Wilmington, Delaware
June 6, 2007
At an investors' conference in New
York City yesterday, DuPont
Vice President for Crop Genetics Research & Development Bill
Niebur said the company's technologies are helping -- now and
well into the future - to meet the strong global demand for
grain that is being driven by a growing global population and
increased biofuels use.
"World population growth plus gross domestic product growth
means increased demand for dietary protein," Bill said at the
Merrill Lynch Agricultural Chemical Conference. "This global
mega trend is a powerful incentive for farmers around the world
to rapidly adopt technologies that will increase their
productivity. We are helping increase productivity today through
advanced plant breeding and biotechnology, but this is only just
the beginning."
In the past year, DuPont seed business
Pioneer Hi-Bred has
increased its seed corn yield advantage by 50 percent and has
significantly increased the number of products with yield
enhancing biotech traits. At the same time, Pioneer has more
people working with farmers to increase yield by matching the
best seed products to their specific fields and management
practices.
"Farmers are looking for every opportunity to increase
productivity in a profitable and sustainable manner," Bill said.
"They recognize that biotech traits on the market today, such as
the Herculex® XTRA trait, control pests better than other
options and allow them to produce increased quantities of better
quality grain per acre. "
There are a number of new advancements in the crop genetics
pipeline from DuPont that will enable farmers to meet the global
demand for grain, which is expected to remain strong.
DuPont has integrated a number of new technologies into its crop
genetics research and development effort to reduce the time it
takes to bring new ideas to its customers.
"Over the past year, 44 percent of our current pipeline projects
have advanced to the next phase of development," Bill said.
"During the past two years, 90 percent of the projects advanced
to the next phase in the pipeline. We are excited about this
strong record of progress and how our teams will be able to
further accelerate new product development and commercialization
going forward."
DuPont is a science-based
products and services company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts
science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a
better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating
in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of
innovative products and services for markets including
agriculture and food; building and construction; communications;
and transportation. |
|