DuPont Pioneer enhances North America corn lineup with 51 new high-performing products

DuPont Pioneer announced today that it will offer growers 51 new high-performing corn products that further expand the deepest, broadest commercial product lineup in the U.S. and Canada. The products range from ultra-early maturity 69-CRM corn to full-season 118-CRM corn and include 22 new genetic platforms.

“Our advanced breeding technology investments have super-charged our product development process by enabling us to more efficiently search and screen our global germplasm library,” said Judd O’Connor, DuPont Pioneer North America Region leader. “At the same time, we’ve increased our rigorous local testing process to give growers added confidence in the performance of these new products.”

Corn products advanced to 2018 commercialization were tested in nearly 1,000 corn IMPACT™ (Intensively Managed Product Advancement, Characterization and Testing) plot trials across the U.S. and Canada. This final step in the research process characterizes the products for optimal geographic and climatic fit.

The newest class of exclusive Pioneer® brand corn products includes more high yield potential options for insect control, such as:

• Nine new Pioneer brand Qrome® products with a novel molecular stack of insect control traits to defend against both above- and below-ground pests, including two modes of action to control corn rootworm. For 2018, Qrome products are available in a limited introductory program*.
• Six new Pioneer brand Optimum® AcreMax® XTreme products, which provide growers with two modes of action for above-ground insect control and two modes of action for below-ground control.
• For the first time, Pioneer is offering growers Pioneer brand Optimum® AcreMax® Leptra® corn products with integrated refuge for superior control of above-ground pests. Two new products are particularly suited for Western Bean Cutworm control, and for Corn Earworm in the Southern Corn Belt.

Pioneer continues to lead the industry in drought-tolerant products that have been proven to perform in both drought-stress environments and in ideal growing conditions. Ten new platforms have been advanced with a drought score of eight or better on a nine-point scale. Two of those platforms are suited for the 108 and 113 maturity zones and scored a drought-tolerant rating of nine, earning them a place among the elite Pioneer brand Optimum® AQUAmax® product line.

Matt Smalley, North America Corn Breeding Lead, said Pioneer remains concentrated on increasing the performance of drought-tolerant products.

“If you wait for a drought to plant a drought-tolerant product, it’s already too late. It’s important that products perform in variable conditions,” he said.

Smalley also said this year’s advancement class focused on increasing the depth of the Pioneer lineup.

“While we know we have superstar products in our lineup, much of our focus this year was on strengthening the rest of the team,” Smalley said. “Thanks to the great agronomics and stability of this class, we have the strongest solutions for growers throughout the U.S. and Canada.”

Other highlights of the 2018 hybrid class include:

• The widest range of end-use products; with three new yellow platforms and one new white platform suited to food, three new waxy products and six new non-GMO products.
• A new 94-day hybrid for the Northern Plains 90-95 CRM zone.
• Three new ultra-early silage hybrids for Northern livestock areas.