Plant Breeding - a cutting-edge technology

Today's plant breeding is a cutting-edge technology. An average of approximately 17 per cent of the turnover of this industry are being reinvested into research and development - which means that plant breeding in Germany is more research-intensive than the pharmaceutical industry. German plant breeding is characterised by great variety and heterogeneity. The strong competition between the plant breeding companies is the driving force behind continued progress; it is the strongest incentive to provide ever better varieties to the market.

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Key Figures at a glance

  • number of plant breeding and seed trading companies: 130 
  • turnover: 1 billion US dollars
  • R&D to turnover ratio: 17 per cent
  • employed: 12,000
  • greenhouse area: 150,000 square meters
  • breeding nurseries: 3,700 hectares