“Short-stature corn is the next big thing in agriculture,” said Liam Condon, member of the Board of Management of Bayer AG and President of the Crop Science Division, during an investor call this week on the company’s latest progress in delivering customer-focused, sustainable agricultural innovation.

Condon says short-stature corn has several benefits for growers. “First, it has thus far shown unparalleled production stability in high winds, as evidenced by our still-standing plots of short-stature corn in Iowa following last summer’s devastating windstorm, and again at our Field of Dreams plots this summer. Second, it allows for extended in-season crop access due to its shorter height, which enables tailored solutions for precise, late-season applications of fertilisers or crop protection. Finally, we see a more sustainable future with this technology.”

Bob Reiter, Bayer Head of R&D for Crop Science Division, says they are anticipating full launch of short-stature corn in 2024. “That’s of course our first generation of the technology, so that is based on our approach that we use with traditional breeding,” said Reiter. “The biotech version will be launching later in the decade, … and really will be the one that unlocks, I would say, the biggest part of the value proposition.”