Monsanto said it received all regulatory approvals for its Intacta RR2 Pro soybeans in Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, and is working toward a commercial launch in the coming seasons.
The variety is not only resistant to Roundup herbicide but also contains a Bt trait to combat the soybean looper and velvetbean caterpillar, which commonly plague Brazil. Intacta RR2 Pro is the first biotech product Monsanto specificially developed for a non-U.S. market.
The U.S. agribusiness giant also said its import approval from China for the product’s food, feed and processing use is currently pending. China purchases about 60% of total soybeans that are traded globally. About 60% of China’s total soybean imports are produced by Brazilian and Argentine farmers.
In 2012, 500 farmers in Brazil tested the Intacta 2 RR2 Pro soybeans in field trials that Monsanto calls “Ground Breakers.” The program allows farmers to gain first-hand experience with pipeline products under stewarded commercial-scale planting conditions. Monsanto said the fields planted with Intacta 2 RR2 Pro varieties “realized a productivity advantage, when compared with current commercial products, of 6.59 bags per hectare – equivalent to 5.88 bushels per acre.”
The company quoted a Brazilian farmer, Paulo Roberto Fiatikoski, from the city of Piracanjuba, in the State of Goiás, who participated in the farm trial: “In my farm, the Intacta 2 RR2 Pro field reached a productivity of 65.8 bags per hectare against 55.2 bags per hectare registered with Roundup Ready 1 varieties. It’s a huge difference. In my opinion, this new technology developed by Monsanto is more than welcome,” Fiatikoski said.