DGAP-News: KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA / Key word(s): Product Launch
KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA: KWS underscores its innovation leadership in Sugarbeet: First varieties with significantly
improved Cercospora tolerance approved in Germany
2021-02-10 / 12:36
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
=----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Einbeck, 10 February 2021
KWS underscores its innovation leadership in Sugarbeet: First varieties with significantly improved Cercospora
tolerance approved in Germany
After intensive research and development work, KWS breeding has succeeded in detection a new, highly effective source
of Cercospora resistance and making it available to sugarbeet growers under the CR+^TM label. The resulting varieties
INSPIREA KWS and BLANDINA KWS have now been approved by the German authority (Bundessortenamt). They are characterized
by the highest leaf health under Cercospora and high yields under growing conditions with and without Cercospora.
"The new Cercospora trait truly represents a milestone for classic sugarbeet breeding," says Dr. Andreas Loock, Head of
International Sugarbeet Breeding at KWS. "This is an important contribution to a sustainable agriculture and secures
the profitability of sugarbeet cultivation for the future."
The leaf disease Cercospora beticola is one of the world's most harmful fungal diseases for sugarbeets: The fungus can
result in yield losses of up to 50 percent. There is a moderate to high incidence of infection for around two-thirds of
cultivated areas worldwide. Against the background of increasing regulations on pesticides and the increasing
resistance of the pests to fungicides, the cultivation of healthy varieties with high Cercospora tolerance is gaining
in urgency and importance. The new KWS CR+^TM varieties offer the potential to significantly reduce the use of
fungicides in terms of sustainable agriculture.
The new varieties with CR+^TM take its place alongside a range of innovative developments in KWS sugarbeet breeding.
With the CONVISO(R) SMART system, which is already available in 24 countries, the company has also developed an
effective and efficient option for weed control in sugarbeet cultivation, which at the same time enables the use of
herbicides to be significantly reduced.
About KWS^*
KWS is one of the world's leading plant breeding companies. More than 5,700 employees in 70 countries generated net
sales of around EUR1.3 billion in fiscal 2019/2020. A company with a tradition of family ownership, KWS has operated
independently for more than 160 years. It focuses on plant breeding and the production and sale of seed for corn,
sugarbeet, cereals, vegetables, rapeseed and sunflowers. KWS uses leading-edge plant breeding methods to continuously
improve yield for farmers and plants' resistance to diseases, pests and abiotic stress. To that end, the company
invested more than EUR200 million last fiscal year in research and development.
* All figures excluding the shares of the equity-accounted companies AGRELIANT GENETICS LLC., AGRELIANT GENETICS INC.
and KENFENG - KWS SEEDS CO., LTD.
More information: www.kws.com. Follow us on Twitter(R) at https://twitter.com/KWS_Group.
Contacts:
Peter Vogt Martin Heistermann Britta Weiland
Head of Investor Relations Senior Manager Investor Relations Corporate Communications
Phone: +49-30 816914-490 Phone: +49-30 816914- 341 Phone: +49-5561 311-1748 britta.weiland@kws.com
peter.vogt@kws.com martin.heistermann@kws.com -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2021-02-10 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. The DGAP Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases. Archive at www.dgap.de -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Language: English Company: KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA Grimsehlstraße 31 37555 Einbeck Germany Phone: +49 (0)5561 311-0 Fax: +49 (0)5561 311-322 E-mail: info@kws.com Internet: www.kws.de ISIN: DE0007074007 WKN: 707400 Indices: S-DAX Listed: Regulated Market in Frankfurt (Prime Standard), Hanover; Regulated Unofficial Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Munich, Stuttgart, Tradegate Exchange EQS News ID: 1167433 End of News DGAP News Service =------------
1167433 2021-02-10
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 10, 2021 06:38 ET (11:38 GMT)