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Scott Portfolio Showcase and Learning Center offers farmers opportunity to see Monsanto's R&D pipeline first-hand
Chism Craig, Scott Learning Center Manager
Agricultural technology is changing at a rapid pace. Showing farmers products early in the development process long before a farmer can buy it and helping growers get a feel for the benefits and management needed is something Delta and Pine Land, a Monsanto business, sees as an essential tool to farmers’ success.
Chism Craig, Scott Learning Center Manager, says the rich history is why the Learning Center now calls Scott, MS home. He says the Learning Center uniquely positions farmers to learn about upcoming products and best management practices three-to-five years before it’s commercially launched.
“We offer a lot of products that provide value to our customers. It only provides value if they know how to properly use it. And so what we intend to do is to show them how to uses those product more efficiently on their farm so they can maximize the value of those products.”
Craig says the learning center focuses on Monsanto’s seed business, including Deltapine, Dekalb and Asgrow brands. It also showcases traits and genetics and the chemistry sector of the business.
“Some of the things farmers will see this year will be new germplasm in cotton, corn and soybeans, as well as new technologies like Dicamba-tolerant cotton, Dicamba-tolerant soybeans, YieldGard VT Pro™, a second-generation insect-control product in corn that will also pave the way for the first eight-way stack product in corn called SmartStax. We’re also showcasing drought-tolerant technology in corn, as well as products in soybeans that add value at the farm-gate to the grower – things like Vistive™ Low-Linolenic Soybean and High-stearate soybeans.”
Chism says farmers have the opportunity in Scott to see best management practices for these products, such as agronomic systems, row spacing and the best ways to use herbicides.
Another major focus is showing growers stress mitigation, which puts crops under the different stresses crops experience during the growing season – like drought - and allows farmers to see how these products perform during those situations.
He says even though the number of cotton acres being planted isn’t increasing, the company continues to commit research and development dollars to new cotton varieties.
“We have a tremendous list of new varieties that are slated for release in 2009 with the Bollgard II® Roundup Ready® Flex trait. We’re currently testing about 15 news lines that are candidate for release in 2009.”
He says Monsanto and its Delta and Pine Land business are committed to helping growers get the most out of every acre. And by providing growers with valuable traits, the company is helping farmers do so on a day-to-day basis.
To learn more about the Scott Learning Center, visit Monsanto.com.
