Makhteshim-Agan and Cibus Global Announce Proprietary Crop Protection Traits Agreements

Posted by Matt Hopkins|21 September 2009

In an announcement via company press release, Tel Aviv, Israel-based Makhteshim-Agan (MAI) and San Diego, California, US trait development company Cibus Global (CIBUS) have signed Strategic Development Alliance wherein MAI will invest up to US$37 million over five years, based on certain milestones, in a Joint Venture (JV) with CIBUS to develop proprietary crop traits in five major crops with a European focus. A separate Strategic Equity Alliance allows MAI to gradually acquire up to 50.1% of CIBUS’ equity.

Under the terms of the Strategic Development Alliance, CIBUS will develop proprietary traits that include both performance enhancement traits as well as crop protection product tolerance to a spectrum of crop protection products that MAI markets. These traits will be commercialized in high-performance seed
lines in cooperation with leading seed companies and will allow MAI to participate in capturing the value of trait-based crop protection. The JV will develop these traits using the proprietary Rapid Trait Development System (RTDS) technology developed by CIBUS, which enables much faster and efficient trait development than traditional plant breeding techniques, CIBUS says. In addition to yielding significant economic advantages to farmers growing these important crops, MAI and CIBUS believe that the newly developed traits will enable more efficient and environmentally responsible usage of agricultural crop inputs over the crop production cycle.

Avraham Bigger, Chairman and CEO of MAI, said that, “We are very pleased to announce our well thought-through entry into the trait and seed business areas, which will allow us to participate in capturing the value of these important fields and enhance our innovative offering and market positioning. The partnership with CIBUS, a leading research and development firm with unique and innovative technologies, provides the opportunity for MAI to invest in the Company and ultimately become a greater than 50% shareholder in this exciting firm, and has the potential of forming a new business activity for MAI.”

“We are very pleased to be partnering with MAI, a very successful and forward-looking global peer from the crop protection sector, to bring the first benefits of this unique trait-development capability to farmers worldwide,” said Stephen Evans-Freke, Chairman of CIBUS.