Ceres updates U.S. forage sorghum plantings

Ceres, an agricultural biotechnology company, closed its fiscal year on Aug. 31 and its updated numbers indicate that higher demand could favorably impact the adoption rate of its Blade brand forage sorghum products next season.

The company said it sold more than 4,000 acres of its Blade brand seed products for commercial evaluations for the 2015 growing season in North America, compared to approximately 3,000 acres previously estimated in July. The previous season, Ceres said 600 acres of Blade products were planted.

Growers and distributors have reported favorable early performance results with the products, including improved stands and growth rates compared to competitor products. Final metrics, including yields per acre and feed quality, are expected to be delivered by customers for Ceres' forage sorghum hybrids by the end of the calendar year. 

Ceres plans to establish its brand and market presence through improved conventional hybrids, company President and CEO Richard Hamilton said. 

"We have a compelling opportunity to combine the natural drought tolerance of forage sorghum with improved yield and quality traits," Hamilton said. "By improving sorghum, we believe we can both increase our market share in forage sorghum and also expand the size of the overall forage sorghum market."