BASF and Monsanto form co-promotion agreement for Headline® fungicide in corn and soybeans

BASF and Monsanto today signed an agreement for the co-promotion of BASF’s star fungicide, Headline®, with F 500®,. Under the terms of the agreement, Monsanto’s sales force will recommend Headline to its Roundup Ready®, corn and soybean customers in the United States. In addition, Headline will be the only fungicide promoted in Monsanto’s popular Roundup Rewards®, program. In 2006, this technology accounted for over 40% of corn and about 95% of soybeans planted in U.S.

Through Monsanto’s sales force, a significantly greater number of growers will learn about the yield benefits of Headline. “We’re seeing a lot of momentum for Headline fungicide, driven by outstanding results from growers who applied Headline last year. This agreement provides another platform for us to take that message and share those success stories with even more corn and soybean growers,” said Markus Heldt, head of BASF’s Agricultural Products business in North America. As the use of corn and soy for biofuel feedstocks expands, growers are looking for innovative technology to increase their yields.

F 500, the active ingredient in Headline, has brought a step-change technology to growers worldwide. F 500 positively influences the physiological pathways of plants and thus increases yields dramatically, particularly under stress conditions. Over 5,000 on-farm field trials in corn and soybean in the United States have demonstrated average yield increases of six to ten percent.