Agro multinationals invest in India

Citing it as an emerging market, multinational crop protection companies are sinking more investment money into the crop protection infrastructure in India.

In separate announcements this week, Bayer and DuPont are the latest companies to bolster their presence in India.

First, Bayer CropScience will integrate GVK Bioscience capacities in the early part of its Discovery chemistry process.

"This cooperation in the area of early discovery chemistry will help Bayer CropScience to further increase efficiency in its research. It will also help our company to participate in the quickly developing scientific environment in India,” Dr. Alexander Klausener, Head of Research at Bayer Crop Science AG, said in a statement from the signing ceremony in Hyderabad.

In another announcement, DuPont India Private Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of DuPont, is eyeing long-term growth in India, is planning to double its investment in its R&D centre in Hyderabad.

So far, it has invested in the DuPont Knowledge Centre (DKC), which aims to develop innovative solutions with specializations to increase food production, decrease dependency on fossil fuels, protecting lives and environment.

Thomas M Connelly, chief innovation officer and executive vice-president, said opportunities for the company lie in four areas, including agriculture, infrastructure, energy and automotive and demographics.

DKC would especially focus on high-yield hybrids, crop protection products and agriculture supply chains in agriculture. DKC, established in 2007, has received its first patent in crop protection.