Roundup Ready 2 Xtend will be available for 2016

Although tolerant to both glyphosate and dicamba herbicides, Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans are not approved by the EPA.
Although tolerant to both glyphosate and dicamba herbicides, Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans are not approved by the EPA. | File photo

Following import approval in China, the Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans from Monsanto will be ready for farmers in time for the 2016 season in the United States and Canada.

“We are pleased to bring Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans to the market,” Brett Begemann, Monsanto's president and chief operating officer, said. “After a decade of development, the new and elite germplasm in Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans can provide growers with outstanding performance in their efforts to produce the best crop possible.”

In addition to more than 100 seed brands already licensed with Ready 2 Xtend soybeans, Monsanto’s Asgrow, Channel and regional brands will introduce more than 70 products designed to be resistant to nematodes and phytophthora root rot. Although tolerant to both glyphosate and dicamba herbicides, Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans are not approved by the Environmental Protection Agency for use with dicamba herbicides.

“To date, we’ve had significant pre-orders from farmers and are excited to move forward with commercialization,” Miriam Paris, Monsanto's U.S. soybean marketing manager, said. “Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans are built on the same high-yielding germplasm as Genuity Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans, which continue to deliver a greater than four bushel per acre advantage as compared to the original Roundup Readysoybeans. Pending dicamba approval, growers will continue to maximize their yield opportunity through the weed management recommendations and incentives provided by Roundup Ready PLUS Crop Management Solutions.”