ST. LOUIS (December 11, 2014) - On December 10, 2014, vegetable growers from around the Southeastern U.S. gathered at the Seminis® research station in Felda, Florida for a close look at the latest in the Seminis product portfolio. “We invited area growers to take a close look at recently commercialized products as well as pre-commercial products, hear from experts and provide us with valuable feedback,” explained Leo Camelo, Seminis Southeastern Sales Lead. “Ultimately, this allows us to tailor our products to fit our customers’ needs.” On display were over one hundred commercial and pre-commercial varieties of eight key regional crops: sweet corn, watermelon, cucumbers, sweet peppers, specialty peppers, squash, tomato and garden beans. Some of the product highlights included: Watermelon SV0241WA is a high-quality 45/60 count watermelon triploid hybrid with an average of 3-4 fruits set per plant with outstanding fruit uniformity, fruit shape, and a high quality interior with crisp flesh. With a consistent average Brix sugar content level of 11 degrees or higher, SV0241WA has shown to have exceptional eating quality across all testing locations in the U.S. In addition, it has high resistance1 to Anthracnose and intermediate resistance2 to Fusarium wilt race 1. “Because SV0241WA is a little smaller than a traditional watermelon, we think this type of watermelon is going to become more and more popular as people are looking for something more convenient that takes up less space in the refrigerator,” explained Seminis Watermelon Breeder Jerome Bernier, who primarily breeds for seedless watermelon varieties for the United States and Mexico.In the 36-45 count range is SV8298WA3 watermelon hybrid. It has a great plant that offers excellent fruit coverage, has the potential to set a very high number of 36-45 count fruit and has traits that help SV8298WA withstand many types of field-related stress. “This is one of the most farmer-friendly watermelons that both looks and cuts great,” explained Bernier. Cucumber In the last two years, Seminis has made an improvement over its existing Downy mildew resistant cucumbers. In addition to intermediate resistance to Downy mildew, Performance Series® SV4220CS cucumber also touts multivirus resistance. This new Seminis cucumber hybrid has a moderately vigorous plant, produces straight, smooth, dark green high-quality fruit even in first harvests. Sweet Pepper With several races of Bacterial leaf spot present in the area, it was clear which sweet pepper varieties in the field boasted what Seminis calls X10R® technology. For example, Antebellum3, a precommercial green to red blocky sweet pepper hybrid, has intermediate resistance2 to Bacterial leaf spot races 0- 10 and produces quality jumbo fruit. Tomato The Dixie Red hybrid tomato that has larger fruit, better disease resistance and higher yield potentials compared to Florida 47 R hybrid tomato seed. It has high resistance1 to Tomato spotted wilt virus, Alternaria stem canker, Fusarium wilt, Gray leaf spot and Verticillium wilt. Dixie Red matures in approximately 87 days, has intermediate resistance2 to Root-knot nematodes, has hot set capability, and can be harvested green or red and still maintain firmness. Garden Bean Sybaris is a straight, medium-sized, deep green, bean with an average 5.6 inch length, very good uniformity and exceptional quality. Generally, its pods set high in the plant and off the soil surface. With a 56 day relative maturity and approximate sieve size distribution of 100% sieve size 3-4, Sybaris has high resistance1 to Bean common mosaic virus and intermediate resistance2 to Rust. This bean is a great addition to any portfolio in the fresh or processing markets. Over lunch, attendees heard from Amy Philpott from Watson Green LLC about crisis management recall planning in the produce industry. “Overall the event was a great success,” explained Camelo. “The conversations between customers and Seminis representatives indicated a high-level of excitement about the Seminis Southeastern U.S. portfolio and pipeline.” Please visit www.seminis.com to view and download product photos as well as photos from the event. About Monsanto Company Monsanto is committed to bringing a broad range of solutions to help nourish our growing world. We produce seeds for fruits, vegetables and key crops – such as corn, soybeans, and cotton – that help farmers have better harvests while using water and other important resources more efficiently. We work to find sustainable solutions for soil health, help farmers use data to improve farming practices and conserve natural resources, and provide crop protection products to minimize damage from pests and disease. Through programs and partnerships, we collaborate with farmers, researchers, nonprofit organizations, universities and others to help tackle some of the world’s biggest challenges. To learn more about Monsanto, our commitments and our more than 20,000 dedicated employees, please visit: discover.monsanto.com and monsanto.com. Follow our business on Twitter® at twitter.com/MonsantoCo, on the company blog, Beyond the Rows® at monsantoblog.com or subscribe to our News Release RSS Feed. About Monsanto Vegetable Seeds Division Monsanto Company’s Vegetable Seeds Division is focused on innovation to improve the quality and productivity of vegetables grown from our seeds. The company develops products intended to offer new, healthy choices for consumers. Monsanto invests in research and development and uses the latest technology not only to deliver the best products to the consumer, but also to provide yield and value to the customer, the grower, and to their customers, the chain partners. Monsanto’s Vegetable Seeds Division is represented through Seminis® and De Ruiter® seed brands. For more information about Seminis®, visit www.seminis.com -oOo- 1High Resistance: The ability of a plant variety to highly restrict the activities of a specific pathogen or insect pest and/or to restrict the symptoms and signs of a disease, when compared to susceptible varieties. Varieties with high resistance may exhibit some symptoms when specified pathogen or pest pressure is severe. New and/or atypical strains of the specific pathogen or pest may overcome the resistance.. 2Intermediate Resistance: The ability of a plant variety to restrict the growth and development of the specified pest or pathogen, but may exhibit a great range of symptoms compared to varieties with high resistance. Intermediate Resistance plant varieties will still show less sever symptoms or damage than susceptible plant varieties when grown under similar environmental conditions and/or pest or pathogen pressure. 3Experimental Name. The experimental varieties referenced in this press release are included for informational purposes only and are not being offered for sale. Individual results may vary, and performance may vary from location to location and from year to year. This result may not be an indicator of results you may obtain as local growing, soil and weather conditions may vary. Growers should evaluate data from multiple locations and years whenever possible. All information concerning Performance Series® cucumber hybrids given orally or in writing by Monsanto or its employees or agents, including the information in this communication, is given in good faith, but is not to be taken as a representation or warranty by Monsanto as to the performance or suitability of Performance Series® cucumber hybrids, which may depend on local climatic conditions and other factors. Monsanto assumes no liability for any such information. This information shall not form part of any contract with Monsanto unless otherwise specified in writing. Seminis® and X10R® are registered trademarks of Seminis Vegetable Seeds, Inc. De Ruiter® and Performance Series® are registered trademarks of Monsanto Technology LLC. ©2014 Seminis Vegetable Seeds, Inc.