Corteva Genetics: Does Bigger Really Mean Better?
Something went wrong. Please try again later...
When touting R&D capabilities, companies often make statements about the size of their program, implying scale means something to the customer. The claim of large scale certainly applies to Corteva Agriscience in their seed R&D. But does it really matter to you? And should it? To get to the answer, let’s examine three areas.
#1 Breeding – Size means more choices
It’s been said that success in plant breeding comes down to a numbers game. The implication? More choices mean the bar for a product to advance can be set even higher. In other words, the more germplasm the R&D program has to choose from, the choosier they can be.
One simple way to get a handle on “choosiness” of a breeding program is to look at the percentage of a genetic selection pool that advances all the way to market. Do 10% survive? 1%? .01%? Even less? In the case of Corteva, the chances of a new genetic entity surviving the multi-year evaluation process and making it to market is 1/100th of 1% (.0001). This means: For every 10,000 new genetic entities Corteva creates, one makes it to market.
A breeding program with just 10,000 candidates to choose from could not be that choosy and hope to survive. A simple fix would be to move the selection quotient one decimal to the right (to .001), become less picky and instantly increase output productivity 10 times! That’s one way.
Or, as Corteva has done, they could keep the selection criteria high (.0001) and expand the breeding program size by creating and evaluating more new germplasm. Over the past 10 years, that’s exactly what Corteva has done, expanding the size of its breeding pipeline by nearly 20 times.
Today, the company’s genetic evaluation pool consists of about three million new candidates each year. So, a re-look at Corteva R&D and its .0001 selection rate tells this story: 3,000,000 Corteva genetic candidates x .0001 selection rate = 300 new products.
Size equals more choices. And more choices means more new products. Seems simple. But all that size consumes significant amounts of money and resources. How much? And what do all those investments deliver?
#2 Budget and resources – Size means new capabilities for increased speed, precision and knowledge
Did you know, for instance, that the typical GMO trait consumes $130 million of R&D on its path to the market? The effort involves more than 75 different studies conducted in regulatory science to determine if each new GMO can be safe to eat, to grow and for the environment and beneficial insects.1 Furthermore, the average time required to obtain approval for a biotech crop takes 16.5 years.2 That’s longer than new human pharmaceuticals at 12 years.
Innovation consumes huge amounts of budget resources. And bringing genetics and technologies to market can only be undertaken by the companies in the industry with significant budget and resources. Seed innovation requires money, and lots of it.
It comes back to people, technology, and infrastructure employed in the quest for advanced genetics, traits and technologies. And it involves areas such as artificial intelligence (AI) and data science, drone and satellite imaging, vast greenhouse complexes and 11 separate and distinct scientific disciplines.
In just the past few years, Corteva investments in AI and data science have paid off by dramatically increasing how quickly newer and better germplasm can make it to market. Using AI, Corteva now conducts early phase genetic development with data. Instead of conducting and analyzing initial crosses in the f ield, that work is now being done with computers and AI – also called “in silico” research. AI instructs R&D teams which crosses to make and which ones not to make – eliminating time and money that used to be gobbled up by early phase field work. Year-one trials now contain vastly more potential winners. This has made the pipeline bigger, while shaving years of time off the front end. In silico work also allows for evaluation of germplasm in multiple environments before those candidates go on to later-stage field research and testing.
Investments in drones and satellite imagery have replaced the costs and limitations of walking the plots. These technologies allow for continuous and instantaneous capture of information about plants in the growing environment. The result is more observations done faster, and more complete and precise phenotyping than could ever have been done by people alone. (And yes, Corteva R&D folks still walk plots!)
Speaking of people, each day, nearly 5,000 Corteva research scientists go to work in over 120 R&D facilities. Those facilities include 50 acres under glass – greenhouse space devoted to trait introgression and population development across crops.
A recent review of Corteva in-house capabilities showed that the company’s seed R&D effort employs 11 separate and distinct scientific disciplines to help solve problems and make advancements. (See graphic.)
But isn’t the point of all this investment product performance? Shouldn’t the value of a seed R&D program come down to performance in the field – on real farms for real farmers? Yes, it should. So, let’s dig deeper.
#3 R&D results – Size doesn’t mean anything unless the products satisfy farmers and win in the field
So far, it’s been easy to show numbers that demonstrate the size of Corteva seed R&D. But, where should we look for even more proof of R&D program results? Who decides that? Here’s a suggestion: Ask the customer. Ask every farmer who plants and harvests the seed. And what’s a good (and practical) way of doing that? Look at market share. See which research program’s products get chosen by farmers, the ultimate arbiter of results and value.
Farmers make seed choices based on many factors but far and away the #1 decider is performance.3 So, here’s the question: Do farmers prefer genetic and trait products that come from big or small research programs? In the final analysis, does size matter?
Let’s look at global seed market share for products coming out of the Corteva corn and soybean R&D program. How do the results stack up?
Global Seed Market Share: Corteva Agriscience, 20234
- North America - #1 in soybean, #1 in corn
- Latin America - #2 in corn (#1 in Brazil), #6 in soybean
- Europe, Middle East and Africa - #1 in corn
- Asian Pacific - #1 in corn (excl. China)
In every corner of the globe, when it comes to results, farmers vote with their dollars. And the market share numbers speak loudly that size of research program translates into results on farm. Case closed? Not so.
Innovations on the horizon – A final point about size
People, resources, budget and results – in the case of Corteva R&D all these factors seem to indicate that size has benefits to customers. But all those tallies speak to the present. Isn’t R&D all about the future? And if so, what can customers expect in the future from Corteva’s seed R&D?
Now comes the fun part. Let’s look at some examples of what the future holds – two new developments coming from Corteva seed R&D:
Example #1: Soybean Next Gen HT (S4GHT) – Herbicide tolerance (HT) traits are essential tools in current and future weed control programs. With that in mind, broader herbicide mode of action (MOA) traits will be required by farmers to meet their weed management needs. Expected to launch early next decade, the new soybean trait will replace Enlist E3® soybeans, adding a new mode of action (PPO tolerance) and providing another option for farmers to address resistant and hard-to-control weeds.
Example #2: Reduced-stature corn – With an anticipated release by early next decade, Corteva’s reduced-stature corn will feature decreased plant height along with increased potential for greater yield from increased planting density. Early results are showing:5
- Consistent 25% reduction in ear height
- ~24” optimal ear height for standability and harvesting
- A 33% reduction in plant height
The goal of Corteva reduced-stature corn is to offer more dependable standability and climate resilience. In addition, these hybrids are showing comparable yields to standardstature hybrids with potential for increased yield through higher planting density.5 They also offer enhanced return on investment potential through late-season ground access for spraying and nitrogen sidedress.
1 GMO Answers, “How are GMOs Made?,” CropLife International, (n.d.) https://gmoanswers.com/how-are-gmos-made.
2 Agbio Investor, “Time and Cost to Develop a New GM Trait,” CropLife, April 2022, AgbioInvestor-Trait-RD-Branded-Report-Final-20220512.pdf.
3 Dr. Luciano Thomé E Castro, “Farmers’ Purchasing Behavior and Implications for Suppliers’ Go-to-Market Strategies,” Purdue Center for Food and Agricultural Business, January 11, 2023, https://agribusiness.purdue.edu/2023/01/11/farmers-purchasing-behavior-and-implications-for-suppliers/.
4 Market Rank Based on Branded Business; Source: Agrowin 3rd Party Market Research. 5 Based on early trial data, additional testing ongoing.
™ ® Trademarks of Corteva Agriscience and its affiliated companies. The transgenic soybean event in Enlist E3® soybeans is jointly developed and owned by Corteva Agriscience LLC and M.S. Technologies L.L.C. Enlist One® and Enlist Duo® are not labeled for use in all 50 states. To find product labels, state registration status, and additional resources about the Enlist® weed control system and its availability, visit Enlist.com. Additional stewardship information on Enlist crops and to review seed product use guide details, visit traitstewardship.com. © 2025 Corteva. 025753 LC (03/25)
