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McLeansboro, Illinois
August 2, 2001
Today,
Pioneer Hi-Bred International,
Inc., officially opens its new McLeansboro, Ill., Seed
Production Facility. The plant will be used exclusively for the
conditioning of Pioneer(R) brand soybean seed. It is located on
40 acres just north of McLeansboro, Ill., in Hamilton County.
The 10-million-dollar facility, which was completed last fall,
produced nearly 1 million units of Group IV and V soybeans in
its first season. This year, the plant expects to double
production. For 2001, Pioneer has contracted 44,000 acres of
soybeans in Hamilton and 24 surrounding counties. Running at
full capacity, the plant can condition and bag 24,000 "units" --
50-pound bags of soybeans -- a day and expects to distribute 2
million units this year.
"Demand for Pioneer brand soybeans has been growing at an
incredible rate," says Jim Lutz,
McLeansboro plant manager. "The McLeansboro plant is an example
of our efforts to deliver a broad line-up of top-performing,
high-quality seed to Pioneer customers. We're doing what it
takes to stay ahead of the demand for soybean genetics available
from Pioneer."
Pioneer is the leading soybean brand in North American and has
been for ten years. The estimated North American market share
for Pioneer brand soybeans has grown to 23.6% in 2000 from 18%
in 1997.
The McLeansboro facility is only one example of the commitment
Pioneer has made to soybean growers in Illinois. In Woodhull,
Ill., a soybean conditioning tower which processes 2 million
units was recently added. The Litchfield, Ill., facility has
been recently upgraded from a 1.2 million-unit facility to a 2.4
million-unit soybean facility.
"McLeansboro is a perfect location for a plant," says Lutz.
"Pioneer chose the site for several reasons. First and most
importantly, we wanted to provide better service and a more
reliable supply to our customers in southern Illinois, southwest
Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee and Arkansas. In addition, the
soil, growing environment and area farmers are well suited to
producing high-quality soybeans. It's a state-of the-art
facility placed in an ideal location."
Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc., a DuPont company, is the
world's leading developer and supplier of advanced plant
genetics to farmers worldwide. With headquarters in Des Moines,
Iowa, Pioneer develops, produces and markets a full line of
top-quality seeds and forage and grain additives and provides
services to customers in nearly 70 countries. DuPont is a
science company, delivering science-based solutions that make a
difference in people's lives in food and nutrition, health care,
apparel, home and construction, electronics and transportation.
Company news release
N3701
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