Soybean breeding site in the heart of farm country

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — This is a good place to grow soybeans — because it is a good place to breed soybeans.

The work done at the breeding site in east-central Illinois tests and refines Xitavo® soybean seed-exclusive varieties under real growing conditions, not just lab settings.

“We have a very regionally adapted program, where from Champaign we can breed throughout the state of Illinois,” said Tim Pruski, who oversees the breeding program.

“And, from the standpoint of breeding, really when you’re making selections you need to be making selections in the environments that the soybeans are being grown, right? That’s really the most effective way to produce higher-yielding varieties to sell to our farmers.”

These new varieties support versatility and include the Enlist E3® triple-stack herbicide-tolerant trait to give farmers confidence in their soybean weed control program.

They have been extensively tested and evaluated by a team of agronomists to ensure the seed rises above and beyond industry standard.

Standing next to the extremely clean research plot, Pruski insisted it was not given any extra care.

“I’m fairly certain this plot has not been babied – just sprayed, and you can see we have pretty good weed control,” the soybean breeder said.

Asked if the site is just like any other farm, so under the same conditions similar results could be expected, Pruski answered matter-of-factly.

“Absolutely.”

The seeds are tested in the same soils, weather and pressures that farmers face every day.

Local Connection

“We are set up as a national soybean breeding company, but from a breeding standpoint we’re breeding really regional,” Pruski said.

“So, from Champaign County we’re really focused on the Illinois market and the Indiana market, and that is really beneficial from the standpoint of our local farmers. We are not located in one specific spot in the U.S. and just breeding nationally.

“We have a clear focus on regional development. And, as the breeder, I’m based here in Champaign. So, there isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t go out to the field and walk and look at soybeans.

“You think about the kind of weather we’ve had the last month, where it hasn’t rained at all, you know, that’s a real benefit for me to be here because I can go and look at the potential varieties in this environment and make decisions on that, whereas if I was located somewhere else or from a breeding standpoint the program was located somewhere else we wouldn’t be under these conditions.”

Trusted Expertise

Testing ensures varieties fit local needs — from standability and yield potential to disease resistance.

“Since we are regionally set up, we do have locations where we actually have gotten rain, right? So, I can leverage, or we can leverage, that data to really make sound decisions so that, hey, if next year here in Champaign County we get a ton of rain in August, we’ve already accounted for that,” Pruski said.

Changing The Game

The Xitavo soybean seed-exclusive varieties team is challenging the status quo by being all-in, 100% dedicated to soybeans.

“At our research farm, we are focused on soybeans. That’s all we do. That’s what we know,” Pruski said.

“Everyone at the site is really focused on bringing the best material and innovations to the local soybean farmer.”

Between investments in trait research and development and breeding, Xitavo soybean seed, on average, has featured a genetic gain of 0.75 bushels per year for the previous five years — considerably higher than the national average pace of yield gain of 0.4 bushels an acre per year.

Xitavo is a registered trademark of M.S. Technologies LLC, West Point, Iowa.