2018 Annual Review - East-West Seed

2018 OUR YEAR IN REVIEW Top-seed ranking

Banking on it

Field goals

We were ranked #1 in the South and

Protecting the food of tomorrow relies on

Thousands of people from over 20 countries

Southeast Asia Access to Seeds Index in

preserving genetic material today. Inside we

attended our various field days in 2018 to

2018. Find out how our core business is

look at some of the gene bank collaborations

see hundreds of the most innovative tropical

focused on serving smallholder farmers

that are shielding crops from extinction and

vegetable varieties available. Take a closer

and effectively contributes to the UN’s

preserving biodiversity by safeguarding

look at some of the highlights from these

Sustainable Development Goals.

genetic resources.

events inside.

2018 Our Year In Review

Copyright Š 2019 by East-West Seed All rights reserved. This report or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of East-West Seed.

50/1 Moo 2, Sainoi-Bangbuathong Road, Sainoi, Nonthaburi, Thailand Printed in Thailand.

Managing editor: Francine Sayoc Additional editing: Brendan Roane Design and layout: Kunlapus Pounganukrou from EWS Studio

Contents 04

Introduction and Company profile 04 - Mission & Vision

08 - Our company through the years

05 - Core values

10 - Our Products

06 - East-West Seed around the world

12 - Our People

14

Message from the Supervisory Board

18

Message from the Board of Management

20

Seeds and the SDGs

22

Still leading the industry in serving smallholder farmers

23

Supporting onion farmers in the fight againt armyworm

24

Partnering to conserve plant genetic resources

25

International scientists gather to tackle new dynamics, challenges in plant breeding

27

Overcoming knowledge barriers to attain nutritional security and higher income for farmers in Nigeria

29

Scaling up efforts to prevent child labor in the field

31

East-West Seed launches innovative vegetable varieties at HortiAsia

32

Veggies take center stage in East-West Seed Field Days

35

Transformation: the power of telling farmers’ stories

36

Business transformation in the digital era

37

Harvesting the sun

Mission Our mission is to provide innovative products and services that will help increase the income of vegetable farmers, and promote the growth and quality of the tropical vegetable industry.

Vision Our vision is to be the best tropical vegetable seed company in the world.

4

Core Values

Serving Farmers

Learning And innovation

Passionate Teams

We serve farmers. We are the farmers’ champion. We listen closely to them and we understand their needs. We offer our best solutions and deliver quality in everything we do to improve their yield and income.

We cultivate ideas and harvest innovation. Research excites us.

We explore novel approaches, apply new technologies, and build an environment for creativity whether in the laboratory, in the field or in the office.

We aim for excellence in serving farmers by constantly challenging ourselves and the team to excel.

As a team we can achieve more than what an individual can. We work together, trust each other, care for and respect each other’s unique and diverse talents.

5

East-West Seed Around The World SPAIN

UNITED STATES

MOROCCO ALGERIA

MEXICO

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

GUATEMALA

BELIZE HONDURAS

BARBADOS

SENEGAL BURKINA FASO

EL SALVADOR COSTA RICA PANAMA

SURINAME IVORY COAST GHANA BENIN

COLOMBIA

NIGERIA

PERU

BRAZIL

Subsidiary Companies

6

East-West Seed Company Inc.

Philippines

Hortigen Properties Corp.

Philippines

East West Seed Company Ltd.

Thailand

Hortigenetics Research (S.E. Asia) Ltd.

Thailand

East West Seed International Ltd.

Thailand

Green and Clean Vegetables Ltd.

Thailand

East West Seeds India Pvt. Ltd.

India

East West Seed ROH Ltd.

Thailand

NaMa Genetics Trading Ltd.

China

East-West Seed (Hai Mui Ten Do) Company Ltd.

Vietnam

Hortigenetics Agrisciences (Nanning) Co., Ltd.

China

EWSY, INC.

USA

East-West Seed (Guatemala) Ltd.

Republic of Guatemala

East-West Seed (Cambodia) Co., Ltd.

Cambodia

East-West Seed (Myanmar) Co., Ltd.

Myanmar

Farm Ready GG Seedling Corporation

Philippines

East-West Seedling Co.,Ltd.

Thailand

East West Seed (Malaysia) SDN. BHD.

Malaysia

MALI

TU

ITALY AFGHANISTAN

GREECE

TURKEY SYRIA LEBANON JORDAN

UNISIA LIBYA

CHINA

IRAN NEPAL

PAKISTAN UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

EGYPT

TAIWAN

SAUDI ARABIA OMAN SUDAN

YEMEN

MYANMAR

INDIA

SRI LANKA

UGANDA KENYA

ZAMBIA MOZAMBIQUE ZIMBABWE

CAMBODIA

PHILIPPINES

THALAND BRUNEI MALAYSIA SINGAPORE

TANZANIA ANGOLA

HONGKONG LAOS VIETNAM

BANGLA DESH

ETHIOPIA

CONGO

JAPAN

KOREA

INDONESIA MAURITIUS REUNION ISLAND AUSTRALIA

SOUTH AFRICA

NEW ZEALAND

East-West Seed 100% subsidiary companies

East-West Seed joint ventures

Joint Ventures

Area of Distribution

Associated Companies

PT East West Seed Indonesia

Indonesia

Genetwister Technologies B.V.

The Netherlands

East West Seed (Tanzania) Ltd.

Tanzania

PT Kentang Hollando Sejahtera

Indonesia

7

Our Company Through The Years 1982

1983

Philippines Establishment of East-West Seed Co. Inc. Philippines First trials in Hortanova Farm Batangas

Philippines First successful commercial vegetable hybrid (bittergourd) developed in Southeast Asia

1986 Thailand First varieties released Philippines First hybrid released

1991 Indonesia First varieties released

1995 Vietnam Establishment of East-West Seed (Vietnam) Co., Ltd. In Ho Chi Minh

1998 Vietnam First trials at Cuchi Farm, Ho Chi Minh

1987 Thailand First hybrid released

1992 Indonesia First hybrid released (eggplant)

1996 Vietnam First hybrid released (tomato) Indonesia Plant pathology and tissue cell culture laboratory opens

1984 Thailand Establishment of East-West Seed Co. Ltd in Nonthaburi Thailand First trials at Lert Phan Farm, Chiangmai Philippines First varieties released

1990 Indonesia -Incorporation of PT East West Seed Indonesia in West Java - First lowland trials, Surakarta, West Java

1993 Indonesia First highland trials, Lembang, West Java

1997 Philippines First trials at Linda Vista Farm, Bulacan

1999 Thailand Plant pathology and tissue cell culture laboratory opens

2000 Thailand - Establishment of Hortigenetics Research (SE Asia) Ltd. headquarters in Chiangmai

8

2002

2003

Thailand Establishment of Green & Clean Vegetable Ltd. in Pak Chong for seedling production

India Establishment of East West Seeds India Private Ltd. in Aurangabad, sales and marketing office

- Establishment of East West Seed International Ltd. in Nonthaburi as export vehicle and regional liaison company

2006 Thailand Establishment of Regional Operating Headquarters China Establishment of representative office and research station in Nanning, Guangxi

2007

2008

India Opening of processing plant Hong Kong Establishment of NaMa Genetics Trading Ltd.

Tanzania Afrisem breeding program founded with Rijk Zwaan Tanzania Establishment of East West Seed (Tanzania) Ltd. Philippines Farm Ready was set up for seedling production

2011

2009 Myanmar Set up of a local company

Cambodia Establishment of representative office in Siem Reap, Cambodia

2013

2014

Tanzania SEVIA public-private partnership launch Thailand East-West Seed Thailand celebrates its 30th year

Guatemala Acquisition of Semillas Tropicales, Guatemala India East-West Seed India marks its first decade

2016

2015 Philippines Joint venture with Grow Group for seedling distribution Indonesia East-West Seed Indonesia celebrates its 25th year East-West Seed Foundation Established Group-wide foundation

2018

East-West Seed ranks #1 in the Access to Seeds Index Thailand New headquarters building opens in Bang Bua Thong Myanmar Established fully owned company Cambodia Established fully owned distribution subsidiary

East-West Seed is ranked #1 in the South and Southeast Asia Index by Access to Seeds

Malaysia Established fully owned distribution subsidiary

2012 Vietnam Establishment of East-West Seed (Hai Mui Ten Do) Ltd., Binh Duong China Hortigenetics Agrisciences (Nanning) Co., Ltd. USA EWSY, INC. Thailand Opening Corn Processing Plant (Suphanburi, Thailand) Philippines East-West Seed Philippines celebrates its 30th year

2017 - East-West Seed celebrates 35 years - 5-year Strategic Plan launched - Establishment of International Headquarters (IHQ) and International Trading Center (ITC)

Myanmar Completion of a seed processing plant in Yangon

9

Our Products

Tropical Vegetables

Bitter Gourd 10

Cucumber

Tomato

Sweet Corn

Hot Pepper

Marigold

Seeds And Packaging 11

Our People 5.0% Business Strategic team 3.4% Knowledge Transfer

23.5% R&D

9.6% General Administration

15.3% Sales and Marketing

43.2% Seed Operation

5,459 total headcount, with

5% increase

The Group acknowledges the importance of diversity and supports gender equality in the workplace.

During 2018, women comprised 33% of the Group’s staff, including a significant number of women in managerial positions across seniority levels.

in permanent employees At all times, the Group continues to select prospective board members and executives by focusing principally on their skills, experience and business expertise to supervise and manage the Group’s operations.

The Group intends to avoid any changes in the board composition - other than through natural attrition, including retirement - with a view toward limiting any unnecessary business disruption.

There were no female members of the management board or the supervisory board during 2018.

The Group acknowledges that achieving gender

Gender balance

equality at senior executive and board level will be

1 in 3 EWS employees

actively search for and consider female members to

is a

12

woman

challenging in the short to medium term and will replace any retiring members.

People first

1 in 4 employees is a people manager We are young and dynamic ď Ą The average age of an EWS employee is ď Ą

36

41% of our employees are millennials

Growing our talent pool

5%

of employees had career progression in 2018 in the form of promotion, developmental move, or transfer

New leadership

Sumie Fujimura, General Manager - Vietnam

Dilip Rajan, General Manager - India

13

14

Message from The Supervisory Board Turning commitments into action through the power of partnerships The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are

interconnectedness and collaboration help us

essentially commitments made on a global scale

expand our scope and make a greater, lasting

by all actors in society. The SDGs have been in

impact.

place since 2016 and in recent years have been increasingly gaining support as governments,

In our home markets Indonesia and the

businesses, non-profits, academia and individuals

Philippines, we partnered with public universities

recognize the value of aligning with purposeful and

and research institutions to establish horticultural

far-reaching goals.

gene banks that will conserve vital plant genetic resources. This gives scientists wider access to

As a family business with Dutch roots and deeply

germplasm, which will help plant breeders improve

embedded values of pragmatism, hard work,

vegetable varieties for farmers for many years to

and persistence (stubbornness!), East-West Seed

come.

has taken on the challenge of turning our SDG commitments into actions. Most of them are not

To help farmers combat the destructive armyworm

new to us -- we have been on a mission for 37

which affected 500 hectares of onion fields in the

years now to lift farmers out of poverty through

Philippines, we have partnered with the agriculture

better seeds and knowledge.

ministry by sending our experts to train farmers on effective control and management of the pest.

Looking back at 2018, it has been an eventful

The end in mind is to ensure that farmers in major

year for East-West Seed. Partnerships have

onion producing areas maintain their source of

been a significant driver of our sustainability

livelihood.

efforts in many ways. We are convinced that

15

We have partnered with the Dutch government

We are nowhere near done. We know we still have

(RVO) to expand our efforts in India towards

a long way to go, and I am convinced that the

preventing child labor in the field. This has

partnerships, tools, and capacities we have built

resulted in a wider scope of activities aimed at

over many years keep us on the path to achieving

improved working conditions in seed production,

our vision of a sustainable food future with

better monitoring systems, a broader awareness

smallholder farmers at the center.

campaign on the importance of sending children to school, and stimulating income development

We would like to thank all of our customers and

through knowledge transfer on vegetable

partners, our management and all staff of East-

production.

West Seed for their continued dedication and commitment to our mission.

In August, we took part in an SDG conference organized by Wageningen University on its 100th year celebration, precisely on the themes of SDG 17: Partnerships and SDG 2: Zero Hunger. We talked

Bangkok, March 2019

about the expansion of our Knowledge Transfer activities to Nigeria, where we are promoting a

On behalf of the Supervisory Board,

model for developing the vegetable sector -- a model that has proven successful in other places

Ard Groot

like Tanzania (through our SEVIA partnership) and

Chairman

many developing markets in Southeast Asia, where we also partner with NGOs and other like-minded organizations to give vegetable growers access to knowledge on productive farming practices.

Finally, we recognize that we cannot do it without our commercial partners who enable us to sustain our mission of bringing quality seeds to smallholder farmers. Our field days gave us an opportunity to meet our business partners and showcase our latest product innovations. We made sure it was a memorable experience for our guests, whose trust and loyalty are very important to us.

16

Ard Groot

Douwe Zijp

Simon Groot

Chairman

Vice Chairman

Honorary Chairman & Founder

Rutger Groot

Ivan Chung

Juan Santos

Member

Member

Member

Joost Pekelharing

James Amatavivadhana

Dietrich Schmidt

Member

Member

Member

17

Message From The Board of Management An extraordinary year For East-West Seed, 2018 was extraordinary in

In Malaysia, we opened a fully owned subsidiary

many ways.

that will further consolidate our market leadership in Southeast Asia. Record participation from the

It was a challenging year for the seed industry and

trade field days in Thailand, Philippines, India,

we felt the challenge in a very real sense in our

Guatemala, Myanmar and Cambodia confirmed

markets as well, specifically in Thailand, Vietnam

our innovative power and gave us an opportunity

and Indonesia. On the positive side, these setbacks

to celebrate the continued partnership between our

motivated us to look at how we can raise the bar

company and business partners. Looking at R&D

in our operations, improve efficiencies, and focus

as an engine for long-term growth, we invested in

on the market more than ever before. Last year’s

56 hectares of land in Thailand and 11 hectares

challenges have made us more focused and

in the Philippines to support our expanding

practical, finding ways to further improve and make

breeding programs.

an impact.

On the second year of our 5-year GROW Strategy, Extraordinary things are already happening.

we set a roadmap for a broad and ambitious

We are strengthening our planning and solving

business transformation that will digitize core

bottlenecks across the supply chain to support

business processes and make our operations more

sales. Global crop managers and country

efficient. We started this project in 2018 and will

commercial teams are working more closely than

continue for at least 3 more years.

ever to bring new varieties to growers at a higher

This transformation is part of our Robust strategic

speed. We released 59 new varieties in 2018,

theme to improve operations through discipline,

a 157% increase from the previous year, and this

processes and systems. To what end? To empower

innovative streak will only continue as we plan

our people to drive business. With our organization

to introduce a minimum of 50 new varieties for

made up of 41% millennials (the average age

2019. We have embarked on an energetic sales

at East-West Seed is 36 years old), one of the

transformation in India to drive revenue and market

smartest things we can do is utilize our people’s

share by increasing our engagement

time and energy for more creative thinking and

with customers.

problem-solving. Digital solutions will liberate them from repetitive and tedious tasks, so they can do

The Philippines posted good growth, signaling a strong organization and connection to the market.

18

work that is fulfilling and value-adding.

Perhaps our most extraordinary feat of 2018 was

passionately working towards our goals. Every year

to lead the entire seed industry in the Access to

is a new race.

Seeds Index where we ranked #1 in the Global Index and the South and Southeast Asia Index, and

We also thank our customers, partners and

#3 in the Eastern and Southern Africa Index. This

shareholders for their trust. You can count on our

brings us four cumulative #1 rankings, consistent

commitment, energy and drive to always stay true

with our performance in 2016 when the first Seed

to the company’s mission, which is indeed an

Index was released and where we led the pack in

extraordinary one.

the Global Vegetable and East Africa indices.

Bangkok, March 2019

The world confirms we really live our mission.

The seed business is a long term business, a fact we never forget as we focus on making our yearly targets while continuing to build strong foundations for our company. Even though 2018 was a tough year, it was not because of a lack of trying. That is why we would like to thank all the teams for

Bert van der Feltz

Simon Jan de Hoop

Michel Devarrewaere

President & CEO

Vice President

Vice President

19

Seeds and the SDGs The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a blueprint for a better, more sustainable world for all.

It challenges all actors in society -- governments, business, knowledge centers, non-governmental organizations, individuals -- to commit to a visionary framework until 2030 that will help drive purposeful, positive, and sustainable growth.

How does East-West Seed contribute to the SDGs? For us, it goes beyond CSR. Sustainability is our core business.

Since 1982, East-West Seed has been at the service of smallholder farmers who produce 85% of the world’s food.

Especially in developing and densely populated parts of the world like Asia and Africa, the role of smallholder farmers is quintessential. We believe they are the answer to the big question of food and nutrition security.

20

Vegetable cultivation Advancing the role of

generally consumes

With smallholder farmers

women in sustainable

less water than growing

Through the years

as our main clients, we

agriculture is more

staple crops. We promote

East-West Seed has

East-West Seed has

contribute to doubling

than a nice slogan for

water-use efficiency in

trained and developed

demonstrated that

the productivity and

East-West Seed. Our

farming through training

a pool of approximately

quality seeds and better

incomes of small-scale

Knowledge Transfer has

on practical technologies

11,000 smallholders as

knowledge on farming

food producers and

initiated female-centered

like drip irrigation that

seed growers in many

can lift the livelihood

ensuring sustainable food

programs in several areas

allows farmers to produce

countries. These seed

of smallholder farmers

production systems. We

in Myanmar and India.

vegetables even in dry

growers are the biggest

and rural communities,

advocate vegetables as

These initiatives seek to

seasons and with more

suppliers of the company.

with vegetable farming

the most obvious and

develop a new market

efficient water use.

Aside from creating

as a real opportunity for

accessible way to combat

for commercial seeds,

Moreover, we breed

employment in rural

income diversification.

malnutrition, particularly

develop the vegetable

for drought resistance,

areas, we partner with

Knowledge Transfer

in the most vulnerable

sector, and demonstrate

an important trait for

the Dutch government,

supports them to

communities who rely on

the effectiveness of

varieties developed in the

NGOs and other seed

become successful

their own crop production

engaging female farmers

tropics where the impact

companies in preventing

agro-entrepreneurs.

for sustenance.

in agri-business.

of climate change is felt.

child labor in the field.

We’ve seen firsthand the growth in household expenditure or income per capita in many farming communities where better seeds and better knowledge are made accessible. Many of the farmers we have worked with invest their earnings in building a house, sending their children to school, and creating employment for their communities.

East-West Seed supports sustainable intensification by developing vegetable varieties that allow farmers to produce more food from their land and labor, as well as providing training on cultivation techniques that will allow farmers to be more productive and maximize available resources. In

We recognize the impact of climate change to food production. To support farmers in addressing climate challenges like stress and higher disease pressure, East-West Seed develops varieties that are stress-tolerant and have better resistance to pest and diseases.

We train smallholder

We know we can’t do it alone. So we partner globally with governments, knowledge institutions to achieve our objectives of improving the skills of farmers, encouraging environmentally-sound farming practices, and mobilizing knowledge and resources towards

other words, to enable farmers to do more with less.

farmers on climate-smart vegetable production such as off-season vegetable production and crop diversification / substitution, encouraging them to shift to crops that require less water.

We take part in conserving the genetic diversity of horticultural crops by supporting the establishment of gene banks for vegetable varieties, in partnership with public academic institutions. We set up a Genetic Resource Management (GRM) function to lead the conservation of local and exotic germplasm, even some of their wild relatives.

A few years ago, we launched high quality seeds of indigenous crops under our Go Grow packaging to encourage farmers to continue growing these local vegetables, which form part of an important culinary, nutritional and cultural heritage.

achieving sustainable agricultural growth in the countries where we work.

21

Still leading the industry in serving smallholder farmers East-West Seed has maintained its top position in the recently launched Access to Seeds Index Access to Seeds, an independent organization funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Dutch government, placed East-West Seed in the top rank, besting 13 other global seed companies on their commitment and performance in providing the world’s smallholder farmers access to quality seeds.

In the regional indices, East-West Seed kept a strong and consistent performance: the South and Southeast Asia Index placed East-West Seed #1 among 24 companies surveyed, while the Eastern and Southern Africa Index ranked the company #3 among 22 mostly African companies.

This brings four straight #1 rankings for the tropical vegetable seed company with both Asian and Dutch roots, sustaining its good performance in 2016 when the first Seed Index was released and where it led the pack in the Global Vegetable and East Africa indices.

Access to Seeds aims to shine a light on how seed companies can step up efforts to improve access to quality seeds of improved varieties for smallholder farmers. It believes that seed companies are a crucial partner in efforts to raise smallholder farmer productivity and achieve food and nutrition security.

22

Supporting onion farmers in the fight against armyworm In early 2018, several farmers from

The armyworm larvae feeds on the tender

how to effectively control and manage

major onion producing regions in the

part of the leaves, leaving the veins

“Harabas”. Technical advice was provided

Philippines reported massive “Harabas”

“skeletonized”. The feeding reaches down

by East-West Seed entomologist Dr Jedeliza

(armyworm) infestation. Pangasinan,

to the bulbs, resulting in huge yield losses.

Ferrater, a PhD graduate from Wageningen

for instance, is one of the largest onion

University who also trained as a researcher

producing provinces in the Philippines,

In support of the Department of Agriculture’s

producing 50 million tonnes of red onion

initiatives to help onion farmers combat the

annually for markets in Metro Manila

outbreak, the University of the Philippines

Through a partnership among East-

and North Luzon.

and East-West Seed, through its Allium

West Seed, ASSIST-Asia, and Germany

at the International Rice Research Institute.

team, held a series of Onion Field Days in

Investment Bank (DEG-KFW), Onion

Approximately 500 hectares of land

Pangasinan and nearby onion-producing

Learning Centers have been setup in 4

planted with onions were reported to be

provinces, Tarlac and Nueva Ecija. Over

provinces where 600 farmers and 40 local

affected by the destructive pest.

600 farmers attended these field days

technicians will be trained on integrated

where East-West Seed experts taught them

pest management until 2020.

How to control and manage armyworm: a practical guide

Monitor the area regularly and look for signs

of armyworm or cutworm presence such as

moths, eggs, larvae and pupae.

Hand-pick the eggs and larvae to reduce

population.

Remove weeds and volunteer plants that may

serve as alternate hosts.

Cultivate the soil by plowing and harrowing,

and use plastic mulch to minimize pupation

in the soil.

Plant trap crops like sunflower, taro or castor

plants around the area.

Use beneficial microorganisms such

as nuclear polyhedrosis virus (NPV) and

entomopathogenic fungi Beauveria bassiana,

Metarhizium anisopliae and beneficial

bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis kurstaki

strain to reduce larvae population.

Apply botanical insecticide like neem extract.

Apply insecticides when necessary and

ensure that these insecticides are of different

modes of action.

KNOW YOUR ENEMY. East-West Seed entomologist Dr. Jedeliza Ferrater (PhD, Wageningen University) conducts a lecture for onion farmers on practical tips to control and address an armyworm infestation

23

Partnering to conserve plant genetic resources The UN-SDG 2: Zero Hunger calls

Moreover, the first Indonesian gene

East-West Seed hopes these

for increased investment in research,

bank dedicated to horticultural crops

partnerships will contribute to raising

technology development and gene

was officially launched in August 2018

agricultural productivity in the

banks in order to enhance agricultural

through a collaboration between tropical

Philippines and Indonesia by giving

productive capacity in developing

vegetable seed company East-West Seed

scientists wider access to germplasm,

countries. Gene banks are critical for

and Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), a

which will help plant breeders improve

preserving biodiversity by safeguarding

public research institution in Yogyakarta.

vegetable varieties that farmers will grow.

genetic resources through inventory, collection, conservation and sustainable use of germplasm for plant breeding programs.

East-West Seed supports the effort to conserve genetic resources of vegetable crops by partnering with public institutions. This supports the growth of the horticulture industry, especially in accelerating the development of new varieties and high quality seeds that will result in increasing farmers’ productivity and income.

In the Philippines, East-West Seed inked a collaboration in May 2018 with the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), through its National Plant Genetic Resources LaboratoryInstitute of Plant Breeding (NPGRL-IPB), the country’s national gene bank. The public-private partnership is envisioned to contribute to fast-tracking the regeneration and characterization of NPGRL’s local germplasm and exotic materials.

24

International scientists gather to tackle new dynamics, challenges in plant breeding About 300 plant scientists representing 30 countries gathered in Chiang Mai, Thailand from 30 September to 4 October 2018 to discuss new dynamics and challenges in breeding and genomics of Solanaceae crops like tomato, pepper, eggplant, tobacco and potato.

The 15th Solanaceae Conference, hosted by

In his plenary talk on The Impact of Genome

East-West Seed and Chiang Mai University,

Editing on Crop Improvement, Dr Matthew

focused on new breeding technologies and

Willmann, Director of Cornell University’s

the latest scientific achievements for crop

Plant Transformation Facility and a known

improvement, as well as biodiversity and

figure in plant biotechnology said: “Plant

environmental stresses, with about 60 talks

scientists are constantly striving to improve

and 80 poster presentations given over the

crop plants in ways that directly benefit

five-day program.

consumers, farmers, and food processors.

These efforts are guided by a need to address

Scientists believe that using genomics and

a set of fundamental problems, including a

biotechnology in plant breeding leads to

rapidly growing world population, a changing

improved seed varieties that can help farmers

climate, an ongoing battle against pathogens

to get higher yields to feed billions of people

and insects, worsening soils, the negative

around the world.

effects of agriculture on the environment, and the need for tastier and more nutritious foods.�

25

Dr Willmann added, “Researchers have used traditional plant breeding and transgenesis to address these issues, but both have significant disadvantages.

Recently, genome editing has become reliable in plants, and this advance has the potential to dramatically speed research and crop improvement.�

L-R: Dr Darush Struss, conference lead and East-West Seed Group Biotechnology and Molecular Plant Breeding Manager; Dr Matthew Willmann of the Cornell University Plant Transformation Facility, Dr Nuttha Potapohn of Chiang Mai University; and Mr Bert van der Feltz, CEO of East-West Seed addressing the media’s question during the press forum.

Solanaceae: important economic and agricultural crops Solanaceae crops are major sources of income for many farmers. Future trends in production, trade and consumption of these major crops will influence breeding goals:

More and more consumers care about food safety

and will be willing to pay a higher price for quality

and safe-to-eat vegetables.

Protected cultivation will continue to grow, especially

for specialized products to suit premium demands

(niche segments).

Farmers will gradually move to mechanized

harvesting (because of increasing labor costs) and

improved cultivation techniques like grafted seedlings.

Distribution channels with gradually move from wet

market to supermarket as well as e-commerce.

Modern retail channels will require year round supply.

Food processing will continue to advance.

rail, sea, and road. Air freight will lessen.

International trade will become more regional, through

26

Overcoming knowledge barriers to attain nutritional security and higher income for farmers in Nigeria At an SDG conference held in The

Organized by Wageningen University &

East-West Seed led one of the sessions

Netherlands on 31 August 2018,

Research (WUR), the conference titled

at the SDG conference, with former

East-West Seed shared its long-term

“Towards Zero Hunger: Partnerships

Ambassador Joan Boer and EWS Public

vision to transform Nigeria’s vegetable

for Impact” centered around SDG 2:

Affairs Manager Maaike Groot

markets through pre-commercial

Zero Hunger, achieving food security

as moderators.

Knowledge Transfer activities that

and improved nutrition and promoting

will catalyze innovation at the farm

sustainable agriculture, and SDG 17:

level, giving farmers and business an

Partnerships for the Goals. It brought

opportunity to grow.

together key stakeholders to discuss their views and contributions for achieving the SDGs.

27

Why Nigeria?

Nigeria’s potential for food production

However, East-West Seed sees potential

Hadiza Yaro, East-West Seed Business

has not been realized due to heavy

in vegetable farming which currently

Development Manager for Nigeria, said:

reliance on rainfed agriculture (<7%

supports 2 million households and

“Part of the transformation we want for

of irrigated land), lack of infrastructure

possibly generating more than USD

Nigeria is how farmers view farming. We

that leads to isolation of farmers from

3 billion at farm gate level, though its

want them to see it not only as a way of

inputs and markets, and an aging farmer

relevance is greatly overshadowed by

life but as a successful and sustainable

demographic (Average of 50+ years old)

field crops. Vegetables are grown in

business.”

that grow crops on 1.8 hectares of land

3.4 million hectares of land, with main

and majority of whom live on less than

crops including okra, tomato, onion,

USD 1.25 a day.

hot pepper and leafy vegetables. Yields remain low compared with the regional average while post-harvest losses are high.

How to make it happen With partnerships at the crux, the session saw the high profile participation of both the Dutch and Nigerian governments, scientists, international NGOs and the private sector. This follows discussions made in July 2018, when Nigerian President HE Muhammadu Buhari met with Dutch CEOs with business ties in the West African nation, including East-West Seed’s CEO, Bert van der Feltz. The Nigeria session was developed through partnerships with the Netherlands African Business Council and SeedNL, in which seed companies pledged to create an enabling environment in Nigeria.

EWS-KT’s approach in Nigeria can be

This model has been applied in Tanzania through a project called “Seeds

summarized as:

for Expertise for the Vegetable Industry of Africa” or SEVIA which was

Evidence based demonstrations showing

setup through a partnership between the Dutch government, WUR, and

profitable and sustainable production

private seed companies East-West Seed and Rijk Zwaan.

practices

Long term commitment to practical

Elijah Mwashayenyi, Managing Director of the project, shared a few

training; from land preparation until harvest.

lessons from SEVIA: “Our experience from the field illustrates that it is

Field days to promote vegetable as a

important that smallholder farmers learn more about technicalities of

viable business opportunity with a main focus

farming. That’s how they will earn better income and elevate their status as

on the economics. Evaluate how profitable it

agro-entrepreneurs. Knowledge transfer coupled with improved varieties

is by looking at inputs and outputs.

and technology lead to increased productivity.”

28

Scaling up efforts to prevent child labor in the field Since 2015, East-West Seed has been active in India in preventing child labor in seed production by implementing internal mechanisms to monitor and take action against possible instances of child labor in the field.

Over the last three years, we have been scaling

Why does child labor happen?

up our efforts by partnering with other seed companies and with funding support from the

In our experience, we found that the main causes of child labor are:

Dutch government through the RVO. These joint actions have resulted in a wider

lack of awareness on the importance of education

scope of activities towards eliminating child

poor living conditions

labor and improving working conditions

insufficient school facilities including outdated teaching programs

in seed production.

What are we doing about it?

Step 1. Awareness: training and communication campaigns

targeted towards farmers, seed production teams, brokers,

local communities, and schools.

Step 2. Preventive Action: acknowledgement in all seed contracts,

with relevant bonus and penalty systems.

Step 3. Multi-step Field Monitoring System: monitoring by our seed

production team and internal audit and external audits

by random sampling.

Step 4. Management Report: internal warning system

and regular reporting.

Step 5. Corrective Action: based on situation and findings.

29

Children must go to school campaign:

Setting up a system:

Stimulating income development:

train EWS staff and community

expand existing monitoring systems,

knowledge transfer to seed growers,

stakeholders, develop learning

implement sanctions, supervise and

fresh vegetable production and backyard

packages, implement adult education

motivate staff and growers, organize

cultivation for improving productivity and

programs

regular communication, evaluate and

yields

share information

Expanding anti-child labor activities through the RVO project Jan 2018-Mar 2018

Apr 2018-Dec 2019

Setting up a system Baseline analyses

30

Jan 2020-Mar 2020

Evaluation,

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Chidren must go to

and stimulating income

dissemination,

schoolâ&#x20AC;? campaign

development through

outreach to partners

knowledge transfer

and stakeholders

East-West Seed launches innovative vegetable varieties at HortiAsia East-West Seed participated for the first time in HortiAsia on 22-24

The company demonstrated the diversity of its range, offering

August 2018 in BITEC Bangkok. On its maiden appearance, the

both tropical and temperate vegetable varieties for farmers in

company debuted avarieties with innovative traits that promise

Asia. Among the varieties launched at HortiAsia were:

higher productivity and income for vegetable growers.

Fantasy (tri-color waxy corn)

Somtum F1 (papaya)

White, yellow, and purple kernels in a big ear;

A non-GMO papaya variety that offers the same

good tip fill and excellent plant vigor

disease resistance as GM seeds, giving both growers

Sticky and tender, its eating quality remains consistent

and exporters a practical alternative to genetically

even after 3 days from harvesting

modified papaya seeds

Besides its beautiful appearance, it is loaded with

Highly resistant to the papaya ringspot virus (PRSV),

health benefits from anthocyanin, beta carotene

a highly destructive disease that occurs in nearly

and fiber â&#x20AC;&#x201D; all in one ear

every papaya growing area in Thailand but particularly

severe in the Northeast and Central regions

Somtum 90 is the first papaya variety in Thailand that is

90% Highly Hermaphrodite which helps farmers reduce

cost. In addition, Somtum 90 has high yield and provides

long fruits and this is very desirable in the market.

Bears fruit with crispy and tasty flesh, making it a perfect

ingredient for the famous Thai salad som tum.

Its potential yield is 120-160 tons per hectare

Besides joining as an exhibitor, East-West Seed also participated in parallel events that took place in HortiAsia:

Colorato (cherry tomato)

ISHS Scientific conference: Enrique Vasquez, plant breeder

An attractive variety of cherry tomatoes in different sizes,

from Guatemala, presented his research about the productivity,

shapes and colors with an eye-catching presentation on

quality and shelf life of eight papaya genotypes and seven

the shelf for the high-end gourmet market.

tomato genotypes in Mexico

Ideal for salads and fresh consumption

HortiAsia Thematic Forum: Lysette Lacambra, Knowledge Transfer

Technical Specialist, talked about a practical approach to training

farmers, what works and what does not

31

Veggies take center stage in East-West Seed Field Days Vegetables were the main attraction in

Aside from top commercial products,

called “Farmer Heroes”, also joined the

multiple Field Days held at East-West

varieties that are unique in the market were

field days to share their experiences and

Seed. The company organized two demo

also showcased including round eggplant,

inspiring stories with the visitors.

fields in the Philippines on November 21

butternut pumpkin, purple

to 23, 2018 at the Villar SIPAG Farm in

waxy-sweet corn, heart-shaped bitter

East-West Seed received several accolades

Bacoor, Cavite and at the University of the

gourd, and purple yardlong bean.

from the Asia Pacific Seed Association (APSA) in 2018. R&D Operations Manager

Philippines-Los Banos in Laguna.

The demo fields were organized as part of

Learning sessions on pest and disease

Dalisay Caraos (Philippines) received

East-West Seed’s participation to the 25th

management, natural farming, urban

the APSA Private Sector Award for her

Asian Seed Congress, the biggest gathering

gardening, and vegetable cooking

contributions to plant variety improvement

of seed industry players in the world.

were also held for the visitors which

and developing a pool of talent in

included farmers, agro-supply dealers,

horticulture in the Philippines and Asia.

With the theme “Better Seeds for a Better

entrepreneurs, local community leaders,

East-West Seed was also awarded Best

World,” the demo fields in the Philippines

residents, and school children. Successful

Booth at the Asian Seed Congress.

showcased over 100 vegetable varieties.

farmers and agriculture professionals, aptly

32

In India, East-West Seed participated in the successful Bagalkot, Karnataka Horticulture University Agriculture Exhibition which drew a massive turnout of over 100,000 farmers in December.

The event was graced by the Chief Minister of Karnataka and Union Minister.

In Thailand, East-West Seed opened the year with Field Days showcasing the best of its product innovations to customers from all over the world, as well as home gardeners from surrounding communities during a well-attended open house.

Customers from 22 countries in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America arrived in Thailand during the weeklong field showcase themed “Partners in Success” from 15-20 January in two locations: East-West Seed’s R&D center in Chiang Mai and its global headquarters in Nonthaburi. Participants came from Brunei, Cambodia, China,

During the public days in Thailand, the

span of 3 days. The theme of the public

Egypt, Guatemala, Hong Kong, India,

company welcomed more than 30,000

days was “Happiness can be grown”,

Indonesia, Japan, Kuwait, Lebanon,

people who were curious about growing

encouraging vegetable home gardening as

Malaysia, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan,

vegetables in their own homes. The

a worthwhile hobby and a source of safe

Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Taiwan,

company sold over 17,000 pouches

and nutritious food for the family.

Turkey and Vietnam.

of Go Grow and Value Pack seeds in a

33

Founder and honorary chairman Simon Groot officially inaugurated the event in Chiang Mai, expressing his â&#x20AC;&#x153;sense of pride in seeing a beautiful field of vegetables, a reminder of what this company truly stands for -serving smallholder vegetable farmers with quality seeds of improved vegetable varieties that will help them grow their productivity and income.â&#x20AC;?

Product Highlight Sugar King Our sweet corn variety Sugar King grew in sales volume by 53% in 2018 compared to the previous year, and is expected to grow another 20% in 2019.

Why do farmers love it?

Compared to earlier competitor varieties, Sugar King has superior sweet taste, thin pericarp, good tip fill and uniform ears size. It is easy to grow because of

How did it transform the market?

its strong plant vigor and resistance to Northern Corn

Because of its quality, ease of cultivation, and transportability,

Leaf Blight. The green husk cover makes for longer

farmers have been keen to shift to this variety. Since its

shelf life, which allows it to maintain quality even

introduction in 2015, Sugar King has been growing in average

after long distance transport.

volume by 86% and average value by 85%.

Innovative tomato varieties In Central America, East-West Seed has been able to further consolidate its tomato seed sales, with varieties like P-52

34

P-52 F1

Guerrero F1

Tyral F1

Bianco F1

Why do growers love it?

F1, Guerrero F1 and Tyral F1 in

East-West tomatoes offer strong virus resistance (among other resistances)

Guatemala and the Dominican

in combination with excellent fruit quality and very high yield. Tomatoes form

Republic, and Bianco F1 in

an important part of the cuisine in Central America. Mostly tomatoes are

Honduras and Nicaragua.

consumed fresh, in salads, and also used to make salsa.

Transformation: the power of telling farmers’ stories Quality seeds are just the beginning of successful farming. From preparing the soil for seedlings, to knowing when to transplant and fertilize, the application of proven expertise has transformed smallholder crop production. In the process, farmers’ lives are transformed too. But what does transformation really mean?

People relate to the world through stories, so to illustrate the impact of Knowledge Transfer, we wanted to bring forward the stories of farmers that have been part of our KT program. We started in Myanmar with our documentary series “Myoe Sae”.

“Myoe Sae” explores the lives, learnings and work of East-West Seed Knowledge Transfer and the farming communities they engage with. Who are the farmers? What are their cultures, languages and customs? What is their way of life? What do they aspire for?

Who are the KT staff who travel to rural areas to empower local farmers to cultivate better crops? What are their challenges and inspirations?

To find the answers, we invite you to watch “Myoe Sae”, a documentary series composed of 3-minute episodes, each one featuring a farmer or a KT staff.

Discover their real, unique, interesting and transformational narratives. *Search “Myoe Sae” in

YouTube

to watch this series.

35

Business transformation in the digital era 2018 was significant for East-West Seed as it charted a road

Agile and efficient processes and systems

map for a broad and ambitious business transformation. It is

Integrated ecosystems between countries and partners

a long-term initiative aimed at enhancing our core business

(seed production farmers, commercial farmers, dealers,

processes through the help of technology, and improving our

distributors, traders)

overall planning and operations.

Efficient operations and better planning. Business

intelligence for improved visibility and better

On the first year of business transformation, our focus was on

decision-making: on cost, product life cycle, market,

redesigning core processes, clarifying roles, and identifying

people and partners

systems to effectively manage our current and future business.

Integrated feedback: market intelligence, product

development, process & people

The end goal is to build future-ready business operations that

Digital user experience: simple, reliable, available anytime,

will enable our team to serve more farmers with better products:

anywhere and platform independent

Scalable technology solutions will improve process efficiency and integrate the overall ecosystem

Processes: agile, efficient and integrated

Industry standard business processes Integrated planning & operations

Defined roles and responsibilities People: empowered through ownership &

Improved employee experience

accountability

One version of the truth Feedback capability Core Processes Modernized-Integrated

Systems: digital

and scalable Any time, anywhere, any device User Experience Driven

Improved visibility of farmer touch points External Stakeholders: engaged

Better user experience through automation of partner interactions.

36

Harvesting the sun East-West Seed has made the move towards clean

Solar power now covers 55% of the cold store

energy with the completion of a 250-KWn, 774-panel

electricity consumption during sun hours. It

rooftop solar power installation that will help power its

contributes 18-20% to the facilityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s entire energy mix,

main seed processing facilities in Thailand.

generating power that is equivalent to electrifying 100 regular sized households.

The first of its kind in the seed business in Thailand, the solar power project produces approximately

The company has invested THB 9 million (USD

364,500 Kw of electricity per year, helping power

275,000) for this project, and hopes to recover

its seed processing facilities including the cold and

its clean energy investment within 6 years. This

dehumidified storage, and germination rooms.

installation reduces carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by an average of 658 kg on a daily basis, or an equivalent of planting 4 trees per day.

Bright future for solar energy.

East-West Seed has invested in solar panels to generate clean power for its Thailand processing plant.

37

BETTER SEEDS for BETTER YIELD

A sustainable food future with smallholder farmers at the center

East-West Seed International Limited No. 50/1 Moo 2, Sainoi-Bang Bua Thong Rd., Amphur Sainoi, Nonthaburi 11150 Thailand Tel : +66 (02) 020 6000 Fax : +66 (02) 020 6099 E-mail : media@eastwestseed.com www.eastwestseed.com