)
The Ministry of Commerce recently sought views from Councils of edible oils, pulses and cashes of which annual import constitutes more than $100 million. Concerned with widening current account deficit (CAD), the government focuses on increasing local productivity.
Bipin Solanki, Managing Director of Syngenta India, an arm of Basel, Switzerland, headquartered global seed major Syngenta, says in an interview with Dilip Kumar Jha that 20-30% increase in productivity is possible through use of advanced technology which can automatically reduce imports. Edited excerpts:
Government is focusing on increasing local production of agri commodities in order to reduce imports especially of vegetable oil, pulses etc. Where can Syngenta contribute?
With edible oil consumption estimated to almost double to 36 million tonnes by 2050, India has to increase its domestic production substantially. The government has announced several schemes under The integrated scheme of oilseeds, pulses, oil palm and maize to increase production, reduce imports and achieve self-sufficiency. Syngenta can contribute to achieve India’s self sufficiency in many ways.
Our cutting-edge sunflower breeding methods develop high performing, multi-disease tolerant hybrids, through best-in-class genetics adapted to different geographies and weather conditions. Our short duration hybrid, S 293 is preferred for intercropping with red gram in western Maharashtra and Karnataka.
Our multi disease tolerant hybrids Armoni plus and S 2216 provide growers with assured yields. For soybean, growers enjoy the spectrum of control and application flexibility of our herbicides in our solutions. The crop is normally rotated with pulses and we are working on solving problems related to rotation in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. Stagnation of groundnut yields is a major concern.
To create awareness around technologies for enhancing productivity and quality Syngenta recently set up five learning centers in Junagadh where growers were trained by showing actual response of the crop on the field. Syngenta has good crop protection technology for pulses that can combat biotic and abiotic stresses and our product- Proclaim has a proven track record. The company is planning on geographical diversification.
Is introduction of genetically modified (GM) seed the only option left before us?
The population of India will be 1.7 billion by 2050 and we will need all available agricultural technologies, including biotechnology, to meet the current and projected demand for food, feed and fiber. Farmers will need the entire tool box- ranging from genetics to chemistry and other technologies including GM to combat the challenges of climate change and abiotic stresses.
Has Syngenta set any target to improve productivity of any specific crop to make India self-reliant in it?
Syngenta’s Good Growth plan (GGP) is particularly relevant to India as agriculture is the mainstay of our economy. As part of the GGP, we have made six commitments around growing crops more efficiently, conserving existing land, improving biodiversity and integrating the vast multitude of smallholders into the mainstream of the developmental process.
In India we will improve productivity of key crops like rice, wheat, soybean, corn, cotton and tomato by at least 20pc from existing level without using more land, water or inputs.
What are major impediments to introduce seeds with 20pc additional output ?
Quality seeds alone cannot ensure productivity increase. Right agronomy and crop protection protocols are also equally important. We help increase growers’ incomes through our integrated end-to-end solutions and handhold farmers through the entire growing process, thus helping them achieve better productivity and higher returns on investment.
Our on-the-field experience proves that following the right agronomy and protocol helps increase productivity to the tune of 20-30pc. Our integrated solution for rice GromoreTM combines our existing technologies into tailored agronomic and crop protection protocols for each of the four key phases of the crop. These protocols are easy for smallholder farmers to use and bring yield gains of 20-30pc for growers.
You have already achieved leadership in drought tolerant corn hybrid seeds. What about disease tolerance?
Corn hybrid yields are normally double that of conventional varieties. However, Syngenta’s new generation hybrids bring even greater yield increases. Our focus on drought tolerant hybrids makes us leaders in the tropical corn market. Since 89pc of the maize area is kharif rainfed we continue to introduce hybrids for rainfed conditions.
Currently Syngenta enjoys leadership in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. We are investing in R&D for disease tolerant varieties and premium hybrids which deliver secured performance under adverse conditions.
What are your investment plans on R&D in India?
We invested $ 1.38 billion in R&D globally in 2013. Our innovation centre in Ghent, Belgium, is leading collaborative projects across our global R&D network to develop a new generation of highly effective and sustainable insect control tools.
Our Seeds R&D is dedicated to creating new varieties that offer improved quality and productivity, either alone or in combination with other technologies. Syngenta’s Mulani Wadgaon farm in Maharashtra is key for R&D activities in hot pepper, okra, eggplant and seed increase activities. We investment plan caters to the world. India is a part of the overall plan.
Which are your new innovation areas?
We are implementing projects for crops like grapes, pomegranate and mango. Syngenta worked with National Research Centre for Grapes (NRCG) to demonstrate effective pest management for production of quality grapes with lower maximum residue level.
We plan to expand our portfolio in wheat (including Durum varieties) along with expansion in geographies where productivity is low and we can combine our seeds, seed care and crop protection technologies to deliver higher yields. We are focusing on hybrids for gangetic belt and central India.
The successful integration of Devgen in 2013 has strengthened our existing offer giving us a larger germplasm base in rice. Its premium hybrids will bring benefits to growers when brought together with Syngenta‘s crop protection portfolio.
We are diversifying to target the east and developing hybrids for southern markets. We are leaders in vegetable seeds with a wide assortment of value added hybrids which offer growers more value per planted acre than any other field crop. We recently introduced hybrids for protected cultivation and provide agronomy advice for each variety.
