Syngenta Vegetable Seeds opened a modernized breeding R&D facility in El Ejido (Almería, Spain). Vegetable crops bred at the facility include tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, squash, and melon.
“This expanded and modernized facility in El Ejido highlights the importance of Spain in the global agricultural landscape while underscoring our commitment to accelerating our innovation to help growers who are dealing with volatile climates and challenging environments to grow produce and feed the world,” says Matthew Johnston, Global Head of Vegetable Seeds and Flowers at Syngenta.
The event was attended by Valentín Almansa, general director of Health of Agricultural Production of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and Environment; Manuel Gómez Galera, general secretary of Agriculture in the Ministry of the Junta de Andalucía, as well as representatives of the municipalities of El Ejido and Roquetas de Mar, and Syngenta's global, European, and local management teams.
Syngenta’s El Ejido site was established in 1983 and is now home to 145 employees working across R&D, production, commercial, and corporate functions. This most recent investment of $3 million aims to centralize seed activities in Europe, allowing Syngenta to better respond to the needs of growers.
Investments at the site include adaptions to greenhouses that should allow for year-round breeding activities, redesigned pathology and labs, a seed processing area, and deployment of digital tools. The site also includes new office spaces and a new canteen for employees.
In addition to El Ejido, Syngenta also invested in expanding breeding operations across other areas of Spain. This includes a new trialing location in La Puebla, Murcia, with a focus on leafy and brassica crops
“Our investment in Spain is a great example of how our global R&D footprint is intentionally shaped around localized breeding programs, giving us the ability to respond faster to the needs of growers in every region,” said Uri Krieger, Global Head of R&D for Syngenta Vegetable Seeds and Flowers".
Syngenta has Vegetable Seeds teams operating in more than 60 countries and ships seeds to 124 countries.
Syngenta shared a video of the facility.
For more information:
Syngenta Vegetable Seeds
www.syngentavegetables.com