Threats to Crops
Listen, Innovate, Repeat
Today’s farmers take an integrated approach to their fields. Facing a unique combination of challenges, they set goals accordingly. Because their circumstances can change daily, even hourly, they never stop thinking about this process of tailoring goals to challenges. Whether they seek improved soil health, more efficient use of resources, better harvests, or all of the above, they want partners who also take an integrated approach, and who also never stop thinking about how to improve.
Threats to Crops
Listen, Innovate, Repeat
Today’s farmers take an integrated approach to their fields. Facing a unique combination of challenges, they set goals accordingly. Because their circumstances can change daily, even hourly, they never stop thinking about this process of tailoring goals to challenges. Whether they seek improved soil health, more efficient use of resources, better harvests, or all of the above, they want partners who also take an integrated approach, and who also never stop thinking about how to improve.
At Monsanto, this is reflected in our innovation pipeline.
We listen closely to what farmers are telling us about what’s happening on their fields, and we never stop looking for ways to deliver an improvement. Our goal is to provide farmers with customized solutions that match their unique circumstances. Every day, every week, every month–we are working to build crop protection solutions for tomorrow’s challenges.
At Monsanto, this is reflected in our innovation pipeline.
We listen closely to what farmers are telling us about what’s happening on their fields, and we never stop looking for ways to deliver an improvement. Our goal is to provide farmers with customized solutions that match their unique circumstances. Every day, every week, every month–we are working to build crop protection solutions for tomorrow’s challenges.
Crop Protection in the Mid-South Region
Alabama farmer Wendy Yeager grows rotations of cotton, soybeans, peanuts, wheat, and grain sorghum, and even with the annual changes to that rotation, her primary concerns remain the same each year.
“We have two main challenges. First, there’s weed and insect pest control, which I put together because certain types of weeds attract certain types of pests. And then there’s disease, which is strongly affected by the weather. Everything we do, we’re always looking at the weather to see how it changes things.”
–Alabama Farmer Wendy Yeager
Crop Protection in the Mid-South Region
Alabama farmer Wendy Yeager grows rotations of cotton, soybeans, peanuts, wheat, and grain sorghum, and even with the annual changes to that rotation, her primary concerns remain the same each year.
“We have two main challenges. First, there’s weed and insect pest control, which I put together because certain types of weeds attract certain types of pests. And then there’s disease, which is strongly affected by the weather. Everything we do, we’re always looking at the weather to see how it changes things.”
–Alabama Farmer Wendy Yeager
She’s not alone in her concerns. Every year, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, as much as 40 percent of the world’s potential harvest is lost to insects, weeds, and plant diseases.
Some insect pests have done so much damage, they’ve earned the nickname “billion dollar pests.” These include the soybean cyst nematode, the Western corn rootworm, and the European corn borer. These pests, combined with the challenges posed by weeds, plant diseases, and weather, affect farmers of all sizes across the globe.
“I grew up in Southern India, where I had to work on a farm before and after school. Many of my friends in India are farmers. One thing I pride myself on: we develop simple, durable, life-changing solutions for farmers. For their kids, less time spent on the farm means more time going to school.”
–Anilkumar Gowda, Monsanto Global Biotechnology Regulatory Affairs Manager
She’s not alone in her concerns. Every year, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, as much as 40 percent of the world’s potential harvest is lost to insects, weeds, and plant diseases.
Some insect pests have done so much damage, they’ve earned the nickname “billion dollar pests.” These include the soybean cyst nematode, the Western corn rootworm, and the European corn borer. These pests, combined with the challenges posed by weeds, plant diseases, and weather, affect farmers of all sizes across the globe.
“I grew up in Southern India, where I had to work on a farm before and after school. Many of my friends in India are farmers. One thing I pride myself on: we develop simple, durable, life-changing solutions for farmers. For their kids, less time spent on the farm means more time going to school.”
–Anilkumar Gowda, Monsanto Global Biotechnology Regulatory Affairs Manager
Insect Pressures Evolve,
So We Do Too
The pests mentioned above inspired a generation of innovative research in plant science and agricultural technology. For the past 20 years, solutions like Bt corn and Bt cotton have helped farmers bring the corn rootworm and cotton bollworm under control.
This year, a variety of solutions are advancing through our pipeline, tackling the next generation of challenges.
Insect Pressures Evolve,
So We Do Too
The pests mentioned above inspired a generation of innovative research in plant science and agricultural technology. For the past 20 years, solutions like Bt corn and Bt cotton have helped farmers bring the corn rootworm and cotton bollworm under control.
This year, a variety of solutions are advancing through our pipeline, tackling the next generation of challenges.
Lygus and Thrips Control Cotton
Leading the way is our Lygus and Thrips Control Cotton technology. This product combines protection from thrips, lygus, and fleahopper bugs. It could potentially be the first product to control all three of those pests simultaneously. It also holds promise as a means of reducing the amount of pesticide farmers need to use.
Trecepta
Another key pest-control solution is Trecepta™ technology, a versatile tool that will help corn farmers protect their plants from fall armyworm, corn earworm, cutworms, and corn borers.
Nemastrike
In the battle against nematodes, two of our technologies will feature prominently this year. The active ingredient NemaStrike™ Technology offers a broad-spectrum seed treatment that protects corn, soybean, and cotton plants from these underground threats. Field trials have shown a great deal of potential.
We explore many approaches as a part of our commitment to crop protection. For the past few decades, we’ve been exploring the science within the soil beneath our crops to stimulate our innovation. As part of our involvement with The BioAg Alliance, Soy BioNematicide, which uses soil microbes to control damaging nematodes, advanced to Phase 3 of our R&D Pipeline in 2018.
Climate Corporation
On the disease front, Climate is advancing its Disease Insights technology from the Discovery phase to the Pre-Commercial phase. Using a type of artificial intelligence known as deep learning, it can identify and diagnose corn crop diseases in real time in farmers’ fields. As a result, farmers can act rapidly when their crops are affected, saving time, resources, and yield that would otherwise be lost.
Harness® MAX Acetochlor Premix
Weeds steal valuable nutrients, sunlight and water from crops, and controlling them is a high priority for farmers. Harness ® MAX Acetochlor Premix, a new combination of proven herbicides, will be available to U.S. growers in 2018, and Next-Generation Dicamba formulations are advancing in the R&D pipeline.
Lygus and Thrips Control Cotton
Leading the way is our Lygus and Thrips Control Cotton technology. This product combines protection from thrips, lygus, and fleahopper bugs. It could potentially be the first product to control all three of those pests simultaneously. It also holds promise as a means of reducing the amount of pesticide farmers need to use.
Trecepta
Another key pest-control solution is Trecepta™ technology, a versatile tool that will help corn farmers protect their plants from fall armyworm, corn earworm, cutworms, and corn borers.
Nemastrike
In the battle against nematodes, two of our technologies will feature prominently this year. The active ingredient NemaStrike™ Technology offers a broad-spectrum seed treatment that protects corn, soybean, and cotton plants from these underground threats. Field trials have shown a great deal of potential.
We explore many approaches as a part of our commitment to crop protection. For the past few decades, we’ve been exploring the science within the soil beneath our crops to stimulate our innovation. As part of our involvement with The BioAg Alliance, Soy BioNematicide, which uses soil microbes to control damaging nematodes, advanced to Phase 3 of our R&D Pipeline in 2018.
Climate Corporation
On the disease front, Climate is advancing its Disease Insights technology from the Discovery phase to the Pre-Commercial phase. Using a type of artificial intelligence known as deep learning, it can identify and diagnose corn crop diseases in real time in farmers’ fields. As a result, farmers can act rapidly when their crops are affected, saving time, resources, and yield that would otherwise be lost.
Harness® MAX Acetochlor Premix
Weeds steal valuable nutrients, sunlight and water from crops, and controlling them is a high priority for farmers. Harness ® MAX Acetochlor Premix, a new combination of proven herbicides, will be available to U.S. growers in 2018, and Next-Generation Dicamba formulations are advancing in the R&D pipeline.
Innovations in the Service of Sustainability
The crop protection toolbox has provided a variety of solutions to serve farmers across crops and regions. Many of those solutions have directly contributed to positive environmental outcomes on farms around the world.
For example, herbicide-tolerant crops helped contribute to a conservation tillage boom. Reduced tillage practices help keep precious topsoil in place, preventing erosion from wind or rain, and improving overall soil health. Bt technology helped farmers reduce the amount of insecticide they needed to spray, allowing beneficial insects to thrive while saving resources. And the latest seed treatments – including those made from naturally-occurring soil microbes – offer a range of benefits, like helping plants use fertilizer more efficiently. This maximizes the productivity of soil and improves water quality by reducing nutrient runoff.
While we are proud of our contributions to farm-level sustainable outcomes, we are especially proud of our global commitment to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. During the years to come, we will sustain these commitments, looking to our innovation pipeline to help drive change while serving farmers. To learn more about our commitment to sustainability, visit our Sustainability page.
- Trecepta™ Corn
Applicable Crops: Corn
Product Description: Insects can cause significant crop damage reducing the yields needed to meet the growing demand for food, feed and fuel. This next-generation project is designed to provide a high level of broad spectrum above-ground control of fall armyworm, corn earworm, corn borers and cutworms. Multiple modes of action provide the potential for reduced refuge acre requirements.
Pipeline: Plant Biotechnology
- Lygus and Thrips Control Cotton*
Applicable Crops: Cotton
Product Description: Damage from thrips, lygus and fleahopper bugs can result in slow early season growth and reduced yields. This project has the potential to be the first to extend the spectrum of insect control to all three pests, while potentially reducing insecticide use.
Pipeline: Plant Biotechnology
- Nimbus Novel Fungicide Seed Applied Solution
Applicable Crops: Corn and Soy
Product Description: Fungal diseases can damage crops, causing reduced yields. This novel seed-applied fungicide is being developed to utilize breakthrough science with the potential to deliver broad-spectrum control of fungal diseases.
Pipeline: Ag Productivity Innovations
- NemaStrike™ Technology
Applicable Crops: Corn, Cotton and Soy
Product Description: Nematodes cause damage to the roots of important row crops such as corn, soy and cotton, presenting one of the largest pest challenges for farmers. NemaStrike™ Technology was developed to provide farmers with an additional tool to control multiple nematode species, including lesion, soybean cyst, root knot and reniform.
Pipeline: Ag Productivity Innovations
- Harness® Max Acetochlor Premix
Applicable Crops: Corn
Product Description: This product is developed to combine two trusted herbicides to deliver an additional option for weed management in corn and sorghum. Multiple residual modes of action have the potential to offer excellent control of glyphosate-resistant palmer amaranth.
Pipeline: Ag Productivity Innovations
Learn More About The Integrated Field
*Commercialization is dependent on multiple factors, including successful conclusion of the regulatory process. The information presented herein is provided for educational purposes only, and is not and shall not be construed as an offer to sell, or a recommendation to use any unregistered pesticide, including but not limited to (the product at issue), for any purpose whatsoever. It is a violation of federal law to provide or offer to sell an unregistered pesticide.