Syngenta raises bet on seeds
Valor Econômico
"The use of technology for the production of more productive seeds will be increasingly important to meet the increase of the demand for foods of an increasingly growing population". The statement may seem obvious and old for most people connected to the agribusiness, but it is directly interfering in the businesses of one of the biggest companies of crop protection products in the world and that gradually changes its focus of operation.
In 2009, Syngenta informed annual earnings of US$ 11 billion, 77% of which were from the sale of chemical crop protection products and only 23% from the sale of seeds. Five years ago, the share of seeds in the sales of the company amounted to only 17%. "In the next 15 years there will be a more even balance between both the businesses of the company and I believe that, in this period, the seeds will have a participation near 40%", says Davor Pisk, head of global operation of seeds of Syngenta, which earned US$ 2.5 billion last year.
And the perspective of a radical change in the profile of the sales is not an accident. Despite recognizing there is still potential for growth and development of new products for the protection of crops, the Executive himself recalls this is an already consolidated market. In the case of the seed segment, the new tools for the development of different varieties that generate bigger value in the future are much bigger.
The trend which Syngenta is following has already been followed by some of its rivals. Also exclusively dedicated to the agribusiness, the American Monsanto currently has 56% of its earnings connected to the sale of seeds, and the sale of crop protection products has the other 44%.
When talking about Brazil, Pisk recalls the productive potential of the country and the importance it has gained in recent years in the world production of foods. "The success of the Brazilian agriculture is directly related to its producers. They are people open to new technologies and capable of quickly adapting to them", says the Executive.