Syngenta Thrive

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When developing corn hybrids that offer agronomic benefits — such as insect control, herbicide tolerance and water optimization — scientists employ a breeding technique called trait introgression. Syngenta uses trait introgression to incorporate a desired trait into existing elite germplasm — preserving the performance of the germplasm and adding the benefits of the introduced trait. The Syngenta Nampa Trait Conversion Accelerator in Nampa, Idaho, will provide the capabilities needed to optimize this crucial process.

“Trait introgression is a process where we take all the new inbreds through a process where we add our traits,” says Donna Delaney, Ph.D., North America trait introgression lead for Syngenta, who notes that inbreds are offspring that result from the breeding of closely related plants. “What comes out is essentially the same inbred that we started with, but it now has traits that will bring benefits to growers.”

Delaney says trait introgression is a multistep, multigenerational process. Corn breeders begin by matching each inbred to a donor line that has the desired traits.

“We then take it through a series of steps where we are crossing back to our target inbred, selecting for traits and using DNA markers to help us identify the plants that have the highest percentage of target inbred,” she says. “With each successive cross back to our target inbred, we get closer and closer to the original inbred. The last step is to self-pollinate the plants to make true breeding lines that are handed off for testing.”

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Trait introgression is a process where we take all the new inbreds through a process where we add our traits. What comes out is essentially the same inbred that we started with, but it now has traits that will bring benefits to growers.

Donna Delaney Trait Introgression Lead at Syngenta

Quickening the Pace

Syngenta is constantly looking for ways to make the trait introgression process faster and more reliable. One way of doing this is by using marker-assisted selection.

“This is a selection process where corn breeders use a panel of DNA markers — approximately equally spaced across all the corn chromosomes — to identify plants in segregating populations that have the highest percentage of markers matching the target inbred,” Delaney says. “These selected plants are pollinated and taken forward to the next generation.”

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Another way is harvesting at an immature stage to extract embryos. This process, called embryo rescue, is a series of in vitro techniques used to promote the development of an immature embryo into a viable plant.

“Embryo rescue saves us about 30 days per generation or five months total in the introgression process,” Delaney says. “It also provides flexibility in our timeline. This allows us to space out, or ‘workload level,’ the process to help make sure we can more quickly and reliably turn out new traited products to help our customers be more successful.”

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The United Nations estimates the world’s population will expand to nearly 10 billion people by 2050*, and agricultural operations must rise to the challenge of feeding this growing global population. However, as the industry gears up to meet demand with higher yields and greater efficiency, growers and resellers are grappling with a challenge that threatens to put these efforts in jeopardy: labor shortages.

“We are blessed in this country to have an abundance of resources,” says Bill Brim, co-owner of Lewis Taylor Farms, a diversified transplant and vegetable farming operation in Tifton, Georgia. “We have plenty of land, water and sunshine — all critical ingredients for growing crops. But what we do not have plenty of is labor.”

Factors contributing to the escalating agricultural labor shortage crisis include a diminishing domestic workforce and legislation that makes hiring immigrant populations difficult. Unexpected global events, including the coronavirus pandemic, add more complexity to an already inefficient work visa process. Additionally, competition between industries for the same type of worker makes it difficult for farming jobs to stand out.

“The ability to compete with other companies in terms of hours of work, pay and benefits can pose a challenge for employers,” says Rob Russell, director of labor and workforce development at the University of Missouri Extension. “Within agriculture, there are times of the year when you have long hours, seven days a week, whereas other types of businesses don’t have the same demanding schedule.”

Without an influx of new workers, farmers depend on the H-2A program to help close the gap. However, they have long criticized the cumbersome program for its excessive costs, requirements, delays and bureaucracy. Legislation to address some of the program’s shortcomings is on the table, but most experts agree these reforms won’t be enough to resolve farming’s mounting labor shortage.

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We have plenty of land, water and sunshine — all critical ingredients for growing crops. But what we do not have plenty of is labor.

Bill Brim Georgia Grower

Exploring Efficiency

While no machine can replace the human touch needed for crops to flourish, new technologies are available to scale the existing workforce and ease the burden of labor shortages.

Brim, who grows watermelon transplants in more than 80 greenhouses, has embraced technology in certain areas of his operation. For example, he now uses updated machinery to seed his watermelons. “While our old technology required 21 people, we can now run it using six people,” he says.

As a result, he estimates his operation has saved about $700,000 per year in employee wages alone. “If we can implement a technology that requires 10 to 20 fewer employees, we’re all for it,” Brim says. “We challenge ourselves to make sure we’re evaluating powerful technologies coming down the pipeline by asking, ‘Is it possible to use for our specific operation, how can we use it, how much is it going to save us, how will we manage it, and what other problems will it alleviate?’”

Technology to the Rescue

The labor challenges that growers like Brim currently face require creative, new solutions, notes Greg Meyers, chief information and digital officer at Syngenta.

“What farmers really want are practical solutions to fit the real-world problems they face on a daily basis,” Meyers says. “Computer and data science have the potential to create the same sort of efficiencies for farmers that tractors did nearly 100 years ago. This time, however, instead of the technology just allowing farmers to plant, spray and harvest fields faster, it now allows them to vary the way they perform these operations to reflect different conditions — even within the same field — such as soil health and type, moisture, fertility, and pest pressure.

Digital imagery and scouting, for example, have the ability to give farmers high-resolution images of fields every two to three days. By using artificial intelligence, these digital technologies can accurately recognize field issues, including diseases and pests, reducing the need for manual field scouting by as much as 30%.

FarmShots™, part of the Syngenta AgriEdge® whole-farm management program, is a digital tool that uses satellite, aircraft and/or drone imagery to assess crop health, helping growers manage their fields more efficiently. “This imagery can locate crop damage caused by disease, pests and nutritional deficiencies before it’s too late,” says Jacky Davis, digital ag solutions marketing lead at Syngenta.

The recent COVID-19 pandemic has amplified the benefits virtual technologies can bring when physical interaction isn’t feasible. “If you’re running a farm, you’ve previously relied on a network of trusted advisers who would come out to your farm and walk it with you to discuss what’s going on,” Meyers says. “If you’re unable to meet with agronomists face to face or they can’t come out as frequently as you’re used to, then the next best thing is a set of virtual eyes via remote technology. Agronomists can get reports delivered directly to their inboxes with insight on drought or climate stress, disease pressure, and more.”

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Putting Data to Work

Similarly, data management software, like the technology included in the Syngenta AgriEdge whole-farm management program, enables growers to analyze data of individual fields over time. This digital recordkeeping and analysis allow farmers to fully understand what’s happening on a per-field basis, answer the tough questions and measure overall potential profitability as part of next season’s planning.

Decisions still need to be made by the human workforce, but technology is improving the productivity of farmers and may help mitigate some of the effects of labor shortages nationwide.

“In order to grow, the industry must adapt and move forward under pressure,” Meyers says. “Fortunately, farmers are resilient. With the help of innovative new technology, the industry is primed to not only move forward in the face of labor shortages, but also blaze a trail for future generations.”

*According the United Nations’ World Population Prospects report, 2017 Revision.

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The growing season has just kicked off, but it’s already been a tough few weeks for Midwest growers. Late snow and/or excessive rain in many areas has delayed planting and caused a higher risk for corn diseases.

Experts are saying that the “bomb cyclone” that devastated the Midwest in March likely caused tar spot—a new yield-robbing corn disease in the U.S.—to spread across several states in the region. On top of the devastating rain, fewer growers are planting soybean acres this year. With more corn-on-corn being planted, it’s more important than ever for growers to protect their acres from tar spot before the disease has a chance to significantly impact yield and return on investment (ROI) potential.

“Tar spot is a dangerous disease because the fungus that causes it can infect the crop 14 to 40 days before symptoms appear,” says Eric Tedford, Ph.D., fungicide technical product lead at Syngenta. “Knowing the weather we’ve had this year, areas that had tar spot last year and counties nearby will be at higher risk. Growers should be prepared with a strong preventive fungicide to get ahead of the disease before it infects their corn.”

Don’t Get Caught Off Guard by Tar Spot

Areas that have experienced several inches of rain, cool temperatures and high relative humidity have an increased risk of tar spot developing, which is why tar spot has shown up mostly in the Midwest for now, with confirmed cases in Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa as of 2018.

Before arriving in the U.S., tar spot was only found in Latin America. But U.S. growers can expect a similar progression:

  • Phyllachora maydis, the fungus that causes tar spot, thrives when more than seven hours of leaf wetness occurs overnight.
  • When favorable weather conditions occur, tar spot can overwinter, making it a threat to growers year after year if left untreated.
  • Only 20 percent to 25 percent of overwintering spores will survive, but tar spot can produce millions of spores when conditions are right, meaning a small percentage of spores can still cause significant damage.
  • Tar spot spreads when spores are carried by wind or rain, and current weather patterns have created a higher risk for widespread infection across the Midwest.

 

Growers who are planting corn-on-corn this year should scout early and often for tar spot, Tedford advises. “There’s a high risk of earlier infection if the disease pathogen overwinters and conditions are favorable for development,” he says. “If growers get behind on tar spot, they won’t be able to stop it.”

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Plan Ahead to Stay Ahead

The first visual symptoms of tar spot appear as dark spots on the surface of the leaf. But in most cases, the plant is infected long before symptoms are visible.

“With a 14 to 40 day latent period, it’s crucial to get ahead of tar spot with a preventive fungicide,” says Tedford.

When tar spot is left untreated, it negatively affects the plant’s ability to photosynthesize, causing leaves to brown and die early, which can result in reduced yield and ROI potential. While results vary by region, 2018 research from Syngenta found that 10 percent to 15 percent disease severity resulted in about 10 to 15 bushels per acre (bu/A) of corn lost. Severity does not generally get above 40 percent to 50 percent because the plant dies, but tar spot can easily cause yield losses up to 60 bu/A.

Tar spot may be a new disease, but it’s clear that it’s one that should be taken seriously this season, especially if wet conditions continue in the Midwest. Trivapro® fungicide, is a proven, effective management tool for tar spot. The three robust active ingredients in Trivapro, including Solatenol® fungicide, provide preventive and curative disease control and plant-health benefits, helping growers stay a step ahead of tar spot.

In a University of Wisconsin trial, Trivapro stood out as a proven performer for tar spot control without sacrificing yield.

University of Wisconsin trial 18243. Application rate: 13.7 oz/A. Application timing: VT/R1. Arlington, Wisconsin 2018

“For growers who are concerned about tar-spot infection early in the season, I recommend two sprays of Trivapro at V4 to V8 timing and VT/R1,” Tedford says. “For those in a lower-risk area, one spray of Trivapro at VT/R1 can keep tar spot severity low.”

Growers have relied on Trivapro to protect corn from multiple sources of stress and to control other corn diseases like gray leaf spot, rusts and Northern corn leaf blight. Now, they can rely on it for long-lasting tar spot control, allowing their crop to reach its full potential, no matter what weather conditions may arise.

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As the senior lead for federal government relations at Syngenta, Mary Kay Thatcher is an experienced lobbyist on Capitol Hill. But she’s also an experienced fifth generation farmer.

“My life is pretty linear,” Thatcher says. “I grew up on a farm. I have double majors in agriculture business and animal science from Iowa State. I worked in agriculture for the Bush administration. I was a lobbyist for the American Farm Bureau Federation, and now I’m working for one of the world’s largest agricultural chemical and seed suppliers.”

Farming Roots

Thatcher’s lifelong ag journey began on her family’s farm in Cumming, Iowa. Today, she’s still tied to the community through her corn, soybean and cow-calf operation in Corydon, but she no longer lives in the area.

“It’s not ideal. I’d like to be able to show you dirt under my fingernails,” Thatcher says. “I’d love to be out there on the weekends working with the cattle, but typically I manage by phone and email. I try to go to the farm five or six times a year, but I don’t get the opportunity to be there every day or every weekend.”

As an absentee farm owner, Thatcher’s biggest challenge is keeping up with everything from her current home in Washington, D.C.

Though it’s difficult, Thatcher is proud to own her farm. “Certainly owning a farm from afar is much better than not owning one at all,” she says, “and I work with great people whom I trust to get the job done.”

The Perfect Role Model

Throughout her childhood, Thatcher remembers her father working on the farm during the evenings and on the weekends when he wasn’t busy working as the executive director of the Iowa Farm Bureau.

“My dad is my role model, without a doubt,” Thatcher says. “He was the one who really enjoyed showing me the farm, helping me learn things and teaching me to work with the cattle. We used to spend a lot of time training the animals to walk, getting them used to baths, grooming them and shearing them.”

Thatcher notes that her dad was always good at giving advice.

“If I was getting ready to go somewhere and was having a tough day or I didn’t want to go, one of his favorite pieces of advice was, ‘Act enthusiastic and you’ll be enthusiastic,’” she says. “It was pretty good advice that’s stuck with me.”

From the Farm to the Capital

Thatcher inherited her dad’s enthusiasm for farming and believes staying #RootedinAg has made her a better advocate for the profession. “It’s always been very important for me to keep farming,” she says. “Being a farmer gives me added credibility as a lobbyist. I know firsthand what the pain points are. If I wasn’t a farmer, I may be able to sympathize with farmers, but I couldn’t exactly empathize with how they’re feeling.”

For Thatcher, it’s all about farmers and ranchers. One of her strengths is that she’s seen the agriculture industry from many unique viewpoints. “I can put those different viewpoints and experiences together—especially after all these years in Washington—and make a pretty reasonable judgment on issues,” she says.

In her current role at Syngenta, Thatcher keeps informed on key issues affecting farmers and lobbies on their behalf.

Though she enjoys her work in the nation’s capital, Thatcher’s favorite part of her job is working directly with farmers. “The best part of my job is talking with farmers, hearing what’s going on and trying to share information with them that might be helpful,” she says.

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Awards and Recognitions

Thatcher has been recognized numerous times for her work in the ag industry. In 2014 when she was working at Farm Bureau, the Missouri office honored her with its Outstanding Service Award.

“That was especially nice because I had worked very closely with Missouri farmers and ranchers for a long time,” she says. “And to be a staff person singled out was really quite nice. It was a big surprise.”

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The best part of my job is meeting with farmers, hearing what’s going on and trying to share information with them that might be helpful.

Mary Kay Thatcher

An even larger surprise happened in 2018 when the National Association of Farm Broadcasting honored her with the Dix Harper Meritorious Service Award. “I’ve always enjoyed a good relationship with agricultural media,” Thatcher says. “I think they are a farmer’s best friend, and they work to keep farmers informed. I have a great deal of respect for farm broadcasters, so it was especially meaningful for them to say the respect is mutual.”

Though the awards are nice, it’s the farmers who motivate Thatcher to work hard each day. “There’s so much activity in this town that affects farmers’ freedom to operate and their ability to farm profitably,” she says. “Being able to do something that has the potential to improve their lives and their communities is a pretty cool thing.”

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Year in and year out, professional athletic clubs spend millions of dollars looking for just the right talent to add to their lineups, fill skill gaps and win more games. Much like the athletic scouting process, Syngenta researchers are on a quest to find just the right tools to more effectively fight disease and, ultimately, help growers achieve higher returns. To that end, Syngenta has introduced two game-changing fungicide molecules for the row-crop market in the last three years—Solatenol® fungicide and most recently, Adepidyn® fungicide.

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In laboratory and field tests, Solatenol and Adepidyn fungicides have proven to provide the best-of-the-best disease control and plant-health benefits of any fungicide available.

Eric Tedford, Ph.D.

Not All SDHIs Are Created Equal

While both Solatenol and Adepidyn fungicides fit into the carboxamide chemical class with an SDHI (succinate dehydrogenase inhibitor) mode-of-action chemistry, they have their own characteristics that set them apart from each other—and every other fungicide on the market.

“In laboratory and field tests, Solatenol and Adepidyn fungicides have proven to provide the best-of-the-best disease control and plant-health benefits of any fungicide available,” says Eric Tedford, Ph.D., Syngenta fungicide technical product lead. “In 2019, Adepidyn will be available in multiple custom-designed fungicides under the Miravis® brand to combat geospecific disease threats that growers face.”

Row-Crop Diseases Meet Their Match

New and shifting disease patterns as well as resistance continue to drive the need for innovative technology.

“We’ve put together a robust row-crop fungicide portfolio to allow growers to choose the formulation that fits their specific disease problems,” says Brett Johnson, Syngenta fungicide product lead. Knowing the strengths of each brand will be crucial to selecting the best fungicide for 2019.”

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Syngenta has a winning roster of fungicides. Grower Mark Forsyth of Charles City, Iowa, sprays his soybeans with Trivapro fungicide to effectively manage diseases. He also uses Trivapro on his soybean acreage.

The Syngenta row-crop fungicide portfolio will include the following brands:

Trivapro® fungicide—With first sales in 2016, Trivapro quickly proved its ability to work harder and last longer to fight diseases and help improve plant health for higher yields, versus untreated acres and competitive brands. Powered by three active ingredients—azoxystrobin, propiconazole and Solatenol fungicides—Trivapro has set a new standard for residual disease control for rusts, blights and leaf spots in corn, soybeans and wheat.

“Over the last few years, Trivapro’s consistently long residual control and yield bump have impressed my customers and me,” says William “Bill” Ruzicka with Farmers Feed & Grain in Riceville, Iowa. “In our side-by-side trials where other brands have petered out late in the season, Trivapro keeps protecting crops, which makes it worth the investment.”

One of his customers who has seen these benefits firsthand is grower Mark Forsyth from Charles City, Iowa. “I’ve been using Trivapro for three years now to control Northern corn leaf blight and gray leaf spot,” he says. “We started off with one field, and now we treat all our acres with Trivapro, because of the consistent stay-green effect and yield bump of 10 to 15 bushels per acre, sometimes more, depending on the hybrid.”

While Trivapro controls many diseases, efficacy ratings from university corn fungicide trials rank its Southern rust control as excellent—an important distinction for growers who face Southern rust pressure. Over the last few years, University of Kentucky Plant Pathologist Carl Bradley, Ph.D., has observed yield losses caused by Southern rust in Kentucky cornfields. “We really don’t have any corn hybrids with complete resistance to Southern rust, so application of an effective fungicide is really the only current method of management for this disease,” he says.

Forsyth checks out a couple of ears of corn on his farm.

Miravis Neo fungicide—Similar to Trivapro, Miravis Neo will help corn and soybean producers combat disease by offering unmistakably superior control from three active ingredients: azoxystrobin, propiconazole and Adepidyn fungicides. Miravis Neo offers the most potent control of blights and leaf spots and will offer a new tool for white mold in soybeans.

Tedford notes that Miravis Neo has benefits beyond robust disease control. “In both lab and field tests evaluating crop stress responses, plants treated with Adepidyn have demonstrated more vigor,” he says. “That means under stressful conditions—like drought or heat stress, or even under light disease pressure—Miravis Neo–treated plants can put all their energy toward yield.”

Ruzicka, who had a chance to field-test the new technology this year, is looking forward to more widespread use of this exceptional product in 2019.

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Miravis Top fungicide—Engineered specifically with Southern soybean growers in mind, Miravis Top contains difenoconazole and Adepidyn fungicides. With two powerful active ingredients, Miravis Top enables growers to control diseases—including susceptible and strobilurin-resistant frogeye leaf spot, target spot and Septoria brown spot—while providing the plant-health benefits they expect.

“Unlike some of the older chemistries growers have used before, both modes of action in Miravis Top will be working to protect their yield from disease,” says James Hadden, Ph.D., Syngenta fungicide technical product lead. “In our trials evaluating control of target spot, Septoria and strobilurin-resistant frogeye leaf spot, we’ve seen anywhere from a 3 to 5 bushel-per-acre yield increase with Miravis Top over competitive brands.”

In addition to outstanding disease control, Miravis Top will help alleviate the growing threat of disease resistance, Bradley says. “We all know about strobilurin-resistant strains of the frogeye leaf spot fungus,” he says, “and we have confirmed cases of strobilurin-resistant strains of the Septoria brown spot fungus. It’s really only a matter of time before we find and document strobilurin-resistant strains of the target spot fungus, too.”

Growers shouldn’t overlook the importance of having a new active ingredient to help combat growing resistance challenges, Bradley adds. Currently, control of frogeye leaf spot is coming from the triazole component of most fungicide products, since the fungus has exhibited widespread resistance to strobilurin fungicides. This is making the triazoles do all the “heavy lifting” and sets up a scenario where resistance to triazole fungicides could eventually develop as well. Using new chemistries from different chemical classes will help sustain management of frogeye leaf spot with fungicides for a longer period of time.

A healthy stand of corn flourishes on Forsyth’s farm.

Miravis Ace fungicide—Wheat growers have long battled Fusarium head scab (blight) with relatively few modes of action and constrained application flexibility. In 2019, that situation will change with the introduction of Miravis Ace.

Containing Adepidyn and propiconazole, Miravis Ace will not only be the first SDHI-containing product available for Fusarium head scab control, but it will also be the first new mode of action for the disease in many years. Field tests across the country—from North Dakota to Pennsylvania and Kentucky—demonstrate that Miravis Ace will enable wheat growers to have more flexibility to treat all their acres at the right time for better, more predictable results.

In field tests, Syngenta has demonstrated that Miravis Ace can be sprayed as early as 50 percent head emergence, without sacrificing efficacy or yield. And because it delivers excellent control of Fusarium head scab, Miravis Ace can help reduce levels of the profit-robbing mycotoxin deoxynivalenol, also known as DON or vomitoxin.

A healthy stand of corn flourishes on Forsyth’s farm.

A Tailor-Made Portfolio

With the introduction of the Miravis brands, row-crop growers now have four potent fungicides to choose from to fight the specific diseases that threaten their crops, Johnson notes.

“Unlike the repackaging and rebranding of old technology we’re seeing in some products, these brands contain game-changing molecules,” he says. “Solatenol already has completely changed row-crop disease control and plant-health protection as we know it, and Adepidyn will soon follow suit. Once growers try these products, they won’t go back.”

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When Duane Kimball started raising Enogen® corn four years ago, he wanted the premium he could earn from a local ethanol plant. When he started growing Enogen Feed hybrids for his beef cattle this past year, he became even more convinced of the technology’s value.

“Enogen products are a win-win for ethanol and feed,” says Kimball, who has farmed full-time for 21 years in central Nebraska, near Callaway. Today, he runs 200 cow-calf pairs and backgrounds or grows steers and heifers from weaning until they enter the feedlot. He feeds his cattle Enogen Feed corn from wean through finish and has also grown Enogen Feed silage.

The advantages Kimball has experienced with Enogen Feed products come from greater starch digestibility and more available energy. “The word I use to describe Enogen Feed corn is opportunity,” says Easton Eggers, a grower account lead at Syngenta from Nebraska. “Not only can it help provide growers with additional revenue if they’re supplying corn to an ethanol plant, but it also can help improve feed efficiency when they feed it to their livestock.”

University research shows Enogen Feed corn can boost feed efficiency in cattle by an average of 5 percent.1 Duane Martin, Ph.D., commercial traits manager for corn and soybean product marketing at Syngenta, has seen the data—and the results—firsthand.

“This feed efficiency benefit has been observed consistently with Enogen Feed corn,” he says. “We see a consistent 5 percent efficiency gain at all stages of beef cattle production.”1

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The Science Behind the Benefits

During the early 2000s, Syngenta researchers studied ways to modify corn to carry a specific amylase trait that helps convert starch to sugar more efficiently. The original goal? Provide corn hybrids that enhance ethanol production efficiency. “The faster the starch in corn breaks down into smaller, simpler sugars, the better,” Martin says. Enogen hybrids store this special amylase in the corn kernel’s endosperm, ready to be activated when triggered by conditions in the ethanol plant, the animal rumen and/or the silage bunker.

Syngenta first offered hybrids with the Enogen trait in 2011. Enogen corn soon attracted attention beyond ethanol plants. University trials focusing on the benefits of Enogen Feed corn for cattle feed started in 2013. As University of Nebraska–Lincoln researchers published their results, the data confirmed that Enogen Feed corn improves feed conversion in feedlot cattle.2

“Because of the unique alpha amylase in Enogen Feed corn, the feed is highly digestible, which means animals can utilize more of the nutrition in corn,” says Eileen Watson, Ph.D., global project lead for corn trait projects at Syngenta. “It has been one positive benefit after another with Enogen Feed corn.”

Dale Blasi, Ph.D., an animal science professor and extension beef specialist at Kansas State University, has studied Enogen corn versus #2 yellow corn in feed rations for post-weaning cattle. “Our studies reflect real-world conditions that growing calves face here in Kansas,” he says. “Our first study showed a 5.5 percent increase in feed efficiency among calves that were fed Enogen Feed corn.”3

There appears to be more complete digestion with Enogen Feed corn, Blasi adds. “The amylase gene provides more readily available energy in the corn, which means cattle producers have the potential to get more bang for their buck.”

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Researchers have observed feed efficiency gains whether calves were fed whole corn or dry-rolled corn. The scientists saw these positive results as early as day 14 in a 90-day study. In addition, researchers tended to see lower dry-matter intake with Enogen Feed corn, Blasi says.3

“I appreciate how Syngenta goes the extra mile to substantiate the science,” says Blasi, who has also conducted Enogen Feed silage research.

Better Animal Nutrition

Enogen Feed corn silage also interests Randy Shaver, Ph.D., a professor of animal nutrition and extension dairy nutritionist from the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

“In addition to the improved starch digestibility and higher levels of available sugars, there’s also an improvement in fiber digestibility with Enogen Feed corn,” Shaver says, who has been working with Syngenta since 2016 to study the feed efficiency of Enogen Feed silage and dry corn.

This research also appeals to John Goeser, a self-described “dietitian for animals” who oversees animal nutrition research at the Rock River Laboratory, Inc., in Watertown, Wisconsin. “The improved fiber digestibility is wildly intriguing, especially since the average dairy cow only digests 60 to 65 percent of the feed she consumes.”

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There’s a big difference between Enogen Feed corn and other corn when it comes to feed efficiency. It’s such a simple switch to make it part of your operation.

Duane Martin

The variation around this average digestion is substantial, with figures ranging from 50 percent to 75 percent, Goeser adds. “Improving these numbers could have big benefits,” he says.

Practical, Proven Solutions

Syngenta also plans to expand Enogen Feed corn research into swine and poultry in the next few years. Eggers welcomes opportunities to have more data on the potential benefits of feeding Enogen Feed corn to livestock.

“With Enogen Feed corn, you don’t sacrifice yield or standability,” Eggers says, who adds that the Enogen trait is available in many corn hybrids from Syngenta. “You also have the flexibility to harvest Enogen Feed hybrids for grain or chop it for silage, with no additional agronomic challenges—unlike some silage-specific hybrids.”4

Martin encourages corn producers who grow their own grain or silage for cattle to take a close look at the benefits of Enogen Feed hybrids, with proven genetics and traits that deliver excellent agronomic performance. “There’s a big difference between Enogen Feed corn and other corn when it comes to feed efficiency,” he says. “It’s such a simple switch to make it part of your operation.”

1. University of Nebraska Lincoln Research Studies, 2013-2017; Kansas State University Research Study, 2017
2. University of Nebraska Lincoln Research Study, 2013-2017
3. Kansas State University Research Study, 2017
4. Enogen growers must comply with specific yet simple stewardship requirements.

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It seemed a nearly impossible idea: hybridized wheat sold across North America in the first half of the 21st century. Wheat self-pollinates, so crossing it with other varieties has proved challenging. Still, what began as a promise in 2010 may be poised to become a reality in the early 2020s. By combining a broad genetic portfolio with a globe-spanning, prestigious research team, Syngenta is developing hybrid wheat that shows the potential of increased yield and sustainability.

“In the next five years, we’ll be targeting launches for growers across major wheat growing regions,” says Darcy Pawlik, head, cereals portfolio at Syngenta, North America. “When you combine the strong agronomic characteristics of our wheat portfolio, it will result in a very nice package for the farmer to take advantage of.”

Though it’s the top crop planted globally by acreage, wheat remains one of the few crops without a successful hybridized variety on the market in North America. But Carlos Iglesias, North American head of wheat seed development at Syngenta, and his team may soon add wheat to the list of crops that reap the benefits of hybridization, which can include improved, consistent yield and quality.

Riding the Cutting Edge

The secret to the wheat seed development team’s success is a process known as doubled-haploid technology.

Iglesias’ team uses corn to pollinate specially selected wheat plants. Because corn is distantly related to wheat, its pollen can induce the plant to make a seed, but that seed will only have one copy of the wheat’s genes—a haploid.

“We rescue that seed and treat it with a product that allows for normal duplication of the wheat parent’s genes,” Iglesias says. “Right away, we end up with a plant that is homozygous, which means it has pure genes from a single parent with the traits we want to see.”

These traits include high, consistent yield and vigor, high protein content, and robust root systems for better water use and nitrogen efficiency—all of which can add up to a greater potential return on investment.

“One great aspect of this technology is that doubled-haploid technology is natural,” Iglesias says. “We were able to take this process from nature and use it as a tool to work in our favor. There is absolutely no genetic modification in this whole process.”

Traditional breeding practices can take up to 12 years to produce a desirable cross. With doubled-haploid technology, Iglesias’ team can whittle down tens of thousands of wheat lines to a few, with the most positive attributes in just two years. The ability to explore the vast array of traits from multiple parents enhances the capacity of Syngenta to provide a superior product.

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Because we’re using multiple lines of wheat instead of just one, we should be able to unlock some of the diversity and get more improvements faster.

Darcy Pawlik head, cereals portfolio at Syngenta, North America

“We continue to stay on track from a development perspective for all the breeding characteristics growers look for, such as insect tolerance, disease tolerance, harvestability and resiliency against drought,” Pawlik says. “We expect hybridized wheat to possibly amplify these effects by using multiple parents.”

That’s really the key with hybrids, Pawlik explains: “Because we’re using multiple lines of wheat instead of just one, we should be able to unlock some of the diversity and get more improvements faster.” When added up, all of these characteristics can potentially maximize a farmer’s return on investment.

Commitment to Growers

In addition to these amplified effects, hybridized wheat is expected to have an increased sustainability score by producing more bushels, with the same amount of water and nitrogen, per acre planted. Sustainability, as it is referred to today, was not an initial goal for Syngenta when the hybrid wheat program began in 2010, Pawlik says. But as the program developed, customers talked—and Syngenta listened.

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“Sustainability comes up as an issue that growers and consumers, in general, really care about,” says Pawlik. “As a result, we’re trying to more efficiently develop crops that can do more with less, whether that means less water, nitrogen or land. We want growers to get more yield for the same amount, or less, of their input.”

Exceeding Expectations

The North American cereals research team is one of the world’s most experienced, offering valuable insights into how hybrids respond to diverse weather and disease conditions. “We have experts, who have been developing wheat varieties for 30 years, and they’re working with a new generation of specialists, who bring the most up-to-date skills and technology to the table,” Iglesias says. “We’re lucky to have such a ripe, well-integrated educational environment.”

It’s also an environment that fosters a close connection to the real world of agriculture. “Our team gets to participate with the sales and marketing end of wheat as well, allowing us to hear feedback from farmers to help in future decision making,” Iglesias says. “It is invaluable input.”

Syngenta stands above its peers in its hybrid technology investment, and that investment is paying off. “We’re exceeding our expectations in what we hoped to see in factors like increased yield and performance,” Pawlik says. “We’re bringing to market a differentiated product from varietal wheats available today. This will be a step change in wheat production.”

Iglesias agrees. “We are seeing a qualitative jump in yield,” he says. “And we continue to aim for higher gains as our program matures.”

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The Attribute® II trait stack is available in a number of TripleSweet® corn varieties with different characteristics to meet grower needs and consumer demands:

  • Remedy is a BC0805-type sweet corn with improved insect resistance through the Attribute II trait stack. With consistently high yields, Remedy produces long ears with tender, sweet kernels for excellent eating quality. This bicolor variety reaches maturity in approximately 82 days to meet grower needs.
  • Milky Way is a white variety that is well-suited for local and roadside markets in the Midwest and Northeast and reaches maturity in approximately 82 days. Protected by the Attribute II trait stack, Milky Way offers growers and consumers excellent ears to meet market expectations with outstanding eating quality and consistent yields.
  • Aspire is a yellow variety ideal for main-season plantings in the Midwest and Northeast. Aspire sweet corn can reach maturity in approximately 80 days for earlier harvest. With built-in Attribute II protection against key lepidopteran pests and tolerance to glyphosate and glufosinate herbicides, Aspire offers growers the opportunity to maximize marketable ears.
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Growers continually seek opportunities that will maximize their farms’ efficiency and profits. When those opportunities mean producing high-quality sweet corn made easy, the rewards can be especially sweet.

Syngenta develops its sweet corn hybrids with this premise—and growers’ needs—top of mind. By giving field corn growers a sustainable way to incorporate sweet corn acres into their existing operations, these hybrids are helping to bring satisfaction to them, their families and anyone else who consumes their sweet corn.

Herbicide Tolerance

In 1998, Syngenta laid the foundation for its traited sweet corn offerings with the introduction of the Attribute® trait stack. Attribute sweet corn hybrids offer tolerance to LibertyLink® herbicide and contain a gene that expresses Cry proteins for built-in, season-long control of key lepidopteran pests.

As the next evolution in its line of sweet corn hybrids, Syngenta introduced the Attribute II trait stack in 2014. Attribute II hybrids feature the power of Vip3A and Cry1Ab proteins, providing added protection from harmful lepidopteran pests, while offering additional herbicide tolerances that other commercially available sweet corn varieties don’t.

“Growers are looking for convenience,” says Mark Jirak, Syngenta Eastern vegetable commercial unit manager. “They want a herbicide program that can go across their field and sweet corn acres, without having to worry about their herbicide choice damaging their sweet corn crops.”

Attribute II can also help growers manage herbicide-resistant weeds in their fields by offering tolerance to two different nonselective herbicides.

“Growers who are struggling with glyphosate-resistant weeds have the option of using either glyphosate or glufosinate,” says Ryan Walker, Ph.D., head of global LSV (large-seeded vegetables) research at Syngenta.

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Powerful Protection Against Insects

In addition to herbicide tolerance, Attribute II provides protection from harmful sweet corn pests, including European corn borer, corn earworm, fall armyworm and Western bean cutworm. Attribute II combines the Cry1Ab protein found in the Attribute trait stack with the proprietary Vip3A protein from Syngenta to provide broader, more effective protection against pests. These proteins bind to different receptors within an insect’s midgut membranes, greatly reducing the risk of insect resistance.

“Attribute II has the best insect resistance by far,” Walker says. “Based on trial data* and what we’ve seen in the field, it’s head and shoulders above any other product in the market as far as performance goes—both in the range of insects it protects against and its ability to help growers maintain damage-free ears to harvest.”

The high-level protection that Attribute II offers can also help growers cut down on insecticide sprays, saving time and money while reducing the impact on the environment.

“If you’re looking for environmentally friendly tech that can help you reduce your number of insecticide sprays, Attribute II is the best thing that’s out there,” Walker says.

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”[Growers

Thank You!
want a herbicide program that can go across their field and sweet corn acres, without having to worry about their herbicide choice damaging their sweet corn crops.” credit=”Mark Jirak”]

No Task Too Small

Growers with smaller operations who have used Attribute II for its insect control capabilities have also seen its benefits. Jirak advises his brother Ron, who runs the family farm they grew up on, Jirak Brothers Produce, in Tampa, Kansas. Ron also sells the farm’s sweet corn directly to local residents and grocery stores.

To maintain the operation’s success, Jirak Brothers Produce depends on Attribute II sweet corn hybrids. “My brother uses Attribute II on the farm because the worm control is unsurpassed,” Jirak says. “When you’re selling to consumers who are used to buying sweet corn without any damage, it becomes an issue when your corn has worms. Attribute II gives us the best opportunity for worm-free corn, which is especially important when we sell produce at the farmers market or at the family’s roadside stand.”

For smaller acreages or planted areas, Syngenta offers Attribute II in convenient smaller-size 2,500-seed packets.

Jirak says that advising the home farm operation gives him a unique perspective on trait selection and efficacy. “I’m able to experience firsthand the benefits of using Attribute II on my family’s farm,” he says. “This real-world vantage point makes my work with these traits at Syngenta even more relevant and rewarding.”

*Data comes from Galen P. Dively, Ph.D., Department of Entomology, University of Maryland, who conducted individual sweet corn field trials at 15 locations across seven states (NC, VA, WV, MD, DE, NJ and NY) in 2017. The purpose of the trials was to compare the insect control efficacy of different Bt hybrids with non-expressing isolines.

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Growers, get ready for the next big transformation in farm technology—the driverless tractor. After two decades of building on a precision platform that started with GPS navigation, farm equipment manufacturers are getting close to realizing the much-anticipated milestone of having fully automated tractors on farms.

Right now, the driverless tractor still needs an operator, whose role is to intervene frequently to keep the tractor on task. But the ultimate goal is to offer growers driverless equipment that is smart—or autonomous—so they can perform tasks without human intervention. In other words, the driverless tractor would act as its own operator.

This goal requires equipment with sensors and cameras to relay data to onboard computers, which need artificial intelligence, so they can instantly respond to anything affecting the equipment’s current task. The technology will require minimal outside help.

Driverless tractors will allow growers to monitor field operations remotely from their computers.

Race to Autonomy

While the farm equipment industry has spent a couple of decades moving toward developing autonomous equipment, the race to commercially market that equipment has recently moved into high gear.

“Key farm manufacturers are all working in some way on autonomy,” says Dan Halliday, global product manager of precision land management at New Holland Agriculture. Niche companies and after-market suppliers also are developing autonomous solutions, which adds pressure across the industry to keep moving ahead, he says.

In 2016, both New Holland and Case IH introduced autonomous tractor prototypes, which the companies are still testing in the field.

“We’ve done a lot of work since then,” Halliday says. “We are working on sensor technology to make the driverless operation viable. And we launched smart auto-turn features last year.”

But there’s still work to be done, he adds. “There are applications that will need more work before we can fully automate them. If you want to till a field, it’s relatively easy to automate. However, if you’re combining, there’s a lot more going on.”

John Deere signaled its commitment to autonomous machinery when it acquired Blue River Technology. Blue River specializes in computer vision and machine learning, which are key technologies for developing task-oriented autonomous equipment.

“Frankly, we know that the move toward autonomy is about more than just a tractor driving across the field,” says Than Hartsock, manager of production system solutions at John Deere. “The quality of the job that the implement is doing matters, because that’s what ultimately impacts the crop that’s being grown. It’s not just the combine, but also the header that really matters. We are focusing our efforts on sensing, controlling and automating those functions.”

Blue River’s work on an advanced sprayer system illustrates the potential of automated technology. Computer vision allows the sprayer to sense the environment around it and look for weeds. The machine learns through artificial intelligence to identify weeds from soybeans, and then it precisely sprays individual weeds. This labor-free operation uses a minimum of chemicals and captures crop data to document the entire process.

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Autonomy takes out potential human error and gives the user a choice to operate overnight or for 24 hours. Clearly growers can benefit from increased efficiency on their farms utilizing these technologies.

Dan Halliday

The Digital Component

The ability to capture data from autonomous machinery will benefit farmers, according to Dan Burdett, global head of digital agriculture at Syngenta.

“The driverless tractor and automated farm equipment will be able to record any field event, which is important for developing insights, such as calculating return on investment [ROI],” he says. “Capturing timely and accurate data to document field applications for reports and stewardship requirements will also be possible.”

Because various sensors, tools and artificial intelligence will automate data collection, Burdett says the data will “enable a whole new level of decision-making capabilities. Growers will benefit from all of it.” He says the adoption of digital technologies in the ag industry is inevitable and moving fast.

“It’s escalating, and that’s driven partly by farm economics,” he says. “It’s very important for farmers to know their numbers. Digital tools and information technology can help farmers be better business people.”

Also driving the move to digital is a demographic change. “There are younger growers coming back on the farm who have a different way of doing things, including how they make decisions for the farm,” Burdett adds. “They do much more online research and consume a lot more information than previous generations.”

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The Future of Autonomy

For many years, the high cost of components needed for autonomous vehicles was partially responsible for ag manufacturers not bringing the vehicles to market. But that is changing.

Uber, Google and Tesla have made big investments in technology for their self-driving cars. This development has substantially lowered the cost of some components that are also used in automated farm equipment.

“We are seeing tremendous progress and innovation in cameras that are more capable and less expensive,” Hartsock says. “The sensors they use to look for obstacles in the road are becoming more effective and less expensive, too.”

As more industries use these components, prices will further drop, making autonomy within reach of farmers.

“We continue to see farmers who want products that make them money in a safe environment and that make fieldwork easier,” Hartsock says. “And as circumstances continue to compromise viable labor in our industry, farmers will need this help. All of these technologies make things easier and often have a substantial ROI for farmers.”

Autonomous and semi-autonomous equipment also may do the job better. “Autonomy takes out potential human error and gives the user a choice to operate overnight or for 24 hours,” says Halliday. “Clearly growers can benefit from increased efficiency on their farms utilizing these technologies.”