Chinese-Owned Syngenta's Hybrid Wheat Fails To Impress U.S. Farmers

Global seed maker Syngenta will release a new type of wheat developed with complex cross-breeding techniques in the US next year, beating out rival companies that are also trying to develop higher-yielding wheat at a time of diminishing global grain supplies, Tom Polansek and Julie Ingwersen reported for Reuters.

Photo Insert: The hybrid wheat, which combines positive traits from two parent plants, arrives after severe weather slashed grain harvests and the Ukraine war disrupted shipments to hungry importers, sending prices to record highs this spring.

The hybrid wheat, which combines positive traits from two parent plants, arrives after severe weather slashed grain harvests and the Ukraine war disrupted shipments to hungry importers, sending prices to record highs this spring.

Syngenta, which began working on hybrid wheat in 2010, told Reuters enough seeds will be on the market next year for US farmers to plant about 5,000 to 7,000 acres.

Though a tiny fraction of the nation's plantings, the previously unreported total represents the company's biggest-ever release of hybrid wheat. It could open the door for larger seedlings in 2024 and beyond, as war and climate change make the world's food supplies increasingly vulnerable.

Growers of corn and other crops like barley have long benefited from hybrid seeds boosting yields.

The road to market has been extra slow for wheat because the development process is more costly and difficult, and companies saw a lower potential for returns, researchers said. The benefits of the new crop are still not certain.

Three independent seed companies that produced hybrid wheat this year under agreements with Syngenta told Reuters they were unsure the crop will deliver game-changing results for growers. They added that it will take longer to determine how to cost-effectively produce the best seeds.

Syngenta's French unit told Reuters the company postponed the launch of a similar type of wheat tested in France following disappointing results. The US and French hybrids were tailored for local growing conditions, which can include threats from plant diseases and the need to meet quality standards for milling and baking, the company said.

Chinese-owned Syngenta said its US wheat, to be sold under the AgriPro brand, could increase yields by as much as 12% to 15% and make crops more stable, adding that it is attracting strong interest from farmers.

Wheat "is the only major food crop that has not yet benefited from significant technification. Hybrids will change this," bragged Jon Rich, Syngenta Seeds' head of North America cereals operations.

Farmers have used hybrid seeds since the 1930s to grow corn, followed by other crops ranging from peanuts to tomatoes. Hybrid corn helped US yields climb from 20 bushels per acre in 1930 to 140 bushels by the mid-1990s. By 1960, 95% of US corn acres were planted with hybrid seed.

"Corn is really easy to do," said Charlie Vogel, chief executive officer of the Minnesota Association of Wheat Growers. "It's really hard with wheat so you need ideal conditions for the seeding." China is also pushing hybrid rice but farmers have complained that it requires costly expenditures for fertilizer and pesticides.

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