Evogene to establish R&D facility in the US

Evogene, a company working to improve crop productivity and economics for biofuel, food and feed industries, has signed a letter of intent with plans to establish an R&D facility in the Bio-Research and Development Growth (BRDG) Park, located on the campus of the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St. Louis, Missouri.

The establishment of the facility is a key component of Evogene's previously disclosed entry into the field of advanced solutions for insect control. The facility will be headed by Dr. James Presnail, Ph.D., who has previously held senior management positions at DuPont Pioneer.

The approximately 6,000 square foot facility will feature laboratories and insect rearing rooms and is projected to be fully operational by the end of 2015. It will support Evogene's growing insect control activities, initially focusing on its on-going product programmes for corn rootworm and soyabean aphids.

The planned facility will incorporate both field specific modifications of the company's existing gene testing and validation infrastructure and new capabilities for targeting these and other high impact pests. In addition, the facility will help facilitate the Evogene's field-based data generation activities in the US. In support of its selection of St. Louis for its R&D facility, Evogene has been offered a strategic economic incentive package from the Missouri Department of Economic Development.