DuPont is stepping up its efforts to develop hybrid wheat varieties which, according to company officials, could increase wheat yields by 15 to 20 percent.
Speaking to investors Tuesday, DuPont executive vice president Jim Borel said that hybrid wheat technology has entered the first phase of DuPont Pioneer's five-step research and development pipeline.
DuPont vice-president of research, John Soper, tells Bloomberg that the company is using conventional and biotechnology approaches to developing hybrid wheat. He said the first commercial hybrid wheat product could be expected in the next decade or so.
Dow Chemical and Monsanto, which have previously announced efforts to boost wheat yields through genetic modification, are not pursuing the creation of wheat hybrids.
Source: brownfieldagnews.com