Florimond Desprez and Bioceres join forces to develop and market wheat varieties with next generation biotechnologies, for the Latin-American region.
BUENOS AIRES, MAY 7th. 2013. Under the Trigall Genetics name, the venture is targeting a 2016 launch for high-yielding wheat varieties with HB4® technology, a feature shown to increase yield particularly where there are drought conditions or salt stress. To launch this first product, the parties have committed U$S 10M.
According to François Desprez, Chairman of Florimond Desprez and a director of the new venture: “Trigall Genetics is seeking to strengthen the yield potential of Florimond Desprez’s demonstrated genetics for the region, with Bioceres’ next generation technologies developed for this crop.”
“We believe that HB4® technology will help increase yield-floors in areas where crops are unreliable due to soil salinity or frequent water deficits,” stated Claudio Dunan, director of strategy for Bioceres and a member of Trigall Genetics’ management team.
It is estimated that HB4® technology will increase average crop yields between 10 to 15%, without affecting performance under favourable production conditions. This benefit results in U$S 80 to U$S 150 of extra income per hectare at current wheat prices, depending on the production area. Trigall Genetics initial marketing plans include production areas of Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay.
Wheat is one of the most important crops worldwide, with approximately 200M hectares planted every year. Latin-American farmers plant about 10M hectares annually.
With slightly more than 50M hectares planted every year, Latin America represents about 40% of the global market for genetically engineered crops.
