Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 8458 / SEEDWORLD.COM OCTOBER 2016 giant, it was fitting that Crop Protection Division president Markus Heldt noted that the company is, “Willing and ready to invest to grow its business globally.” He’s worked in the industry for 35 years and has witnessed a plethora of changes in that time, including consolidation that’s served to change the landscape of the global ag busi- ness. That landscape has changed even more now that Bayer announced its buyout of Monsanto for $66 billion. The com- bined agriculture business will have its global Seeds & Traits and North American commercial headquarters in St. Louis, Mo., its global Crop Protection and overall Crop Science head- quarters in Monheim, Germany, and an important presence in Durham, N.C., as well as many other locations throughout the United States and around the world. According to Heldt, BASF is more than confident in its abil- ity to cope with the changing industry landscape and be agile and ready to adapt to shifting times. It’s been doing so since its inception. The story is long and detailed, but goes like this. Entrepreneur Friedrich Engelhorn, who owned a coal gas com- pany in the nearby city of Mannheim, very quickly recognized the opportunities for coal tar — a byproduct of his company’s business. But he had bigger ideas: A company that spanned the entire production process, from raw materials and auxilia- ries through precursors and intermediates to dyes. In April of 1865, Engelhorn turned his idea into reality. He founded a stock corporation in Mannheim under the name Badische Anilin- & Sodafabrik. After the planned acquisition of a site in Mannheim fell through, the manufacturing facilities were built on the oppo- site side of the Rhine River in Ludwigshafen — then part of the kingdom of Bavaria — and BASF is born. BASF has always been proud of its ability to succeed, and Heldt said this ability will help carry it into the future. “We believe size on its own — or just bundling technologies of seed and chemistry, for example — is not a recipe for suc- cess,” Heldt said. “Farmers want freedom to choose, and that’s why we’re convinced they enjoy having access to different sup- pliers, and not just three or four on a global scale. “We see our position as robust and strong. We have a strong local footprint in all markets and an outstanding pipeline.” BASF’s current crop protection pipeline of innovations has new product candidates from all indications in advanced phases. The company estimates that peak sales from crop protection products launched between 2015 and 2025 will total 3 billion euros. One example is the company’s latest fungicide, Revysol. Currently under registration by European authorities, this com- pound has shown outstanding biological performance against a range of pathogens, as well as a favorable regulatory profile, according to the company. BASF strives to complement its traditional crop protection offerings to provide farmers with new technologies, like its new digital farming platform Maglis. According to Matthias Nachtmann, team lead digital farming for BASF, Maglis is BASF’s most significant accomplishment in the area of digital farming. Launched at the beginning of 2016, Maglis helps farmers