Risk Management Agency Approves Genuity Smartstax RIB Complete For Pilot Biotechnology Endorsement Program
Program Lowers Crop Insurance Premiums for Qualifying Farmers in 12 States
ST. LOUIS (May 24, 2011)— Monsanto’s Genuity® SmartStax® RIB Complete™ is the newest corn product to be approved for crop insurance premium reduction under the Pilot Biotechnology Endorsement (BE) program offered by the Risk Management Agency (RMA) – USDA.
The Pilot BE program lowers crop insurance premiums in 2011 for irrigated and non-irrigated corn farmers who meet the program qualifying requirements and plant qualifying hybrids in Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. Now, U.S. Corn Belt farmers planting the single-bag solution Genuity SmartStax RIB Complete in 2011 may be eligible to reduce their crop insurance premiums as part of the Pilot BE. All hybrids containing Genuity SmartStax RIB Complete technology qualify for the pilot.
Genuity® SmartStax, Genuity® VT Triple PRO™ and YieldGard VT Triple® corn hybrids may also qualify for insurance premium discount through the program.
“The addition of the Genuity SmartStax RIB Complete to the BE program is great news for those farmers in the Corn Belt who will be experiencing the simplicity and convenience of the single-bag product on their acres,” said Joe Nail, Monsanto Risk Mitigation Manager. In April, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approved the product, which is available on U.S. farms for the first time this season.
In 2008, the Pilot BE was first introduced in four states as the Biotech Yield Endorsement® program and was the first crop insurance discount based on biotechnology.
Additional program details regarding the Pilot BE are available on the RMA Web site athttp://www.rma.usda.gov/policies/bye.html.
As the originator of the Biotech Yield Endorsement (BYE) program, first available in 2008, Monsanto spent more than two years gathering and analyzing thousands of data points from more than three harvest years for the original pilot states. Substantial data was derived from numerous field trials spanning the corn production period and was provided in the original BYE program submission to USDA. This data demonstrated: (a) that Monsanto YieldGard® triple stack technologies delivered more consistent yields, effectively lowering risk and (b) enabling creation of the current Pilot BE program administered by RMA.
About Monsanto Company
Monsanto Company is a leading global provider of technology-based solutions and agricultural products that improve farm productivity and food quality. Monsanto remains focused on enabling both small-holder and large-scale farmers to produce more from their land while conserving more of our world’s natural resources such as water and energy. To learn more about our business and our commitments, please visit: www.monsanto.com. Follow our business on Twitter® atwww.twitter.com/MonsantoCo, on Facebook® at www.facebook.com/MonsantoCo
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SmartStax® is a multi-event technology developed by Dow AgroSciences and Monsanto.
BYE, Biotechnology Yield Endorsement, SmartStax,, Genuity, YieldGard, YieldGard VT Triple, RIB Complete, and VT Triple PRO are trademarks or service marks of Monsanto Technology LLC.