With annual sales of about Euro 6.8 billion, Bayer CropScience is one of the world?s leading innovative crop science companies in the area of crop protection, pest-control, seeds and plant biotechnology. The German company is upbeat about strengthening its commercial operations as well as enlarging its research and development footprint in India. It is continuously upgrading its portfolio in the country, substituting older chemistry with the latest innovations from its global pipeline, says Sandra E. Peterson, chairman of the Board of Management of Bayer CropScience. In a recent interaction with BV Mahalakshmi, Sandra insists that the company is developing from a classical supplier of crop protection products into a supplier of integrated solutions for farmers which comprises of products, technologies and services as well. Excerpts:

What are the prospects of crop protection business going forward?

In India, the agrochemicals industry is clearly aligned itself with the long term trends in agriculture. Good commodity prices, increasing demand for fruits and vegetables, shifting cropping patterns and better price realisations for produce encouraged the farmers to opt for qualitative crop protection products. The introduction of new products with novel chemistry has witnessed quick acceptance.

The industry has witnessed strengthening of the ?seed to harvest? trend with more companies opting for the integration of their crop protection and seed businesses. The entry of international players has further increased the options for Indian farmers. These factors together led to the

Indian crop protection industry registering close to 15% growth over the previous year.

How has been your business here?

For Bayer CropScience in India, with a high innovation rate more than one third of total business, a market share close to 15% and regular launches of modern products in the Indian market, the claim to sustained leadership is not far from reality. In 2009-10, Bayer CropScience launched effective and environmentally safer products such as Confidor Super, Jump, Melody Duo and Oberon, which have been well accepted by the farmers. Our new insecticidal product ?Fame?, which has blockbuster potential, has performed very well in India in 2010.

India has been one of the impressive growth stories within Bayer CropScience. It is an important market for us, where we have successfully realigned our portfolio in recent years. We have made satisfying inroads in past years building on a balanced portfolio of innovative solutions and well established brands. We also gained market share in the last two years. We are now striving for further business expansion with our integrated approach from seed to harvest solutions.

How do you plan to enable a second green revolution with technology and innovation?

We reaffirm our call for a second green revolution; not just agricultural research and technology innovations, but also infrastructural, market and economic aspects, as well as social and political factors must be interlinked and coordinated. Only then can the global supply of affordable food and other agricultural products in a sufficiently high quality be safeguarded.

Today, we are partnering with food chain companies to create value for all stakeholders in the value chain. Farmers will directly benefit from these initiatives, which will lead to adoption of better technologies to produce more food of high quality.

What are your plans for the Indian market?

Bayer CropScience sees great potential for growth in its business with seeds and traits. Around 18 new products are scheduled to be launched until 2016. Sugar cane has also been added to the portfolio. Bayer CropScience is working together with the Centro de Tecnologia Canavieira (CTC) in Brazil, the world?s leading institute for that crop, to develop new varieties for ethanol production that will have higher sugar content. For example, Bayer CropScience has recently entered into an agreement with the Chinese Oil Crops Research Institute (OCRI) to develop new rapeseed varieties. Bayer CropScience has now entered into around 80 such cooperation projects.

Rice has been one of your principal crops of focus in India…

In India, rice is a portfolio crop for Bayer. The company?s hybrid rice business has continued to expand and has successfully launched a new umbrella brand Arize. Bayer CropScience, is a leading company for hybrid rice in India, with a market share of approximately 40% and a leading position in rice hybrids with one million acres under Arize 6444, one of our star hybrids.

Bayer has also recently launched a revolutionary rice hybrid?Arize Dhani?that not only assures yield advantage but also offers higher resistance to Bacterial Leaf Blight (BLB), a dreaded rice disease causing considerable yield loss (20-60%) annually especially in Kharif (wet season). We have built a strong expertise in hybrid rice breeding and production. A highly efficient breeding programme with a global presence and elite germplasm are the hallmarks of the company?s cutting-edge R&D strengths.

Our objective to improve rice production include researching, developing, and marketing new insecticides, fungicides, herbicides and seed treatment products, as well as new generations of stress-tolerant, high-yielding rice hybrids.

What are the challenges perceived in the Indian market?

The downward pressure on prices is expected to continue at least for a short to medium term, resulting in strain on the overall crop protection market. Some of the major manufacturing capacity expansion initiatives globally for a number of generic molecules in the previous years along with declining demand for such products have been cited as the main factor responsible for this situation. There are challenges in labour, climatic stress and lack of infrastructure too.