Perdue AgriBusiness Announces Low Linolenic Soybean Contracting Opportunities with Pioneer Hi-Bred

SALISBURY, Md.- Perdue AgriBusiness has announced it will be contracting low linolenic soybeans from DuPont business Pioneer Hi-Bred for the 2008 growing season to support the marketplace demand for healthier foods.

“Perdue is excited about the opportunity low lin soybeans bring to both soybean growers on the Eastern Shore and our food company customers who are seeking to lower the trans fat content of their products,” said John Ade, Perdue vice president of grain sales and merchandising. “Adding value to growers’ crops and offering solutions to customers is good news for agriculture.”

Contracts for these opportunities will be made with growers on the Eastern Shore of Maryland and Delaware and in southern Pennsylvania. Perdue will pay a $0.60 per bushel premium for soybeans stored on-farm and delivered after harvest.

“We’re very excited about expanding low lin soybean contracting through a quality organization such as Perdue,” said Russ Sanders, Pioneer marketing director. “This is great news for growers seeking greater income through premiums and the food processors that seek to market healthier foods.”

Growers will have two Pioneer® brand low linolenic soybean varieties to choose from in this region -- 92M82 and 93Y50. Both of these low lin varieties contain the Roundup Ready® trait. Soybean producers with interest in this program can contact their local Pioneer sales representative for more information.

This program marks a continuing expansion of national low lin soybean contracting opportunities with Pioneer soybeans. The 2008 growing season marks the fourth consecutive year Pioneer has marketed low lin soybeans, though Pioneer has been breeding low lin soybeans since the early 1990s.

Low lin soy oil is part of an expanding platform of soy products launched by Pioneer for the food, feed and industrial marketplaces. These include leading-edge soy output traits and products that deliver premiums to growers and top quality oil products to companies across the value chain.

Low lin soybeans feature oil with a linolenic acid profile of less than 3 percent and offer a better natural stability and increased shelf life. Low lin oil eliminates the need for partial hydrogenation, which creates trans fats. Low lin oil supports the efforts of food companies to reduce or eliminate trans fats from their products.

Perdue AgriBusiness Leaving Pioneer.com is a wholly owned subsidiary of Perdue Incorporated. Ranked third in sales in the poultry industry, Perdue Incorporated is a leading international food and agriculture business providing quality products and services to customers in more than 70 countries.

Privately held and family-run for three generations, the company employs more than 22,000 associates and partners with more than 2,400 independent farm families - all who share in the commitment to quality that has guided the company since its founding in 1920.