Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84STRATEGY A featured segment designed to share business- critical information to seed-selling professionals. Visit SeedWorld.com to download this department and other tools. Seed Treatments Worth the Cost In a low commodity environment that has U.S. farmers putting pen to paper and scrutinizing every dollar, it’s important to understand the return on investment seed treatments can deliver. Julie Deering EVEN THOUGH CORN and soybean prices are up slightly — along with the stock market on the promise of what a Trump administration could do for the overall economy — many farmers will operate at or below breakeven costs for 2017, according to University of Illinois agricultural econo- mists Gary Schnitkey and Darrel Good. This has farmers evaluating their operations and looking at ways to trim costs and some, no doubt, will be looking at seed treatments as an option. But experts say that’s not a good idea. “With the low commodity prices, every bushel is impor- tant to breakeven and farmers need to do everything they can to get the highest yield possible and reduce risk,” says Palle Pedersen, Syngenta Seedcare head of product marketing. “You cannot afford not to use a broad spectrum seed treatment. “When soybeans were bringing $13 and $14, and you had $7 and $8 corn, it wasn’t as important because everyone was making money. From 2005 to 2013, we saw commodity prices at levels that we might not see again for a long time.” When prices were so high, farmers didn’t need to practice looking at their bal- ance sheet, and Pedersen says many forgot about basic agro- nomic principles. “It’s ‘back to the basics’ for farmers,” he says. “Last year, some decided they didn’t need to use a seed treatment and that was a big mistake.” There’s a reason why seed treatments are so popular. BASF’s Justin Clark, techni- cal market manager, says that as growers plant earlier, conditions are colder and wetter, increasing exposure to Pythium, Rhizoctonia and Fusarium. These pathogens are yield robbers, he warns. “Seed treatments protect the genetic potential of the seed,” Pedersen adds. When looking at the return on investment a seed treat- ment can deliver, Pedersen uses CruiserMaxx Beans with Vibrance as an example. In the past three years, he says in 63 percent of the cases farmers averaged an extra 4.5 bushels per acre. With a cost of $14 per acre and soybeans at $9 per bushel, that’s a tremen- dous investment. Pedersen says farmers are tripling their money with CruiserMaxx Beans with Vibrance. Bayer’s Gregory Ginisty and Melissa Chu share a simi- lar story for ILeVO, a Bayer soybean seed treatment. “It’s an investment, but it saves yield,” Ginisty says. “It really depends on the severity of sudden death syndrome (SDS). If SDS visual symp- toms come into a field, we can see a 10-bushel-per-a yield advantage when grow- ers use ILeVO.” Unfortunately, once you have the Fusarium responsible for SDS in your field, Ginisty says it will always be present. While it does not affect corn, it overwinters on corn and can remain a risk to future soy- bean plantings. The Fusarium responsible for SDS is present in nearly all U.S. soybean growing areas and produces the toxin responsible for the foliar symptoms. Its severity is dependent on the weather. As severity increases, yield loss is greatly increased, Chu says, adding that on average, 150 million bushels are lost each year across the nation due to SDS and SCN. 28 / SEEDWORLD.COM JANUARY 2017 Seed treatments are about protecting that investment in seed, says Melissa Chu, Bayer SeedGrowth product manager.