60 GERMINATION.CA SEPTEMBER 2017 TheHeadlinesBusiness | People | Policy | Product | Research Submissions welcome: news@issuesink.com BUSINESS UNDER CHEMCHINA OWNERSHIP, SYNGENTA FOCUSES ON SEED Syngenta announced its new pri- orities following its takeover by ChemChina. The company aims to profitably grow market share through organic growth and collaborations, and is considering targeted acquisi- tions with a focus on seeds. The goal is to strengthen Syngenta’s leadership position in crop protection and to become an ambitious No. 3 in seeds. Key drivers for the next phase of growth will be further expansion in emerging markets, notably China, the stepping up of digital agriculture offerings, and ongoing investment in new technolo- gies to increase crop yields while reducing carbon dioxide emissions and preserving water resources. “We play a vital role in the food chain to safely feed the world and take care of our planet,” said Erik Fyrwald, CEO of Syngenta. SYNGENTA OUT-LICENSES LEEK SEEDS TO HAZERA Syngenta and Hazera have announced an agreement under which Hazera has taken over the Syngenta leek seeds portfolio. Both companies are major players in vege- table seeds and have worked together on a number of licensing agreements. Ruud Kaagman, head of large seeds vegetables, roots & bulbs at Syngenta, noted: “This agreement for leek seeds will benefit customers — Hazera will have a stronger combined leek seeds portfolio, and they are committed to investing in this important crop.” Syngenta currently sells leek seeds in Europe in the UK, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Germany, Poland and Spain. DUPONT TO SELL PART OF HERBICIDES BUSINESS, DOW TO SELL PLASTICS Competition and innovation con- cerns related to the proposed merger between DuPont and Dow Chemical Company were addressed when the Canadian Competition Bureau reached an agreement with both companies. The bureau concluded that the transaction would likely result in a substantial lessening or prevention of competition and a decrease in innovation in the supply and develop- ment of certain crop protection products and specialized packaging plastics. To address these concerns, DuPont agreed to sell a significant part of its global herbicides business and research and development branch to FMC Corporation. The sale includes DuPont’s Canadian activi- ties in cereal crops herbicides, as well as PrecisionPac, a popular herbicide dispensing system among Canadian farmers. Additionally, Dow will sell its global business of certain specialized plastics products (ethylene acrylic acid copolymers and ionomers), typically used in specialized packaging applications for diverse products such as food, beverages and pharmaceuticals, to SK Global Chemical Co. LTD (SK Global), a new entrant in these markets. BASF AND KAIIMA ANNOUNCE COLLABORATION TO IDENTIFY NOVEL HERBICIDE RESISTANCE TRAITS BASF and Kaiima Bio-Agritech, a genetics and breed- ing technology company, announced their collaboration for the discovery of novel herbicide resistance traits to develop new weed control systems to improve farmer productivity. This multi-year project will leverage Kaiima’s proprietary EP technology platform, a non-GMO breed- ing tool that enhances plant performance by inducing novel diversity within the genome, using the plant’s own DNA. EP can create forms of genetic modifications, such as gene duplications and translocations, which are largely SYNGENTA AIMSTO BECOMEAN AMBITIOUSNO. 3INSEEDS