining both traits provides control of 16 above- and below-ground pests.

“Farmers can select traits based on the geographic need and past history of their fields,” says Tim O’Brien, Ph.D., Syngenta traits product manager. “Genetics provide the yield potential while traits protect that yield potential. And in the case of corn rootworm, which has been on the rise in some regions for the last two seasons, farmers should have a multi-year plan using different control methods in different years that includes not only Duracade trait stacks, but also crop rotation, soil-applied insecticides and adult beetle monitoring.”

Artesian™ trait stacks offer another geographic opportunity when combined with elite corn genetics. The technology optimizes water use to help maintain yield despite drought or water restrictions.

“At Syngenta, seed work is never complete,” Maxwell says. “We seek farmer feedback on what works and what does not so we can make adjustments and maximize return on every seed. We never stop learning about our products, even after they are available commercially.”

 

 

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Entrapped. Engulfed. Entangled.

They’re scary words, and the true terror of their meaning is something that just about every person who’s ever handled grain understands. Most people who enter a grain bin or elevator, shovel in hand, emerge without incident. But such incidents — the ones nobody likes to talk about — are more common than you might think.

A study performed by researchers at Purdue University found that, over the course of 2020 and 2021, there were 120 documented cases of agricultural confined space-related incidents in the United States. Of the 56 cases reported in 2021, 29 were grain entrapments. And while the rate of fatality in these incidents has decreased, the researchers believe that may be due to a growing willingness to report non-fatal incidents.

Of course, these incidents are more than mere statistics. While the numbers are certainly eye-opening, grain elevator accidents can forever change the lives of operators and their loved ones. For varying reasons, at least 29 people last year (likely, dozens more) found themselves instantly plunged from a routine chore into an avalanche of flowing grain ready to swallow them whole.

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Employees and employers should never hesitate to review recommended safety practices to ensure that work is completed as safely as possible.

Jess McCleur Vice President of Safety and Regulatory Affairs at National Grain and Feed Association

For Catherine Rylatt, the issue hits close to home. In 2010, her 19-year-old nephew, Alex Pacas, died when he became trapped in a grain bin. Spurred by the tragedy, Rylatt became a driving force and founding member of the Grain Handling Safety Coalition, a large nonprofit organization that educates farmers, co-ops and grain elevator operators on best practices for safer handling of grain. While there are a myriad of safety measures she recommends, Rylatt says one of the most important things producers can do is ensure the quality of grain going into the bin is good — and then maintain that quality.

“Grain quality cannot be improved once it is in storage,” she says. “It can only be maintained. It is key to ensure pre-harvest and harvest activities are conducted in a manner that optimizes grain quality, and producers need to closely monitor grain while it’s in storage.”

“Engulfments and entanglements have one thing in common: They happen quickly,” says Jess McCluer, vice president of safety and regulatory affairs at the National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA). “The newest employees and the most seasoned employees are the most susceptible to bin hazards due to one group being ignorant to the hazards and the other being too comfortable with them. Employees and employers should never hesitate to review recommended safety practices to ensure that work is completed as safely as possible.”

Steps to Safety

  1. The National Feed and Grain Association identified seven best practices for handling grain safely. Don’t enter a bin unless absolutely necessary.
  2. Isolate all energy by completing lockout/tagout procedures.
  3. Make sure everyone working around the bin is aware that someone is working inside it.
  4. Never enter a bin alone. Always have at least one additional person on standby outside the bin who can summon help if an accident occurs.
  5. Test the air within a bin or silo to assess the presence of combustible and toxic gasses and to determine if there is sufficient oxygen inside the bin.
  6. Always use a body harness with a lifeline and ensure that the lifeline is secured before entering the bin.
  7. Avoid walking down grain or similar practices.

The consensus from people who study such incidents, such as Rylatt and McCluer, is most grain entrapments are preventable. Major progress has been made in the proper training and application of grain handling safety among farmers, employees and emergency personnel. But it’s important the industry doesn’t allow that progress to grind to a halt.

“We need to continue to be conscious of the hazards and continue to raise awareness and provide education, resources and training,” Rylatt says. “As the workforce changes, it is a great opportunity to infuse a stronger culture of safety into the agricultural industry.”

A Life-saving Robot

“Boy, it’d be nice if you could build me a robot to keep me out of the grain bin,” a farmer friend told Chad Johnson, CEO of Grain Weevil.

Armed with that germ of an idea, Johnson created the Grain Weevil, a grain bin safety and management robot that accomplishes the tasks farmers have historically done with a shovel: leveling grain, breaking up crusts and bridges, and feeding augers during extraction. The Grain Weevil works because of its auger-based propulsion system, which encourages grain flow by letting gravity do most of the work. This all adds up to help reduce risk of falls, entrapment, entanglement, and long-term health issues, such as farmer’s lung.

On top of these safety benefits, the Grain Weevil also aids in grain quality. The robot operates while grain is loaded, helping disperse fines. It also can map and measure moisture as grain enters the bin — then leveling everything off for long-term storage. Learn more about the Grain Weevil robot at www.grainweevil.com. For more resources on grain safety, visit www.grainsafety.org.

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Listening is one of the most important things we can do. We can learn so much about others’ perspectives and how we can improve as communicators when we listen to one another. In agriculture, we are often so passionate about our solutions and contributions that we need to pause and listen from time to time to really know how to explain our work and the benefits we bring to society.

Meaningful conversations with consumers are one of the most important things we can do as agriculture professionals and advocates. We must point to sound science and data-based outcomes when having discussions, but also lean into consumers’ perspectives and adapt our discussions to better engage them. Our agricultural solutions contribute greatly to society, but we need to take the time to tell those stories with science in a way that makes sense to audiences outside of agriculture.

Atrazine is an excellent example of working through a rigorous scientific process to achieve measurably better environmental outcomes — a story that needs to be told. Atrazine helps corn growers, among others, increase the benefits of conservation tillage to build healthy soils on their farms, improve air and water quality, and boost profit potential. Conservation tillage can decrease soil erosion by 34%. These are all great sustainable agriculture outcomes that ultimately benefit society as a whole.

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While sustainability is often interpreted in many ways, it must always be grounded in an equal balance of economic, environmental and societal outcomes — and science can help us better define sustainability.

Val Dolcini Head, Business Sustainability and Government Affairs at Syngenta

To help farmers track their efforts and measure greater sustainability outcomes, Syngenta created the Cropwise™ Sustainability app and the Sustainable Outcomes in Agriculture Standard. The mobile phone app helps farmers track practices from their farms quickly and easily to document their sustainability leadership while identifying opportunities for continuous improvement of their operations. Aligning tools like these with the needs of farmers and their individual agronomic practices will ensure future success and provide a consistent language to showcase sustainable agriculture on their farm.

While sustainability is often interpreted in many ways, it must always be grounded in an equal balance of economic, environmental and societal outcomes — and science can help us better define sustainability. Syngenta is committed to accelerating innovation for farmers and nature while improving productivity, all in service of meeting the needs of an ever-growing world.

Val Dolcini
Head, Business Sustainability and Government Affairs, North America

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On his third day in office, former President Trump withdrew the United States from the proposed 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Proponents of the TPP argued the partnership would expand U.S. exports, and Farm Bureau estimated that a successful agreement would increase net U.S. agricultural exports by $5.3B.

Since the withdrawal, neither former president Trump nor President Biden re-engaged in free trade agreements in that region. By contrast, China and 14 other Asian countries participate in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership trade agreement. China and other countries also formally requested to accede to the TPP’s successor arrangement, the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. The EU also continues advancing new trade agreements in the region.

Many worry that the United States lacks an economic and trade strategy sufficient to counter China’s increasing economic influence in the Indo-Pacific. Our absence from those regional agreements limits our ability to shape trade rules in the region.

Recent action from the Biden Administration may change that.

A New Angle

In late May, the Biden Administration announced intentions to proceed with a U.S.-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF). The initiative will include modules covering fair and resilient trade, supply chain resilience, infrastructure and decarbonization, and tax and anticorruption.

IPEF is not a free trade agreement, and it varies greatly from any other traditional trade agreement. For starters, Congress won’t need to approve it. Instead, the administration will move forward with congressional input. Not requiring congressional approval inherently limits the scope of potential IPEF commitments, given Congress’ constitutional authority to regulate U.S. foreign commerce. Additionally, the administration indicated it will not negotiate changes to market access and tariff reductions.

However, United States Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and Trade Representative Katherine Tai indicated they will target non-tariff trade barriers as part of the effort to strengthen ties in the region, creating optimism that U.S. ag trade could reap significant benefits. The Indo-Pacific region, with rapidly growing markets and 60% of the world’s population, presents a patchwork of regulatory restrictions and non-tariff trade barriers. We do not know which and how many countries will participate in the negotiations, but it could include India, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mongolia, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

Vietnam’s trade barriers are particularly difficult as they continue banning common ag pesticides without conducting appropriate risk assessments. Other countries in the region impede U.S. exports under Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) barriers. Numerous obstacles impede biotech crop exports to the region, including: asynchronous approvals that create backlogs of unapproved traits; evaluation procedures not based on international scientific standards; unnecessary testing, labeling and traceability requirements; and even outright bans on genetically modified products.

Ag Imperatives

It is imperative that the administration make agriculture a priority in the IPEF, and U.S. farm groups hope non-tariff trade barriers will be addressed in negotiations:

  • Reduce barriers to U.S. ag exports throughout the region and improve trade, starting with participating countries.
  • Include high-standard SPS measures to reduce barriers and increase trade, including certification and inspection rules.
  • Create mutually agreed-upon regulatory reforms allowing the U.S. reliable and easy export to key markets throughout the Indo-Pacific region. For example, recognizing the strength of the U.S. food safety and plant and animal health oversight systems and removing or streamlining certification or registration requirements for timely results.
  • Address tariffs on U.S. agricultural exports to improve our competitiveness in the region. While IPEF will not initially be a comprehensive trade agreement with tariff negotiations, this should not preclude efforts to increase agricultural market access by reducing our trading partners’ tariffs.

Several U.S. business associations recently urged the Administration to conclude IPEF modules this year, and include binding commitments — such as on market access — and provisions for future expansion of commitments and participants.

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Editor’s Note: Information included in this article is reflective of the status as of June 2022.

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To succeed in today’s competitive market, soybean growers need access to varieties that allow them to diversify, spread risk and maximize their whole-farm return on investment potential. This means they need choice — and they need it fast.

“Choice has become very important because of the complexity of the farming operations today and the different needs each of these operations desire,” says Eric West, senior product manager for GROWMARK, Inc., in Bloomington, Illinois.

Michael Gill, director of conservation agriculture, Illinois Soybean Association, agrees. “Growers need selection when choosing a new soybean variety because they look for several factors, including yield, disease tolerance and herbicide resistance,” he says.

To address this need, a team at NK Seeds, powered by the Syngenta Seeds research and development engine, uses a proprietary soybean trait conversion system to fast- track varieties for commercial release.

“We have a really cohesive team that is nimble, hungry, and driven to collaborate and focus on what the growers’ needs are,” says Travis Kriegshauser, Syngenta soybean strategic marketing manager. “We always challenge each other to make sure everything we’re doing is in the best interest of growers’ successes.”

Condensing the Timeline

Traditionally, it takes six to seven years to develop a soybean variety and bring it to market. But at a state-of-the-art introgression facility in Clinton, Illinois, Syngenta breeders can bring new NK® soybean varieties to growers in as little as three years. The Seed to Seed in Seven Weeks concept speeds development, but at the same time does not sacrifice precision. This concept allows researchers to produce as many as seven generations of seed in one year, resulting in high-yielding germplasm, complete with an elite genetic pool that advances performance.

When a new trait is identified — for example, Enlist E3® soybeans, which offer a higher standard for weed control and yield performance — the team inserts that trait into its exclusive conventional germplasm. By using its elite conventional germplasm pool, NK is ahead of the competition because the germplasm will perform with the characteristics it was selected for: outstanding yield potential, defensive traits and agronomic strength. Researchers also can easily predict its performance, giving growers data-based confidence in the potential a new variety offers.

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Choice has become very important because of the complexity of the farming operations today and the different needs each of these operations desire.

Eric West Senior Product Manager at GROWMARK, Inc.

Tony Lorenzen, a grower in Edgar County, Illinois, started planting NK brand Enlist E3 soybeans in 2019. For him, the proof was in the performance.

“Sometimes, you plant a new product, and your yield suffers — but we didn’t see that with our NK brand Enlist E3 soybeans,” Lorenzen says. “They’re just good products with good seed quality. We’ll be all Enlist E3 soybeans again in 2021.”

The Seed to Seed in Seven Weeks process is straightforward. After Syngenta introduces the trait into the germplasm, planting in company greenhouses begins. Using cutting-edge greenhouse technology, Clinton researchers create ideal conditions to maximize the plant’s growth cycle. Three days after planting, seedlings emerge. On day seven, researchers take tissue samples and perform DNA analysis to determine whether the plant is showing the desired trait.

Moving Beyond Day Seven

Of course, the process of bringing seed to market doesn’t end on day seven. Researchers do additional work on the chosen varieties so that by days 20 to 23, they can perform fingerprinting and cross-pollination. The team then adapts the environment to push the plant’s reproductive life cycle and achieve the first generation of seed rapidly. Given the hardiness of the original germplasm, that first generation of seed then goes straight to the field for additional characterization and testing.

“We’ve refined and optimized a process that allows for trait introgression, population development, product evaluation, testing and launch so we can get to market as fast as — or faster than — anybody else in the industry, with a higher level of confidence that our products won’t fail when they get to our customers’ fields,” Kriegshauser says.

Because of innovative growth chambers that enable constant planting, pollinating, sampling and harvesting without fear of inclement weather, this conversion capability is used year-round and is how NK brought Enlist E3 soybeans to market faster than competitor brands.

Making Choices, Choices, Choices

To maximize their return on investment and remain profitable, growers may want to switch up their soybean lineup by adding new varieties from one or more of the leading trait platforms. Or maybe they need to address a specific management issue.

Cab Weaver of Adair County, Missouri, is one of those growers. “Everybody is looking for something new,” he says. “When I went with the Enlist E3 technology, it was to hopefully save some on spraying — get more bang for the buck. NK does a lot of research and development and has come up with a better product that can help us be more profitable. Growers are hearing about it because everyone wants to get more for less.”

NK also offers soybean varieties across the XtendFlex®, Roundup Ready 2 Xtend® and LibertyLink® GT27® platforms.

“NK brings a differentiated set of genetics to the marketplace to give growers choice — and growers always want choice,” Kriegshauser says.

And so do retailers like West whose primary goal is bringing customized, better-performing solutions to growers’ fields.

“The NK soybean brand has had success with our organization as well as with our customers due to the long history of proven performance in its germplasm as well as multiple trait options,” he says. “As a result, we’re able to give growers choices for what best fits their farms.”

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Cover image: These rows of young soybeans in southern Wisconsin exhibit both health and vigor, which are qualities present in soybeans grown from seeds developed from the NK Seeds elite germplasm. Photography by Syngenta. 

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Q. What are the details of Kellogg’s InGrained™ program?

A. Meryl Kennedy , CEO of 4Sisters Rice and Kennedy Rice Mill: Kellogg’s InGrained™ program will invest $2 million over five years to provide farmers in my area — Louisiana and the Lower Mississippi River basin, what we call the Delta — with training in irrigation management, nutrient management and soil health. Kellogg is providing farmers with a financial incentive for every ton of greenhouse gases (GHG) their new practices help reduce. But Kellogg’s InGrained™ is more than that, it’s a collaboration between Syngenta, Kellogg Co., Regrow Ag and Kennedy Rice Mill to bring this program to life.

A. Stacey Shaw, senior sustainability lead at Syngenta: Through the program, Kellogg wanted to partner with growers to help them adopt new practices for GHG reduction, especially methane, but also to take off a little bit of the sting of implementing a new practice. For the program’s 2022 pilot year, the company offered growers $20 per ton of GHG reduction — plus agronomic support, GHG quantification, and other resources at no additional cost to farmers — to remove some of the risk of trying something new on the farm. Kellogg’s intention is to help them get started, knowing that positive changes on the farm can be still risky in the beginning.

Q. What was the impetus for developing a methane reduction program for rice specifically?

A. Shaw: Rice is a major contributor to methane emissions and that makes it an easy target1. Opportunities and methods that reduce methane also have other positive effects such as water reduction. Not very many people have adopted methane reduction yet, but it is very doable.

A. Kennedy: Over half of the world’s population relies on rice as a primary source of nourishment2. Also, this is a really important grain for Kellogg. They rely on rice for their iconic brands like Rice Krispies® and Special K® cereals. Many of these rice products and these varieties come from the Mississippi Delta. So, when we thought about how we can make a really big difference specifically for rice production, we thought about how to reduce methane.

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Q. Why is methane reduction an important sustainability issue?

A. Kennedy: The impacts of climate change affect us all. But these impacts are of particular concern to farmers, like me, who grow crops to produce the food we eat. Rice production is responsible for an estimated 12% of the total global methane emissions, and methane is a GHG that’s 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide2. As rice farmers and stewards of the land, it’s our responsibility to address these concerns.

A. Shaw: Methane is one of the bigger contributors to global GHG emissions. Methane with nitrous oxide and other emissions contribute to the greenhouse gas issue.

Q. What are the desired results from Kellogg’s InGrained™? How does it help growers — who are already focused on land stewardship?

A. Shaw: The desired result is the adoption of methane reduction practices and reduction of emissions. Kellogg also wants the program to be scalable, ideally across more of their rice draw area. But before spreading the program, we all have to make sure that it works as intended and that farmers see value in it. By piloting the program this crop year with Kennedy, a trusted Kellogg supplier and very large and prominent grower in Mer Rouge, Louisiana, Kellogg hopes to show other growers in that area that they can be successful in reducing methane by implementing these practices. Some rice growers are already doing a lot of the methane-reduction practices that we’re promoting. However, adoption has been slow and many growers only do it on parts of their farms. So, this might be an incentive to them to add additional acres and adopt more practices.

A. Kennedy: From Kellogg’s perspective, the goal would be to help educate and train farmers on how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. At Kennedy, a vertically integrated agricultural business, we take rice from the farm to the finished food. So, we feel like we’re stewards of the land; this is who we are, and this is part of what we do already. We’re being asked, as farmers, to focus on so many things: soil erosion, reducing chemicals and fertilizers, conserving water. However, reducing methane gas is particularly important for rice. It can truly help create a greener supply chain from seed to package, and so that, to me, is the real benefit from the farmer perspective.

1 https://ricepedia.org/rice-as-food/the-global-staple-rice-consumers#:~:text=Rice%20is%20the%20staple%20food,20%25%20of%20their%20daily%20calories

2 https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/understanding-global-warming-potentials

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In 2021, China purchased a record $35.9 billion worth of ag products from the United States. This was roughly $7 billion — or 25% higher than 2020 levels ($28.8 billion) — and beat the previous record of $29 billion, which occurred in 2013.

The two biggest sources of change between the previous highs and 2021 were massive corn and beef purchases. Of the $7.1 billion increase, corn alone accounted for 55% of the new purchases. Not only was corn the largest driver of increased activity, but China’s corn purchases also increased from $55 million in 2019 to $5.1 billion last year.

There is no clear answer as to why China has been purchasing U.S. corn, but we can begin to shed some light on the mystery when considering production and consumption trends.

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Production, Consumption and Trade

As the population and incomes have increased, so has China’s consumption of corn (Figure 1). Since 1970, China’s production and consumption have remained mostly in lockstep, increasing roughly 4.4% annually over five decades.

Shown in green is the share of global corn imports that China makes. China is no stranger to corn imports and, since 2009, has been consistently importing a modest amount of corn. For instance, in 2011, China’s activity accounted for 5% of global trade and previously peaked at 6% in 1994.

It’s worth noting, however, that those trends have been interrupted in recent years. China’s corn production has been largely flat since 2015. During that same time China’s domestic consumption, along with its corn import activity, grew higher. In 2020, China bought 16% of the globally traded corn, and in 2021, purchases equaled 13% of global activity.

Acreage Slips

When thinking about the reasons for China’s stagnation in corn production, there are only two variables behind the math: acres and yields. China’s corn acres, which trended higher over the last several decades, slumped in recent years. Insight on the acreage expansion and sudden stagnation lead to questions about China’s plans.

First, China’s decades-long trend has been fueled in no small part by increased acreage. This has been especially evident since the early 2000s, as acres increased from 60 million annually to more than 100 million.

Second, while China’s corn acreage has paused at various points in the past, one has to wonder if acreage: will return to the expansion pace observed throughout the 2000s, will continue to expand but at a slower pace, or will remain stagnant? It’s important to keep in mind total acreage in China has been unchanged since 1990, so any increase in corn acreage is a tradeoff with other crops. There are no clear answers at this point, but keep in mind domestic consumption continued to expand in recent years.

Wrapping it Up

The enthusiasm and uncertainty about China’s recent corn purchases has everyone wondering, “How long will it last?”

On the one hand, weather-related supply shocks — such as floods or drought — would likely result in a short-term uptick in corn imports until domestic production recovers. On the other hand, if China’s future corn needs must be met by imports, it would likely result in China being a significant and growing corn buyer for years to come. The implications are far from clear at this point.

Lastly, keep in mind that China has been rocked by several shocks over the last few years. There was the trade war, African Swine Fever and COVID-19. Concerns about sluggish economic growth stemming from recent COVID-19 shutdowns continue today. Taken altogether, it will likely require a few more years of data to untangle how much of China’s corn purchases in 2020 and 2021 were an interruption in the long-term trends or the emergence of a new one.

Widmar and Gloy are the co-founders of Ag Economic Insights (AEI.ag). Founded in 2014, AEI.ag helps improve decision making for producers, lenders, and agribusiness through: the free Weekly Insights blog, the award-winning AEI.ag Presents podcast- featuring Escaping 1980 and Corn Saves America, and the AEI Premium platform, which includes the Ag Forecast Network decision tool. Visit AEI.ag or email Widmar (david@aei.ag) to learn more. Stay curious.

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Brent Delzer, Ph.D., worked seven years to develop a line of corn that was both genetically transformable and contained a haploid-induction trait. Both characteristics were necessary to invent HI-Edit™, the revolutionary genome-editing technique for crops.

It is easier to control the genes of haploids because they only contain maternal genes — meaning genes of the mother plant (although paternal haploid systems that only contain paternal genes also exist). “When we identified the matrilineal gene that causes haploid induction, it enabled us to use the gene in a new way in HI-Edit,” Delzer says.

That work is what sets Delzer apart from others in his field, says Tim Kelliher, Ph.D., head of technology development and science fellow with Syngenta Seeds Research. “It’s challenging to develop those technologies on our own: We need input from breeders,” he says. “Brent is a really successful breeder who also has side-project interest in breeding technologies.”

Delzer’s line of corn was the foundational step toward developing HI-Edit technology. It pushed the research forward and made the difference between the work at Syngenta and what other researchers were trying to do.

Competitors who tried to invent a similar technique didn’t have access to a transformable haploid inducer line, Kelliher says, as it’s extremely difficult and time-consuming to create. Delzer’s work jumpstarted the research process and set Kelliher’s team up for success.

By using Delzer’s transformable corn line, Kelliher says his team obtained the data they needed to get a patent on HI-Edit. “We were able to show results,” he says.

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When I was hired as a corn breeder, the ultimate goal was to develop a commercial hybrid that was successful on the farm, he says. But to work on this project in addition to that was exciting because nobody had done gene-editing before in the way that we did it.

Brent Delzer, Ph.D. North Corn Market Segment Lead & Corn Breeder at Syngenta

Delzer retired this spring after 31 years with Syngenta. Looking back, he never imagined the scientific mountains he would climb when he left the family dairy to study agriculture at University of Wisconsin-River Falls.

“Agriculture’s been my passion all along,” Delzer says. “But my mom convinced me to go to college, and I thought walking away from milking cows was an okay idea.”

Delzer’s career in plant breeding actually started with a college internship at Northrup-King Seed Co. — now the NK Seeds division of Syngenta. After receiving his Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota, Delzer accepted a breeding job in Janesville, Wisconsin. He worked his way up the ranks, and eventually serving as the North corn market segment lead and being recognized as a Syngenta Fellow.

“When I was hired as a corn breeder, the ultimate goal was to develop a commercial hybrid that was successful on the farm,” he says. “But to work on this project in addition to that was exciting because nobody had done gene-editing before in the way that we did it.”

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