Arenzville, Illinois, USA
November 18, 2009

With corn acreage growing significantly the past few years, conventional wisdom would be that a company specializing in seed corn production for nearly 75 years would remain rooted in corn.

Not so for Burrus Hybrids. The farm-family owned independent supplemented its long-successful seed corn production by launching into the soybean market in 2009, and according to company president Tom Burrus, plans to expand its soybean line more vigorously in 2010.

“Technically, we entered the soybean market in 2008 when Burrus Brothers & Associated Growers purchased Hoblit Seed,” said Burrus. “The soybean line took off faster than anticipated, so we were able to introduce Power Plus® brand soybeans recently because of our success with Power Plus® brand seed corn.”

Burrus Hybrids and Pioneer Hi-Bred, a DuPont business, announced in July a distribution agreement to bring additional soybean and corn products to the marketplace. Under the agreement, Burrus and Pioneer will collaborate in the testing and distribution of soybeans and seed corn under the Power Plus® brand name.

“36CO™* is a Power Plus® brand 3.6 maturity bean that loves good soils,” noted Burrus. “Our top seller is 34B9™* with a 3.4 maturity and great yield across all soils. A new bean for 2010 is the 3.2 maturity 32KO™* carrying aphid antibiosis.”

Growers have heartily embraced the new soybean line, which the company’s Arenzville, Ill. headquarters attributes to the trust in Burrus because of the performance growers have experienced with the Burrus information and performance of their corn products over the years.

“Yield data demonstrate that our beans are very competitive. Plus, growers want to be treated fairly, and Burrus dealers have always done that,” said Burrus.

Distribution efficiency of the soybean line is achieved by offering beans across the existing Burrus seed corn market area of Illinois and Missouri, along with parts of Indiana and Iowa.
“Our dealers have done a nice job of presenting the soybean lines to seed corn customers and prospects,” said Burrus. “Growers appreciate the independent seed company approach and support, so they are planting comparison farms or fields to see how our beans yield in relation to other brands.”

Power Plus® brand soybeans originate from a marker-assisted breeding program. A new seed treatment combination in the line up for 2010 is PowerShieldSM from Burrus, bringing together fungicide and insecticidal properties to enhance emergence in cold, wet conditions. PowerShieldSM treated seed option will be available on Power Plus® brand and Hoblit Brand soybeans for the spring of 2010. Similar to other seed companies, the treated beans are sold on a “no return” basis. The Hoblit brand soybeans may be purchased without the seed treatment so growers can finish their planting and return a few bags of the untreated varieties if necessary.

“Power Plus® brand beans are our top performers,” Burrus pointed out. “We anticipated strong plot results, but they’ve far surpassed expectations.” Specifics may be found at www.burrusseed.com.

Hoblit and Power Plus® brand soybeans are offered in 130,000 seed units with three packaging options: E-Z Load hard-sided boxes containing 50 units per box, Jumbo bags with 45 units per bag, and individual 130,000 count paper sacks.

Burrus Hybrids was founded in 1935 by brothers Roy and Wilbur Burrus. The company is in its fourth generation of family ownership. Known for its cutting-edge genetics, Burrus tests germplasm from many sources to select products specifically adapted to its marketing area. Their focus on light-soils testing as well as high-yield environments helps to identify products that can handle stress even in a normal year.

* Power Plus® brand seed distributed by Burrus.
* PROaccesssm and Power Plus®are trademarks and service marks of Pioneer Hi-Bred.

Website: http://www.burrusseed.com

Published: November 18, 2009