Monsanto Breaks Ground on New Corn Breeding Station

ST. LOUISMonsanto broke ground on a new $2.4 million corn breeding station in Flora, Miss., March 9. The new facility boosts the company's investment in the South and is a reflection of Monsanto's commitment to continue delivering new high-performing products to Southern farmers.

The 26,000-square-foot corn breeding station, located in the Flora Industrial Park, will employ approximately 10 full-time and up to 50 seasonal workers. Corn production in the southern region has been growing in the last several years, and the new site's research focus will be on using the latest breeding techniques to develop higher-yielding corn hybrids with greater resistance to disease and other environmental stresses, specifically adapted to the region.

The site will complement Monsanto's global breeding program and become part of a network of more than 50 corn breeding locations around the world. Southern farmers also will benefit from the genetic diversity of Monsanto's global germplasm pool.