"Don't be afraid to give up the good to go for the great." — John D. Rockefeller
The new year is right around the corner, and at Stine®, we’re ready to move forward and add a new chapter to our story. As we continue to celebrate our 40th year in the retail seed industry, we’re optimistic 2019 will be a great and prosperous year. Here’s why.
- New soybean traits have arrived. There’s no doubt that growers are ready for a change in weed control for their soybean acres. With the arrival (and approval) of the LibertyLink® GT27™ platform, there’s hope for those who have struggled with relentless weeds such as Palmer amaranth, waterhemp, giant ragweed and marestail. LibertyLink GT27 brand soybeans are the first commercially available soybean trait package that offers built-in tolerance to both glyphosate, glufosinate and a new HPPD/Group 27 herbicide for soybeans. Stine currently boasts one of the industry’s largest lineups of LibertyLink GT27 brand soybeans for 2019, and we stand ready to meet grower demand for next planting season. We are also looking forward to the approval of another great advancement in soybean traits — Enlist E3™ soybeans. While the platform is still pending Chinese approval, Stine is hopeful for a 2019 launch and is excited to offer an outstanding lineup of Enlist E3 soybeans. The Enlist E3 soybean system is the only system that confers tolerance to a new 2,4-D choline, glyphosate and glufosinate in a three-gene stack.
- Our Elite Yield Trials are expanding. This year, we had 700 acres of corn in our Elite Yield Trials, with 350,000 individual plots. For soybeans, we had 2,700 acres, with 975,000 individual plots. Each year, we expand the program so that we’re able to receive the most accurate plot data to ensure we’re looking at as many genetic combinations as possible and putting out the highest-yielding products on the market. Our Elite Yield testing programs have been around for more than 50 years, they are unique and shaped by data and experiences that nobody else in the industry has at their disposal. To date, we continue to be the largest privately held corn and soybean breeder in the United States, as well as the largest breeder of conventional soybeans.
- We’re growing! As our corn and soybean breeding programs expand, so do our sales and our need to have more boots on the ground throughout our sales territory. We’re now in the process of hiring more than 40 new Independent Sales Representatives throughout the Midwest. From Michigan to South Dakota to Illinois and Nebraska, our goal is to have our expert agribusiness professionals in close proximity to our grower customers so that we can get them what they want, when they need it. You can find more information about our available ISR openings here.
- There’s a trend toward conventional and herbicide-tolerant only corn. For the past several years, growers have turned to full-trait packages to tackle above- and below-ground pests. Now, we’re seeing fewer issues with pests such as corn rootworm and corn borer, so growers are considering reverting back to the tried and true conventional corn or corn that just includes herbicide tolerant traits. Nearly all corn genetics that come out of our breeding program start out as conventional, which means that each year, we’re delivering the latest and highest-yielding corn products to market. We have an expansive lineup of conventional and herbicide-tolerant corn options for growers in 2019, and we’re excited to help them maximize value and yield.
As you can see, we’re very optimistic for what the future holds, and we stand ready to support all of you in 2019. In the meantime, we wish you a very happy New Year! May it be a year where your yields move from good to great!