b'Forage and Turf Breeding isSIMON WATTCHIEF TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION OFFICER, Becoming Increasingly Global ACTIVATE AG LABSsimon@activateaglabs.comwww.activateaglabs.com/AS A WORLDWIDEcompany, DLFproduct bred in New Zealand might is present in Europe, the Americashave characteristics that could be and Oceania. We also operate in Asiaused to build a game-changing and Africa, touching virtually everyvariety for the Canadian or AmericanSeed Treatments Future corner of the globe. This worldwideMidwest markets. The system we network informs our breeding andhave perfected is ever-changing inIs Microplastic Freehelps us provide the best productslight of rapidly advancing technology, we can for our customers. such as genomic selection and theLIKE MANY INagriculture, we take the environ-Of course, that global network iseffects of climate change.ment and especially the soil seriously.made up of a huge team that includesCustomer needs are alwaysThe use of seed treatments benefits the envi-local breeders like me. I breed forshifting, and that means our breed- ronment by reducing the amount of materials DLFs North American business unit.ing priorities have to shift as wellrequired to treat a crop. However, we are all aware Turf and forage customers in this part(Im thinking of things like drought/ of the need to take better care of our planet and of the world have unique needs whenheat tolerance). Germplasm createdcan improve further. Conventional polymers used it comes to seed varieties, be it forin drier/warmer parts of the globeto encapsulate seed treatments contain microplas-animal feed, lawn grass or sports turf.are perfectly suited to this. In pasttics. Compared to worlds total output of micro-Of course, DLFs status as a globaldecades, it may have surprised a lotplastic pollution, seed treatments contribution is playersomething that were takingof people that a turfgrass developedvery small. But rather than asking why would we time to highlight in light of our recentin North America would have usesremove microplastics, I believe the much more rebrandingis a key part of our localin Europe or even parts of Canada,important question is: why wouldnt we?breeding work. More than ever, it hasbut this is a reality DLF breeders areHow challenging is it to build seed treatments to be. encountering more often as the cli- without microplastics? To be totally honest, it is Turf and forage breeding is global.mate changes and northern environ- difficult to match the quality of synthetic products. For example, many forage peren- ments become warmer and drier. Difficult, but Im happy to report, not impossible. nial ryegrasses grown around theOur DLF breeders around theWe started talking about removing microplastics world come mainly from greaterworld are keenly attuned to whatfrom our formulations several years ago and have Europe or Oceania When it comestheir local markets need, but ourbeen working to develop new, naturally derived to orchardgrass and tall fescue, theyglobal presence and germplasm bankpolymer coating ingredients ever since. often come from southern Europemeans our company is one that hasOur goal for our company is to do a staged and/or North America. learned to operate with a truly globalintroduction of microplastic-free formulations over Our trial sites around the worldbusiness model that benefits ourthe next several years. Without announcing specif-provide us with data on countlessbusinesses worldwide. ics too early, we plan to release several products as populations and/or varieties andsoon as January. From there, well keep working on where they perform best. When itfurther improving and releasing additional micro-comes to the wide range of germ- plastic free options. plasm we use to breed with, eachI applaud all the companies who agree that, if species could be bred for a couple ofwe can do better, both in the realm of microplastics places or just one, in addition to mul- and elsewhere, we need to do better. tiple traits, such as drought toleranceIm also pleased to see that there is a formal-or nitrogen use efficiency. ized accreditation process building. Independently Our database is organized basedclaiming microplastic free for ones own product on where that species might fit orisnt enough: as an industry, we need to ensure a might have an appropriate use. Arigorous, scientifically verifiable registration or cer-tification process exists that proves claims.I truly believe global solutions to big problems are best achieved by individual commitment to STEVE REID small changes. Its time for seed treatment to go HEAD OF R&D NORTH AMERICA, DLF entirely microplastic free.sreid@dlfna.comdlfna.com @DLFUSA52/ SEEDWORLD.COMDECEMBER 2022'