b'PARTNER CONTENTEmpowering Africa, One Seed at a Time HERES WHY SYNGENTAS SOUTH AFRICA SEEDCARE INSTITUTE MATTERS SO MUCH. BY: HANRO STEENEKAMP, HEAD OF SEEDCARE AND BIOLOGICALS - AFRICA AND MIDDLE EAST, SYNGENTAA frica has both the responsibility and the potential to feed itself and to contribute meaningfully to global food secu-rity. Realising that potential depends on African farmers being able to produce consistent, reliable yields under some of the most variable and demanding conditions in the world. It requires efficient practices, the right technology, andabove allpeople who understand local realities and care deeply about getting it right.Thats exactly why we built the Syngenta Seedcare Institute in Brits, South Africa. Driven by the belief that we can make a meaningful difference for Africas farmers, we work alongside farmers and seed companies to develop end-to-end seed treat-ment solutions uniquely tailored to Africas own realities. WELCOME TO BRITS!At the heart of the Seedcare Institute is a deliberately practical way of thinking about seed treatment, not as a single product but as a system. Internally, we frame this as Products, Application and Services (PAS), because lasting results depend on all three working together.The product itself is foundational. Seed treatment begins with science, using chemistry and biologicals to protect seeds Hanro Steenekamp, Head of Seedcare and Biologicals - Africa and Middle and young plants from insects, pests and diseases at the mostEast, Syngenta.vulnerable stages of growth. But in Africa, strong products on their own are rarely enough.How those products are applied matters just as much. Application brings experience and judgement into play: fromglobal innovation meets local understanding, allowing technolo-developing the right seed recipes to assessing treatment qualitygies to be adapted, refined and specified for African conditions and guiding stewardship. Its where local conditions, seed qualityrather than simply imported.and on-farm realities shape how protection is delivered. What makes the South African Seedcare Institute especially The third element is service. Training, technical support andunique is that it is deliberately built to serve the full diversity ongoing engagement help customers build capability over time,of African farming. From smallholder farmers to the largest of strengthening seed systems rather than simply supplying inputs.commercial growers, from seed companies to distributors to Together, these three elements reflect what the Seedcareretailers, the Seedcare Institute stands at the forefront of innova-Institutetion, delivering value across a wide range of seed systems and is designed to do: support farmers through practical, end-to-end seed treatment solutions that work in African con- production realities. ditions. As my colleague, Wayne Janse van Rensburg, Seedcare Technology Manager Africa Middle East, says, Serving such ROOTED IN AFRICA varied customer segments is not always easy, since expectations Farming in Africa is unlike anywhere else in the world. Africanand challenges differ widely. However, I see every day that seed seed markets are highly differentiated and deeply fragmented,treatment, when done properly, cuts across all needs. Seed treat-shaped by different crops, climates, infrastructure realities andment goes far beyond the product on the seed. It also means customer needs. That variability is part of what makes Africanhelping customers understand application, quality, stewardship farming so special: on one side of the road, you might find pock- and the services that follow. That end-to-end support is where et-sized farms that sustain individual families; on the other, oper- real value is created. ations that match the scale and sophistication of the largestThis is why the Seedcare Institute has become one of our commercial growers anywhere in the world. Understanding thesestrongest differentiators. Products and innovation are essential, of local and regional contexts is essential to serving these marketscourse. But once those products become part of farmer practice, properly and developing solutions that actually work. South Africaits the services beyond the product that build customer trust.has long been a gateway into sub-Saharan Africa. Placing the Seedcare InstitutePRODUCING MORE FROM LESSRESPONSIBLYin Brits allows us to engage closely with the southern part of the continent while remaining directly connectedTheres a lot of discussion globally about producing more food to Syngentas global research and development pipeline. Here,from less land. In Africa, this is a critical reality. Africa must cur-20ISEED WORLD EUROPEISEEDWORLD.COM/EUROPE | FEBRUARY 2026'