b'JIM SCHWEIGERTPRESIDENT, GRO ALLIANCE AUGUSTINE AUjim.schweigert@groalliance.com VP OPERATIONS NORTH AMERICA, DLFgroalliance.com @jim_schweigert Augustine.Au@dlfna.com@DLFUSAdlfna.comAre Companies Fulfilling Their Sustainability Pledges?ON JULY 26,Gro Alliance announced that it hadSeed Enhancements are Paramount to enrolled as a Program User with Leading Harvest.the Future of our IndustryOur goal is to connect sustainable practices for the entire food, feed, fuel and fiber supply chain all the way back to the seed. This will give any com- IN THE GRASSseed sector, seeddiseases that can affect plant growth pany that partners with Gro Alliance for its seedenhancements are an essential tooland health. production a leg up on the competitors that arentin ensuring products perform wellBy controlling the seed enhance-growing their seed production using sustainablefor users, especially in areas affectedment process end-to-end and invest-practices verified by a third party. by drought, depleted soil or othering in new facilities, DLF can further The Leading Harvest announcement wasnt ourenvironmental stresses. innovate by creating better perform-last step, or even our first into becoming a moreSome of the key benefits of seeding seed products, while offering sus-sustainable business. We arent just doing this forenhancements are: tainable solutions within the industry.the headlines!Improved germination: SomeAs a result, Im excited to share Rather, it is part of an intentional plan toseed enhancements can help tothe companys latest venture: our position the company as the most sustainable,improve the germination rate of grassnew seed enhancement and opera-future-focused seed supply chain partner in Northseed. This means more seeds willtions facility in Lebanon, Oregon. This America. How the world uses resources matterssprout and grow into healthy matureinvestment in the Willamette Valley and were proud to be on the forefront of changingplants, leading to a denser, more uni- came about after a meticulous and an industry. form lawn or pasture. comprehensive review of our North On June 7, we announced a new partnership Increased tolerance to stress:American footprint and strategy, with BioLumic to bring its UV light applicationSeed enhancements can also improvewhere we looked at our entire grower system to commercialization. This is a completelythe ability of grass seed to toler- partner network. new category of seed treatment with improvedate environmental stresses such asThe facility is essentially 141,000 crop performance programmed into seeds withdrought, salinity, disease and extremesquare feet of new building, including light. The world-first UV light recipes are clean,temperature. This can help to ensurea seed enhancement plant where bio-green and GM free. that the seedling is more likely tological material will be applied to the Back in February of 2021, we announced ourestablish and grow even in challeng- seed, along with other key compo-partnership with plant trait technology company,ing conditions. nents designed to provide biological ZeaKal. ZeaKals PhotoSeedTM technology helps Enhanced nutrient uptake: Somebenefits. plants capture more carbon and sunlight, leadingseed enhancements can improveWhen it comes to quality control, to healthier, nutrient-rich food and feed grown onthe ability of a grass seedling toDLF aims to have more control over a smaller environmental footprint. Maybe its besttake up nutrients from the soil. Seedthe entire process from start to finish. described as it was in a recent Bloomberg article:enhancements can extend theBy integrating our supply chain and as a soybean trait that promises to soak up moreplants root system and create morehaving end-to-end control, well be carbon while yielding more vegetable oil andpathways for water and nutrientable to better serve our customers protein. uptake. This can help to supportand achieve our long-term goals for The announcements above highlight majorincreased rebound rate, forage qual- North America.milestones along our journey, but even the smallity, and a denser stand to out-com- Seed enhancements are an impor-steps make a big impact. We continually researchpete weeds. tant complement to our genetics, and and evaluate innovations to reduce chemical and Improved pathogen resistance:this new facility will allow us to better fuel usage while improving yield and quality. StayThrough beneficial microbes, cer- control the process end-to-end and tuned for more sustainability announcements astain seed enhancements can help tomove seeds faster, reducing handling we work to redefine seed production! improve the resistance to commontime across our network.OCTOBER 2023SEEDWORLD.COM /27'