May 5, 2020
St. Louis, Mo. (May 5, 2020) – As the Deltapine New Product Evaluator (NPE) Program kicks off its 13th season, the program continues to raise the bar on yield and bring improved pest and disease management options to market for U.S. cotton growers.
NPE growers will plant and evaluate eight Bollgard® 3 XtendFlex® variety candidates this season in large-acre plots for on-farm evaluation. The plots will be managed accordingly to each grower’s practices, consisting of both irrigated and non-irrigated fields, planted in various soil types and subjected to local environmental conditions. Feedback from NPE growers helps the Deltapine team determine which candidates to commercialize.
Highlights of the Class of ’21 variety candidates include:
- Stacked tolerances to both root-knot and reniform nematodes
- Bacterial blight resistance
- Dryland yield potential above current Deltapine® DryTough® varieties
- Demonstrated high-yield potential vs. leading commercial lines DP 1646 B2XF and Deltapine Class of ’20
“These eight candidates qualified for NPE evaluations because they have demonstrated yield and fiber quality improvements above our top commercial varieties, including Class of ‘20 products,” said Keylon Gholston, Deltapine cotton products manager. “This is an outstanding set of candidates for the NPE program after the exciting launch of the Class of ‘20 varieties, which many NPE growers believed would be difficult to top. We look forward to the Deltapine NPE growers evaluating and proving the performance potential in these Class of ’21 candidates.”
Class of ’21 candidates have also demonstrated outstanding fiber quality potential, continuing the upward performance trend in Deltapine® cotton offerings. One candidate being evaluated across the Cotton Belt has shown the ability to deliver a new level of staple length, strength anduniformity. In company testing prior to 2020, this candidate consistently produced staple 1 to 2 lengths above DP 1646 B2XF, a variety known for high fiber quality.
Season-long and final feedback from NPE growers located in every region of the Cotton Belt will help determine the candidates selected for the Deltapine Class of ’21 varieties, which will be available for planting in 2021.
Now in its 13th season, the Deltapine NPE Program has become the standard for involving cotton growers in product evaluations for proven performance of new varieties before commercialization, resulting in some of the top-planted varieties on the market today. In addition, the NPE Program and its growers have also been instrumental in gathering agronomic knowledge so that sound management recommendations can made for each new variety in the first year of commercial release, increasing the level of confidence growers have in new seed genetics.
“The NPE Program has changed the adoption rate of new varieties by growers across the Belt,” said Gholston. “A large percentage of some farms are being planted to newer Deltapine® varieties because we have proven performance potential with the NPE program and have been able to provide sound management recommendations. The program is truly a unique company-grower collaboration influencing the industry in a positive way.”
The Deltapine Class of ‘21 cotton varieties will be announced in December. For more about the Deltapine NPE program, visit Deltapine.com/NPE.
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About Bayer
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the life science fields of health care and nutrition. Its products and services are designed to benefit people by supporting efforts to overcome the major challenges presented by a growing and aging global population. At the same time, the Group aims to increase its earning power and create value through innovation and growth. Bayer is committed to the principles of sustainable development, and the Bayer brand stands for trust, reliability and quality throughout the world. In fiscal 2019, the Group employed around 104,000 people and had sales of 43.5 billion euros. Capital expenditures amounted to 2.9 billion euros, R&D expenses to 5.3 billion euros. For more information, go to www.bayer.com.
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Brian Leake, 314-694-5107
brian.leake@bayer.com