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E-commerce, R&D, Seeds

The hybrid variety Jayam – 2 is highly tolerant to TYLCV virus.

Advanta Seeds has been the fastest growing company in the hybrid vegetable seed business in the year 2019-2020. It is purely an Indian company, giving top priority to the interests of the farmers. With its strong Research & Development, and management, the company holds the first position in the business of ladyfinger seeds. Advanta Seeds is rapidly increasing its expenditure into developing seeds of tomato, chilli, cauliflower, sweet corn and other vegetable seeds. 

In this regard, Advanta Seeds has come up with a new variety of tomato seeds called “Jayam-2” for the tomato growers. Jayam – 2 is a unique variety in itself, capable of bearing excessive fruit during the summer season and is highly tolerant to TYLCV virus. Jayam-2 has the ability to bear fruits for a long time with the ability to produce more in a short time. 

The fruits of its plants are very solid, attractive bright red colored and are mostly of similar size. Due to the uniform size of the fruit, the farmers can grow a lot of fruits of “A” grade. The tomatoes grown from these seeds can be transported from a faraway place without having chances of getting rotten during the transportation due to the good quality of the tomatoes. 

During the year 2019, farmers from the states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Assam and West Bengal had cultivated crops using seeds of Jayam-2 and have been successfully cultivated the crops. The farmers are getting very encouraging response from other farmers and the government. The yield potential and disease-resistance of these seeds are what most of the farmers are excited about. 

 In all the mandis, fruits of Jayam-2 are sold on priority basis and farmers are very happy due to good income from other varieties. Farmers are preparing to cultivate Jayam-2 from next year on a large scale. 

 

 

The hybrid variety Jayam - 2 is

Seeds, World

The purpose of gene banks is not just to preserve seed, but to use its biodiversity to address the needs of the future.

Seed security is the first step towards food security. The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) preserves 28,000 unique seed samples of maize and 150,000 of wheat at its genebank in Mexico.

The Global Seed Vault in Svalbard opened in 2008. Since then, CIMMYT has duplicated and deposited 50 million seeds — 170,000 samples of maize and wheat at Svalbard. 

This year, CIMMYT sent 24 boxes of seed, with 332 samples of maize and 15,231 samples of wheat. These seeds travel more than 8,000 km from CIMMYT’s genebank in Mexico to the Global Seed Vault in the Arctic. 

A supermarket, rather than a museum

This treasure, kept in the global network of genebanks, is key to ensuring sustainable, nutritious agricultural systems for future generations. The purpose of genebanks is not just to preserve seed, but to use its biodiversity to address the needs of the future — and the needs of today. 

Climate change is already impacting resource-poor farmers and consumers in low- and middle-income countries. Researchers and breeders at CIMMYT are rolling out solutions to these challenges, based on the diverse genetic resources kept in the gene bank. As a result, farmers can use new varieties that yield more, needless inputs, and are more tolerant to drought or heat.

Our internal estimates show that about 30% of maize and more than 50% of wheat grown worldwide can be traced to CIMMYT germplasm. 

Humanity’s legacy

Maize and wheat originated about 10,000 years ago. Since then, it’s survived war, drought, diseases, migration, birds, low yields — and the hard choice between feeding children and planting again. 

Keepers of genebanks around the world are only the depositors of this legacy, which belongs to all humanity. CIMMYT will continue to preserve these seeds and to make their biodiversity available to researchers and famers, to solve today’s and tomorrow’s most pressing issues.

 

The purpose of gene banks is not

Agro chems – Pesticides, E-commerce

HIL will supply 25 tonnes of Malathion Technical for locust control programme to Iran

 

 State-owned HIL Ltd will supply 25 tonnes of pesticides to Iran to control locust, the government stated in recent.”HIL is now in the process of production and supply of 25 tonnes Malathion Technical for supply to locust control programme to Iran under Government to Government arrangement,” an official statement said.  

The External Affairs ministry has approached HIL for manufacturing and supply of this commodity to Iran.Despite logistics and other challenges posed by COVID-19 lockdown, HIL (india) Ltd, a PSU under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertlizers, ensured timely production and supply of pesticides for farming community.

 The company has exported 10 tonnes of fungicide Mancozeb to Latin American country Peru and another 12 tonnes will be exported in the next one week.

HIL has also signed an agreement with the agriculture ministry for the supply of Malathion Technical to Rajasthan and Gujarat for locust control programme. HIL had manufactured and supplied 67 tonnes of Malathion Technical till last week. 

HIL supplied Malathion technical to municipal corporations for dengue and chikungunya control programme.During the lockdown period till May 15, 2020, HIL produced 120 tonnes of Malathion Technical, 120.40 tonnes of DDT Technical, 288 tonnes of DDT 50 per cent, 21 tonnes of HILGOLD (water soluble fertiliser), 12 tonnes of Mancozeb Fungicide for exports and 35 tonnes of different agrochemical formulations.

 

HIL will supply 25 tonnes of Malathion

E-commerce, IT

The online forum supports farmers and advisors to ask questions and get quick responses from the global agriculture community 

 

 

ICL Fertilizer is going to launch a new, international and interactive advisory crop nutrition forum, AgroPro.com, created in response to the agronomic communication challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

 Online, the AgroPro community offers a speedy and supportive way for farmers and advisors to ask questions and get quick responses from the global agriculture community and from our ICL team of international agronomists. 

AgroPro.com is the most comprehensive, easy-to-use and interactive network responsively offering on-demand, and up-to-date fertilizer information and solutions for optimizing nutrition management of field crops, orchards, plantations, ornamentals and turf.

 Using AgroPro is free of charge. Whatever your crop or region, once signed up to the AgroPro community you can post a crop nutrition question, share a resource, join a discussion thread, add a comment, easily search for any content, and browse through previous discussions and Q-andA’s. 

As a member of the AgroPro community, you can join groups with shared interests and get push notifications when new content comes online. 

Maya Grinfeld, head of ICL’s marketing department, says “As the crisis caused by COVID-19 unfolds, we know that farmers worldwide are still eager for concrete information to improve their crops. In response to that we consulted ICL’s agronomists around the world about how we could help, and together we initiated AgroPro.com”.

Hillel Magen, ICL’s Agronomy VP, adds “This is the first time the extensive professional knowledge and network of ICL agronomy experts, gathered from all across the world from multiple crops and agroclimatic regions, has been made available – directly and indefinitely – to everyone. We believe, at times like this, that knowledge is a force for good that everyone should be able to access and benefit from”.

The AgroPro.com team is available 24/7 for interaction with its community of farmers, advisors and agronomists. Thoroughly interactive and in multiple languages, the AgroPro international community is the go-to source to network and collaborate for advice, encouragement and practical information for crop nutrition – whether fertilizer, fertigation or foliar feeding.

The online forum supports farmers and advisors

E-commerce

Its precision agriculture tools help farms and machines run more efficiently with lower inputs and higher yields 

AGCO, a global leader in the design, manufacturing and distribution of agricultural machinery and solutions recently announced it is focusing on bringing farmers sustainable high-tech solutions.

 “Our new vision—Sustainable high-tech solutions for farmers feeding the world—better represents our approach to helping our farmers and our business continually find better and more sustainable ways to raise the food people need, all around the world,” said Martin Richenhagen, President and Chief Executive Officer of AGCO Corporation. “As the world celebrated the 50th anniversary of Earth Day last month, we felt it was the right time to stress the importance of sustainability in our company’s vision,” Richenhagen added.

 Agriculture is one of the most essential industries in the world. As the population grows to a projected 10 billion people by 2050, the potential impact agriculture can have on the health of our planet is tremendous. As a global leader in agriculture, AGCO has a responsibility to help ensure we make a positive impact for the farmers who use our solutions, the communities they feed and the environment we all share, the company has said in the statement. 

AGCO precision agriculture tools help farms and machines run more efficiently with lower inputs and higher yields. Sustainable productivity arises through technology, innovation and integrated solutions to grow more food and deliver higher farm income. 

Environmental concerns are also driving society’s perception of agriculture, including animal welfare. AGCO is a market leader for cage-free egg equipment and creates solutions to reduce stress and maximise comfort while maintaining healthy animals and encouraging natural behaviour.

 5 areas AGCO focusing on to provide sustainable high-tech solutions: 

Advanced farm machines require less fuel and need to make fewer passes in the field, reducing compacted soil and increasing soil fertility.

Precision technology and agronomic solutions enable farmers to grow and harvest more per acre, making the most of our farmland.

Better sprayer technology enables farmers to apply products only where needed, reducing inputs to grow healthy food.

More efficient harvesting equipment means more crops are captured in the field, and better grain and seed storage mean more goes to market.

Next-generation biosecurity, housing and feeding solutions mean safer, healthier and more productive conditions for swine and poultry.

“We don’t want to stop at meeting the needs of today’s farmers; we must support future generations,” said Eric Hansotia, Chief Operating Officer, AGCO Corporation. “We need to continuously bring to market high-tech solutions to support farmers in producing nutritious food while reducing resource and environmental impacts,” Hansotia added.

 

Its precision agriculture tools help farms and

E-commerce

The acquisition aims to scale up its Spices business and expand its footprint across the country. 

 

 

ITC Limited entered into a Share Purchase Agreement (SPA)  to acquire 100% of the equity share capital of Sunrise Foods Private Limited (SFPL), a company primarily engaged in the business of spices under the trademark ‘Sunrise’, subject to fulfilment of various terms and conditions.

ITC’s Aashirvaad range of spices is already a market leader in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh and the company is one of India’s leading producers and exporters of high-quality spices.

Sunrise is over 70 years old brand and is a market leader in eastern India in spices category, the brand has built a loyal consumer base, anchored on a differentiated product portfolio tailored to regional tastes and preferences in the spice segments.

The proposed acquisition is aligned with ITC’s strategy to rapidly scale up its FMCG Businesses in a profitable manner, leveraging its institutional strengths viz. deep consumer insight, a deep and wide distribution network, agri-commodity sourcing expertise, cuisine knowledge, and strong rural linkages and packaging know-how. 

The proposed acquisition will augment the company’s product portfolio and is aligned to ITC’s aspiration to significantly scale up its Spices business and expand its footprint across the country. The deep consumer connects and distribution strength of SFPL in the focus markets, together with synergies arising out of the sourcing and supply chain capabilities of the Company’s Agri-Business and its pan-India distribution network, will provide significant value creation opportunities for the company.

The acquisition aims to scale up its

Agro chems – Chemicals, E-commerce, Finance

For fiscal year 2019-20, the company’s net profit increased to Rs 474.5 crore from Rs 337.1 crore in 2018-19.

Bayer CropScience Ltd recently reported a net profit of Rs 31.5 crore in the fourth quarter of 2019-20 fiscal on strong revenue. 

The company had posted a net loss of Rs 57.1 crore in January-March quarter of the last fiscal, a regulatory filing said.

Total income rose to Rs 458.7 crore during the quarter under review from Rs 252.2 crore in the same quarter a year ago. Expenses also rose to Rs 422.2 crore as compared with Rs 356.9 crore a year ago. 

For fiscal year 2019-20, the company’s net profit increased to Rs 474.5 crore from Rs 337.1 crore in 2018-19. Commenting on the performance, Bayer CropScience CEO and Managing Director D Narain said a good monsoon in 2019 ensured sufficient water reserves for rabi sowing. 

This, coupled with stable commodity prices, favourable climate and strong portfolio performance in corn and horticulture, helped in achieving the strong growth in Q4, he added.

“However, COVID-19 developments in late March and the ensuing lockdown led to short-term disruption in consumption for crop protection products,” he said.

According to the company, 2019-20 annual results reflect synergies from the integration of Monsanto India Ltd with Bayer CropScience Ltd, which was completed on September 16, 2019.

“The integration is well on track and as of March 31, 2020, the company has started seeing good first contributions arising from the consolidation of employee talent, product portfolios and business operations to meet mid-term synergy and one-time cost targets,” it said.

The company said its board has recommended a dividend of Rs 25 per equity share for the financial year ended March 31, 2020, subject to shareholders’ approval.

In June 2018, German chemical and pharma major Bayer AG had announced completion of the USD 63 billion mega-deal to acquire US-based biotech major Monsanto to create the world’s biggest agrochemical and seed company.

 

For fiscal year 2019-20, the company’s net

Agro chems – Pesticides, E-commerce

The companies plan to launch three new herbicides that target top-of-mind weed control challenges faced by growers across multiple crop segments. 

HELM Agro US, Inc., a global manufacturer of high-quality crop protection and fertilizer products and Ishihara Sangyo Kaisha, Ltd. (ISK), have entered into a long-term collaboration for the commercial development of three novel crop protection herbicides. 

Under the initiative, HELM will partner with ISK Biosciences Corporation (ISKBC) of Concord, Ohio, a subsidiary of Ishihara Sangyo Kaisha Ltd. of Osaka, Japan, in the commercial development of the new market offerings beginning in 2020. 

“Both companies are excited about the far-reaching potential of these new generation products,” says Dave Schumacher, President of HELM Agro US. “Our strategic alignment with ISK is a significant milestone for us, and one that will enhance our commercial activities and ability to deliver greater value to the market.”

 Naoto Tani, Senior Vice President of ISK Biosciences Corporation says, “For ISK Biosciences, this is truly a great opportunity to continue offering solutions to American growers. As a company focused in research and development, we are highly committed to continued innovation with integrity. We are excited as a company to be trusted in bringing new products to the U.S. market.” 

New Innovations Revealed

The companies plan to launch three new herbicides that target top-of-mind weed control challenges faced by growers across multiple crop segments.

First in the line-up – a new PPO inhibitor herbicide developed from a new ISK molecule for rapid and effective pre-plant burndown of broadleaf and grass weeds. 

A novel active ingredient for the corn, cotton and soybean markets, this new technology receives high performance ratings in controlling a broad spectrum of weeds across a wide variety of crops and geographies, including ALS, triazine and glyphosate -resistant species. 

Additional characteristics include an ultra-low use rate, broad tank mix compatibility and expanded use as a desiccant for cotton.Classified as a Group 14 herbicide, the product will be formulated as a suspension concentrate with EPA registration expected in 2020.

 

Second on the list – a non-selective burndown herbicide for specialty crops featuring a new active ingredient from the ISK development pipeline. Grapes will be the first high-value crop to garner access to the technology for broad spectrum control of grass and broadleaf weeds, including many resistant to other herbicide classes. 

EPA and state registrations for the new herbicide are anticipated for later this year. Further registrations for citrus, pulse crops and tree nuts are expected in 2022. To accommodate grower preference, the product will be developed in a water dispersible granular (WDG) formulation. 

The third product forthcoming – a co-formulation of the active ingredients tolpyralate and nicosulfuron for selective postemergence broadleaf and grass control in field corn and seed corn.

 Product highlights include a low use rate, superior crop safety features and a wide application window. 

Synergy-based Success

“The industry is on the brink of a new era of innovation,” says Schumacher. “We believe these three products will significantly work in growers’ favor to overcome many of today’s most serious weed control challenges.”

With a new strategy in place, Schumacher says his Company is on course for rapid growth over the next several years.

“Combining ISK’s research strengths with HELM’s product development and marketing expertise is an incredibly strong formula for success. HELM is transforming itself to be laser-focused on the customer while sharpening its portfolio with cutting-edge technologies that improve on-farm productivity and profitability. We’re excited about the future and our plans for customer success in the adoption of this new technology.”

 

The companies plan to launch three new

E-commerce, Poultry

S K Malhotra was addressing in the webinar on ‘Covid Impact on Maize Value Chain – Challenges and Prospects’ organized by FICCI 

 

 

 “Maize, known as Queen of cereals is the most important crop after rice and wheat”, said, S K Malhotra, Agriculture Commissioner, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Govt of India  

Addressing a webinar on ‘Covid Impact on Maize Value Chain – Challenges and Prospects’ organized by FICCI, Malhotra said, “Farmers are happy to cultivate maize, if there is a shortage in the production of maize, it will affect the poultry industry as well, because poultry is the biggest market for maize farmers.” 

Vivek Aggarwal, Joint Secretary (Crops & IT) & CEO-PM KISAN, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Govt of India stated in the webinar that it’s imperative to assess the cumulative demand and accordingly make a plan for increase in area and production of maize. 

Dr Ajai Kumar, Head of Government and Industry Affairs, South Asia, Corteva Agri Science, said, “Maize is an important crop for India as over 15 million Indian farmers are engaged in maize cultivation. There is a need for a proper regulatory framework so that maize production grows over the years.”

He said, “One of the major cause of concerns for maize farmers in the last 2 years has been the invasive pest Fall Armyworm (FAW) which has the potential to cause significant damage to maize output.” Dr Ajai highlighted that in the absence of suitable pest management, yield losses may be as high as 50%.  He further added that regulators need to adopt proactive approach for SAT (Seed Application Technology) solutions against FAW to support farmers.

 Amit Sachdev, South Asia representative, US Grains Council said, “Poultry industry is the biggest user of corn and needs support for expansion via value addition, processing and availability of reasonably priced corn.”

Unupom Kausik, President National Collateral Management Services Ltd shared his perspective on making Indian maize supply chain more efficient and competitive.

Chirag Gupta, Co-Founder & CEO 4700BC Popcorn also shared his perspective on developing Popcorn Maize capability in India. Mr B Soundararajan, MD, Suguna Holdings Pvt Ltd mentioned that better procurement system and technologies are required to reduce cost of production of maize.

S K Malhotra was addressing in the

Acquaculture, Start ups

 The company receives recognition for providing an AI-driven mobile advisory solution, FarmMOJO, to shrimp and fish farmers.  

 

 

Aquaconnect, a Chennai based aquaculture technology venture, has been recognised as one of the Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas 2020 for its AI-backed innovations in the field of aqua-farming. 

The World Changing Ideas Award is a global award dedicated to honouring businesses, policies, projects, and concepts that are actively engaged in flattening the curve of the climate crisis, social injustice, or economic inequality. 

Aquaconnect is one of the few Asian start-ups to have received the recognition amongst 3,000 entries. The company stated that it aims to innovate in the field of aquaculture technology by providing an Artificial Intelligence-driven mobile advisory solution, FarmMOJO, to Indian shrimp and fish farmers. 

Aquaconnect’s Farm MOJO mobile app uses machine learning technology to analyse feed and growth patterns in relation to animal health. The app provides insights to farmers and suggests appropriate advice for better disease management, the company said. 

Aquaconnect received this special recognition for an initiative that aims to enhance FarmMOJO’s disease prediction model in collaboration with Prof. Kenton Morgan and IDH, The Sustainable Trade Initiative. 

This project targets to link aquatic epidemiology to the sector and benefit 120 ha of farm area in India in the next two years. Considering these initiatives, Aquaconnect has been selected as an honoree of Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas Awards 2020. 

Rajamanohar Somasundaram, CEO, Aquaconnect stated in an official statement: “We are honoured and delighted to be  recognised as one of Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas. It is an endorsement for our initiatives to promote AI for sustainable aquaculture practices. Our aim is to continuously evolve with futuristic technologies that facilitate best solutions for problems in the aquaculture sector.”

 The company had previously won the Indonesian Seafood Innovation Project award in 2019. 

The company is a brainchild of Rajamanohar Somasundaram, who is popularly known as the Aquaman of India, for making the AI-driven farm advisory tool more accessible to farmers in the rural and coastal regions of the country. The World Economic Forum recognised him as a ‘Young Global Leader in 2012’, considering his leadership and contribution in the field of mobile communication and information services. 

Through his venture, Aquaconnect, Raj and his team are promoting sustainable aquaculture (growing fish and shrimp) through technology interventions and he envisions Artificial Intelligence Technology, IoT, and satellite remote sensing, which could improve the productivity of the Indian aquaculture industry and make India the world’s aquaculture hub.

 The company receives recognition for providing an

Agro Universities, E-commerce

The portal offers more than 60 high-yielding varieties of seeds for vegetables, flowers and fruit crops. 

IIHR launches online portal for sale of seeds

 

 

The Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (IIHR) in Bengaluru has launched a seed portal through which people living anywhere in the country can get quality seeds at their doorstep after paying online. Moreover, it’s the first such seed portal in India from a public sector unit in horticulture with a wide range of seeds which offers more than 60 high-yielding varieties of seeds for vegetables, flowers and fruit crops.

 As per reports, though the ICAR-IIHR seed portal https://seed.iihr.res.in/ was launched by Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) Director-General Dr Trilochan Mohapatra during the National Horticulture Fair organised by the institute on its campus this February, it has become functional now.

According to institute director M.R. Dinesh, the portal aims to take the institute’s quality seeds to even remote places of the country which do not have access to quality plant material through this portal. “This helps in increasing productivity of horticultural crops as all our seeds are high yielding and have resistance to several diseases,” he said. 

Pointing out that IIHR has adopted a novel seed village concept of using skilled farmers to produce seeds, he said the income of farmers who are into seed production is also bound to increase thanks to the seed portal. Environment protection will also get a boost as the use of pesticides will reduce since IIHR varieties have resistance to many diseases, Mr. Dinesh said. 

 Branded seeds with the prefix “Arka”

 IIHR has branded all of its seeds with the prefix “Arka”, as it is located on the banks of river Arkavathi. Some of the popular varieties of vegetable crops developed by the IIHR include tomato (Arka Rakshak), chilli (Arka Meghana), onion (Arka Kalyan), ridge gourd (Arka Prasan), French beans (Arka Arjun), and okra (Arka Nikita and Arka Anamika).

The portal offers more than 60 high-yielding

E-commerce, R&D

It is the first mobile platform to use predictive modeling based on real-time data.

 FMC Corporation (NYSE: FMC) recently announced the launch of Arc™ farm intelligence, an exclusive precision agriculture platform that enables growers and advisors to more accurately predict pest pressure before it becomes a problem. Arc™ farm intelligence is the first mobile platform to use predictive modeling based on real-time data to help ensure the right crop protection products are applied precisely where and when they are needed to improve sustainability, optimize crop yield and enhance grower return on investment (ROI). 

“Farmers rely on data and information every day to make critical decisions about protecting their crops from destructive insects, disease and weeds,” said Mark Douglas, president and CEO-elect of FMC.  “Arc™ farm intelligence raises the game in predictive modeling and analytics, enabling our team to provide advisors and growers with crop protection advice and insights faster, easier and in a smarter way. Delivering better information to growers increases sustainability, adds value, strengthens relationships and promotes more business opportunities.”

 The innovative platform offers a full suite of features, including customized alerts through a mobile app to indicate when action is needed in a field, two-way communication with FMC agronomists, reliable data and high-quality graphics, including graphs and heat maps. Arc™ farm intelligence has been engineered with open APIs and can easily be plugged into growers’ existing digital ecosystems. 

“Our first offering under the Arc™ farm intelligence platform utilizes aggregated historical data, entomological models, hyper-local weather data, and real-time regional pest mapping to increase a grower’s confidence when making insect management decisions,” said Sara Sterling, director of Precision Agriculture at FMC. “Powered by advanced scouting and machine learning, this tool predicts insect pressure one week in advance with more than 90 percent confidence for key insects in select crops. Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive in Brazil and Greece, where it has been used on cotton, and we look forward to introducing Arc™ farm intelligence in additional countries and crops.”

 The platform will be launched commercially next week in Greece for cotton, and it is being piloted in other countries, including Brazil, Spain and the United States, on a broad range of crops from brassicas to corn to lettuce. The Arc™ farm intelligence app will be available for growers in Greece for free from the Android and iOS app stores.

 Arc™ farm intelligence is the latest addition to FMC’s Precision Agriculture solutions, which are designed to ensure the right crop protection products are applied exactly where and when they are needed to increase sustainability, as well as optimize yield quality and quantity and improve ROI. Other FMC Precision Agriculture solutions include 3RIVE 3D® application technology, a revolutionary at-plant crop protection delivery system that helps growers efficiently cover more ground in less time with fewer refills – saving water, fuel, labor and time; and PrecisionPac® solutions, an innovative dispensing system that minimizes waste with custom herbicide blends specific to each grower’s field size and weed spectrum.

It is the first mobile platform

China, E-commerce, R&D

Kezzler’s serialization technology is initially being utilized for the production of the renowned Weixian radish. 

Kezzler was selected by RunHui Agricultural Comprehensive Development Co. Ltd (referred to as RunHui) to provide a traceability and authentication solution to The National Modern Agricultural Industrial Park in Hanting District, Weifang, Shandong Provence China. Kezzler’s serialization technology is initially being utilized for the production of the renowned Weixian radish, which is specific to the region. With full traceability across the entire supply chain, RunHui is able to ensure food safety and quality for their consumers.

 The project involves the application of unique, secure, and traceable QR codes to every pack of radishes. In addition, there is a four-digit hidden pin code for authentication.

Chen Hailin, Senior Project Manager at RunHui Agriculture commented, “We were impressed with Kezzler’s technology and the speed and ease at which it could be integrated with our existing digital infrastructure. This enabled us to create a connected and visible supply chain to support the objectives of the Industrial Park. The solution helps ensure that our supply chain has the responsiveness to maximize productivity based on data collected and deliver high-quality and safe products.

 He also added that a quick and easy authentication process reassures consumers that they have purchased genuine Weixian radishes, protecting the reputation of the Weixian brand and the economic growth of the region. We look forward to our continued collaboration with Kezzler in the future.” 

Kezzler’s state of the art traceability platform is integrated with the Industrial Park’s existing big data platform provided by Beijing Aokemei Tech & Service Ltd. Upstream information such as batch, picking dates and inspection can be associated with the unique codes, allowing all data to be stored in one central platform for full traceability. 

Christine C. Akselsen, CEO of Kezzler commented that, “Kezzler is at the forefront of unit-level traceability, with the ability to change the global food industry forever by making every single product digitally unique and interactive. Our extremely agile and scalable suite of cloud-based solutions provides visibility from creation to consumption. Traceability supports food safety and opens up new channels for brands to engage directly with consumers who are demanding more information beyond that displayed on the product label. Food fraud poses a serious risk to public health and threatens the economic development of agricultural regions, therefore the ability for consumers to verify their purchases directly is of increasing importance. Kezzler is proud to support the efforts of RunHui to promote sustainable and efficient farming that benefits all parties.”

 The solution is integrated with China’s popular WeChat platform allowing consumers to scan the product directly from within the app on their phone. By entering the four-digit pin code, consumers can receive instant verification that the product is genuine and experience the farm-to-fork journey of the exact product in hand.

 

Kezzler’s serialization technology is initially being utilized

Inputs

PGPR works against the broad spectrum of root and foliar pathogens benefiting the plant growth

Several bacterial species which are found in the plant rhizosphere, at root surfaces or in association with roots, can improve the quality of plant growth directly or indirectly, are known as ‘Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria’ (PGPR). It effects plant growth by production of phytohormones like Indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), solubilization of inorganic phosphates and suppression of disease-causing microbe.

PGPR works against the broad spectrum of root and foliar pathogens benefiting the plant growth. Treatment with PGPR increases the rate of germination, root and shoot growth, total biomass of the plants, early flowering, fodder and fruit yields. Phytochrome production like auxins, cytokinin and gibberellin, enhancing plant nutrition by solubilization of minerals like phosphorus and iron, production of siderophores and enzymes, directly or indirectly contributes in growth promotion of plant.

Many bacteria are used as PGPR, including Azospirillum, Enterobacter, Bacillus and Pseudomonas. Out of them Pseudomonas species have been identified as efficient bacteria which plays a major role in growth promotion and resistance against disease. Due to their characteristics and environmentally friendly traits, they can survive in normal conditions as well stressful conditions.

  • Solubilization of Phosphorus

Phosphorus present in the chemical fertilizers is in the soluble form which can be easily available for plant uptake, but they react with soil and becomes less available due to immobilization into insoluble forms. With the help of acid and alkaline phosphatase enzyme, PGPR can dissolve insoluble phosphorus, making it available for plant uptake. They are called as Phosphate Solubilizing Bacteria (PSB). These bacteria improve the nutrient availability for the plant, resulting in growth and yield of the crop. Solubilization and mineralization of phosphorus is the main physiological trait in soil biogeochemical cycles as well as in plant growth promotion.

  • IAA production

Production of IAA affects cell division, root initiation, cell enlargement and division, tissue differentiation, increase the rate of xylem and root development, control processes of vegetative growth, affects photosynthesis, pigment formation, biosynthesis of various metabolites and resistance to stressful conditions. The level of IAA synthesized by the plant is important to determine whether bacterial IAA stimulate or supresses the plant growth, additional IAA that is taken up from the bacteria could alter the IAA level, resulting in plant growth promotion or suppression. Increase in auxin level, affects the root nodulation. Microbial biosynthesis of IAA is enhanced by the roots which secretes tryptophan resulting in positive effect on plant growth, increase in accessibility of more nutrients from soil and increasing the number of beneficial microbes controlling disease causing pathogens.

  • Stress study

Studies revealed, Pseudomonas can survive in the adverse conditions like dry and saline environment, as they develop their internal pressure above the surrounding environment by accumulating osmolytes in their body. It can also tolerate temperature up to 40⁰ C, due the formation of biofilm which provides a protective mode of growth and enhance the bacterial survival under adverse conditions.

  • Siderophore

Siderophore are small, high-affinity iron chelating compounds, secreted by PGPR to transport iron across cell membranes. Iron is an essential micronutrient for plants as it serves as a cofactor of many enzymes and required in several physiological processes like nitrogen fixation, photosynthesis and respiration. Pseudomonas species synthesize siderophore molecules which have high affinity for ferric iron act as chelating agents which binds the molecules and make the insoluble form to soluble form, that facilitates iron uptake by plants.

 

Limitations

Despite a number of characteristics and better performance of Pseudomonas species, there are certain limitations regarding the use of bacteria on commercial basis.

  1. High concentration of IAA production can inhibit the root and shoot growth of plants; therefore, the bacterial strain should be kept in mind for obtaining better results.
  2. Being a well-known strain for degrading hydrocarbon material, it is also a pathogenic bacterium causing infections like asepsis which leads to high mortality rate. Therefore, care must be taken in its use.
  3. It is recommended to be used with other microbial inoculation for enhancing plant growth, as it has been observed that single inoculation is not effective or less effective for the particular purpose.

Conclusion

PGPR are one of the most suitable choices for plant growth promotion and in disease management over the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Physiological characteristics of Pseudomonas species under adverse conditions have worth in sustainable agriculture and effective performance verifies their positive role in environmental protection. Due to their negative impact in one condition could be effective against other aspects of environment. Overall, they are an environmentally friendly microbial population that can be used to tackle many problems if used wisely.

 

Rashmi Chauhan, Quality Control Officer, Indore Biotech Inputs & Research Pvt. Ltd. Indore (M.P.)

PGPR works against the broad spectrum of