BASF and PowerPollen collaborate in research on hybrid wheat

Pollination-on-demand technology unlocks new potential

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC and ANKENY, IA – JULY 15, 2020 – BASF and PowerPollen^® have signed an agreement to further develop and apply the company’s patented pollen preservation and application technology to improve cross-pollination and enhance BASF’s proprietary wheat program.

BASF is developing new hybrid wheat varieties to improve yield, quality and stability to meet the agronomic and economic needs of growers and the value chain, as well as the nutritional needs of a growing world population. Through hybridization and advanced breeding platforms, hybrid wheat delivers leading performance and seed quality with value-added traits that can be tailored to local growing conditions.

The PowerPollen technology, already proven in corn applications, has the potential to collect, preserve and apply wheat pollen at a commercial scale – dramatically increasing pollination efficiency for BASF’s hybrid wheat seed production.

“Hybrid wheat demonstrates BASF’s commitment to transforming wheat for long-term success through a globally-driven, advanced breeding platform adapted to local needs and supported by a continuous pipeline of innovation,” said Gustavo Gonzalez, Director of Global Wheat Crop Strategy for BASF. “This collaboration will leverage PowerPollen’s unique expertise in solving pollen preservation and application in corn to improve hybrid wheat seed production.” 

Commercial-scale hybrid wheat has been the goal of wheat breeders and seed companies since the 1950s. PowerPollen’s preservation and application technology expands the potential for hybrid wheat and improved productivity and profitability for wheat farmers.

“We are excited to develop our technology in collaboration with BASF, whose industry-leading wheat and traits research platform shows incredible opportunities for hybrid wheat,” said Dr. Todd Krone, co-founder and CEO of PowerPollen. “When applied to commercial hybrid seed corn production, our technology increases yields and enables production of hybrids that conventional methods are unable to produce. The goal is to achieve similar results in wheat to accelerate hybridization of this staple crop.”

About BASF’s Agricultural Solutions division

With a rapidly growing population, the world is increasingly dependent on our ability to develop and maintain sustainable agriculture and healthy environments. Working with farmers, agricultural professionals, pest management experts and others, it is our role to help make this possible. That’s why we invest in a strong R&D pipeline and broad portfolio, including seeds and traits, chemical and biological crop protection, soil management, plant health, pest control and digital farming. With expert teams in the lab, field, office and in production, we connect innovative thinking and down-to-earth action to create real world ideas that work – for farmers, society and the planet. In 2019, our division generated sales of €7.8 billion. For more information, please visit www.agriculture.basf.com or any of our social media channels.

About BASF

BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, is the North American affiliate of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF has more than 18,800 employees in North America and had sales of $18.4 billion in 2019. For more information about BASF’s North American operations, visit www.basf.com/us.

At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. More than 117,000 employees in the BASF Group work on contributing to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio is organized into six segments: Chemicals, Materials, Industrial Solutions, Surface Technologies, Nutrition & Care and Agricultural Solutions. BASF generated sales of €59 billion in 2019. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchange in Frankfurt (BAS) and as American Depositary Receipts (BASFY) in the U.S. Further information at http://www.basf.com.

About PowerPollen^®

PowerPollen, an Iowa-based agtech company, offers a breakthrough, scalable technology to collect, preserve and apply pollen on-demand to help improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of modern farming practices. Following multiple seasons of year-round field trials, PowerPollen’s patented pollination technology increased yield as much as 44% in commercial hybrid corn seed production fields. The company has successfully applied its technology across 1000s of commercial acres over the past several years. PowerPollen is headquartered in Iowa with additional research operations in Puerto Rico and Texas. Visit https://powerpollen.com/ for more information or follow PowerPollen on LinkedIn or Twitter.