Common Weed Could be Bred to Make Rubber
Prickly lettuce, a common weed that has long vexed farmers, has potential as a new cash crop providing raw material for rubber production, according to Washington State University scientists. Writing […]
Gene Discovery Holds Promise for Agriculture
A fundamental question pursued by plant scientists worldwide for the past decade has been answered by a researcher team led by the University of Sydney in Australia. “Our findings have […]
Marrone Bio Innovations Strengthens Sales Team
Marrone Bio Innovations, a leading provider of bio-based pest management and plant health products, welcomes new regional sales territory managers. “We are very pleased to welcome this talented group of seasoned […]
FarmLink Hires New Chief Strategy Officer
Missouri-based yield benchmarking service FarmLink hires Dave Gebhardt as its chief strategy officer for data products and agronomy. Formerly the director of agronomic data and technology at WinField, a Land O’Lakes […]
Photosynthesis Breakthrough Needed Now
Using high-performance computing and genetic engineering to boost the photosynthetic efficiency of plants offers the best hope of increasing crop yields enough to feed a planet expected to have a […]
Taylor Products Releases TRD 2000
The Kansas-based Taylor Products releases the latest in seed box handling technology — the TRD 2000, which is designed to automatically take a stack of three nested boxes from the […]
Registration Open for ESA Annual Meeting
The European Seed Association will host the 2015 Annual Meeting and the European Seed Trade Meeting from Oct. 11-13 in Vienna, Austria. Registration is open and available online at https://esa.conceptum.eu/Registration.aspx. […]
EPA Approves Enlist Duo in Nine Additional States
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced its approval of Enlist Duo herbicide for use in nine additional states, including Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oklahoma and North Dakota. The Enlist Weed […]
Sequencing Wheat’s Ancestor Might Bolster Yields
An international consortium of public and private partners plans to sequence the genome of wild emmer, an ancestor of modern wheat, according to a report from SciDev.Net. Scientists from the group say that […]
ASD Mostly Status Quo
When it comes to alternative service delivery for authorized seed crop inspection, there’s not much new to report. Minor tweaks and improvements are being made behind the scenes, but most […]
Canola’s Black Cloud Rolling Back In
It was the most damaging canola disease in the 1980s and early 90s, but thanks to cultivar resistance and extended crop rotations, blackleg has been under control for about 15 […]
EPA Unlikely to Approve New Outdoor Neonic Uses
As part of what it says is an ongoing effort to protect pollinators, the United States Environmental Protection Agency has sent letters to registrants of neonicotinoid pesticides with outdoor uses informing them […]
Researchers Discover How Plants Respond to Stress
Researchers at New York’s Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research have taken a first step in understanding how plants respond to stress, with the eventual goal of creating crops that are more tolerant […]
Study Finds Insecticide Use Surges Due to Neonics
Use of neonicotinoid insecticides increased dramatically in the mid-2000s and was driven almost entirely by the use of corn and soybean seeds treated with the pesticides, according to researchers at […]
U.K. Company Sues Bayer Over Seed Coating Technology
Exosect Ltd., a provider of enabling technologies based in the United Kingom, has initiated legal proceedings against Bayer CropScience Inc. for alleged infringement of its Canadian patent that relates to, among other […]
Benson Hill, Limagrain Partner to Increase Corn and Wheat Yields
Missouri’s Benson Hill Biosystems and Limagrain are partnering to develop and commercialize traits to increase corn and wheat yields. The collaboration and commercial partnership will involve significant contributions by both parties […]
Bayer CropScience Supports Roadside Pollinator Plantings
Bayer CropScience pledged $100,000 to the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) to be used for the development of roadside pollinator plantings this spring. The project will provide approximately 46 new […]
Illinois Foundation Seeds Announces CEO’s Retirement
Illinois Foundation Seeds, Inc. announced that John Hiser will retire as CEO effective Oct.1. Chief financial officer George Terry will succeed Hiser as CEO. Terry has more than 39 years of experience with […]
Bayer CropScience Opens Breeding and Trait Development Station
Bayer CropScience celebrated the grand opening of its Breeding and Trait Development Station in Pikeville, North Carolina. The $6.3 million state-of-the-art facility is part of Bayer CropScience’s commitment to extend […]
Monsanto Earnings Fall in Second Quarter
With half its fiscal year complete, Monsanto Company highlighted progress on key milestones related to its long-term growth, including strong performance of Intacta RR2 PRO soybeans, advancement of pre-commercial activities […]
Study Identifies Corn Varieties Resistant to Fusarium Ear Rot
In a study conducted by the University of the Philippines Los Baños, 12 corn varieties and inbred lines showing resistance to ear rot caused by fusarium have been identified from […]
Discovery Might Lead to More Efficient Crop Plants
Scientists at Oklahoma’s Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation with colleagues from Germany and Spain have made a discovery that will change the way researchers view messenger RNA (mRNA) and could aid the […]
Giant Views: John Palmer Discusses CCIA’s Role in the Seed Industry
At the Pacific Seed Association’s annual convention in Maui, Hawaii, John Palmer, executive director of the California Crop Improvement Association, sits down with Issues Ink President Shawn Brook to discuss […]
Giant Views: Rob Duerst of Ioka Marketing Talks Technology
Ioka Marketing LLC’s Rob Duerst, senior vice president of processing and marketing, sits down at the Pacific Seed Association’s 2015 A Convention in Maui, Hawaii, to talk about technology adoption […]
Bill Talley Owner, Summit Seed Coatings
Bill Talley sits down with Issues Ink President Shawn Brook at the 2015 Annual PSA Convention in Maui, Hawaii from March 2-4, 2015.
Reaction Mixed to European Patent Board Decision
Reaction was mixed to the decision of the Enlarged Board of Appeal (EBA) of the European Patent Office, which determined that plants or plant products produced by conventional breeding are not excluded from […]
JanWillem Breukink Retires from Incotec Board
Effective April 1, Incotec’s former CEO JanWillem Breukink announced that he will retire from the company’s board of directors. The decision is in accordance with the transition process the Netherlands-based […]
Uncertainty Looms in a Post-Patent World
In transitioning to a period when more biotech traits come off patent, many questions remain unanswered as the Canadian seed industry navigates new waters. _x000D_ _x000D_ When Monsanto’s patent protection […]
The Hunt for Analysts
The seed testing industry works to overcome challenges. _x000D_ One might not think the seed testing industry and an international chain of convenience stores have much in common. But according […]
Scientists Discover Why Plants Bloom Earlier in a Warming Climate
Scientists at the John Innes Centre in the United Kingdom discover why the first buds of spring come increasingly earlier. Researcher Steven Penfield found that plants have an ideal temperature for […]
Proteins Act Like Microscopic Gas Springs Inside Cells
Together with colleagues in Germany and Amsterdam, researchers at the Laboratory of Cell Biology of Wageningen University have shown how the disorderly movement of proteins provides directed forces in cells. […]
Monsanto Partners to Support Monarch Butterfly
Monsanto Company commits to supporting the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) and its Monarch Butterfly Conservation Fund. As the first company to contribute to NFWF’s Monarch Butterfly Conservation Fund, […]
Growing Toward the Future
Starting from scratch, an Ontario seed grower continues to build his business and pay it forward. _x000D_ Three decades ago, Dave Baute made the decision to change his career and […]
FBI Uses Surveillance Act to Gather Seed Theft Evidence
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has invoked its authority under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) to gather evidence against two Chinese men accused of plotting to steal patented corn […]
Syngenta Suing Willowood Over Seed Treatment
Syngenta is suing Oregon-based chemical maker Willowood for alleged patent and copyright infringement, as well as unfair and deceptive trade practices. The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the […]
Researchers Discover Important Plant Protein
Genetic research led by Japan’s RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science uncovered a novel protein, PUB4, that regulates cell division in root tips. Plant growth requires precise coordination between cell […]