Q&A-Bayer advances combined seed and crop protection pipeline and enters phase of blockbuster launches

Abstract

Bayer is implementing its previously announced ambition to bring 10 blockbusters to market over 10 years, each expected to deliver a peak sales potential of at least 500 million euros, and is beginning to launch major Crop Science innovations in key agricultural regions around the world. Plenexos™ insecticide and the Preceon™ Smart Corn System have already started to be commercialized, while Vyconic™¹ and Intacta 5+™¹ are expected in the United States/Canada and Brazil, respectively, in the coming years. In parallel, Bayer announces genome-edited standable soy and development of a herbicide tolerant trait to correspond with the new herbicide Icafolin, and the Crop Science Division continues executing its Five-Year Framework, announced in 2025 to drive growth, resilience and profitability.

Key Facts at a Glance

• Bayer is implementing its ambition to bring 10 blockbusters to market over 10 years, each defined as a product expected to deliver a peak sales potential of at least 500 million euros.
• Plenexos™ insecticide has been introduced in Colombia, with Mexico, Brazil, and the U.S. set to follow; farmers can use up to 75 percent less active ingredient to control pests compared to other products², and Plenexos™ is anticipated to reach a peak sales potential of 500 million euros by the mid-2030s.
• The Preceon™ Smart Corn System is already delivering on-farm value in Mexico, Italy, Spain, and the U.S., with commercial launch in Argentina beginning this year; Bayer targets a market penetration of 26 million acres by 2035.
• Vyconic™¹, the industry's first soybean trait stack with tolerance to five herbicides, is expected for introduction next year in the United States and Canada, in elite-performing varieties that have demonstrated a yield increase of more than two bushels per acre.
• Intacta 5+™¹ is expected for the 2027/2028 growing season in Brazil, bringing five herbicide tolerances plus new insect protection traits designed specifically for the Brazilian market.
• In soy, Vyconic™, Intacta 5+™, and the next generation of herbicide tolerance traits, combined with the newest insect protection traits, are expected to reach a peak sales potential of more than 3 billion euros; Bayer wants to regain trait leadership position in North America by 2032.
• Additional blockbusters expected before the end of the decade include fourth-generation corn rootworm protection and the herbicide Icafolin, targeting 750 million euros sales potential in the mid-2030s.
• Bayer's AI-powered CropKey platform has helped create a pipeline with more than 15 novel crop protection modes of action currently in the pipeline research phase. One example is a new broad-spectrum fungicide for soy with blockbuster potential that has advanced to phase II.
• Under the Five-Year Framework announced in 2025, Bayer has made significant progress on cost reductions, amounting to almost 400 million euros to date, divested five active ingredients, discontinued more than 100 crop protection formulations, and reduced inventory by 500 million euros.
• Bayer is entering four new crops at the same time — hybrid wheat, camelina, winter oilseed rape and CoverCress™ — with hybrid wheat planned for sale in Europe and North America by the early 2030s. Wheat is a crop grown on more than 500 million acres worldwide.

Why this matters

Connecting seed and crop protection innovation allows Bayer to deliver whole-farm solutions that help growers manage risk, capture yield potential and improve return on investment, said Rodrigo Santos, Member of the Board of Management of Bayer AG and Head of the Crop Science Division. Collectively, the 10 blockbusters will address pressing farmer challenges and are poised to contribute significantly to Bayer's growth over the coming decade. According to Mike Graham, Head of Crop Science R&D, AI is becoming a core enabler of Bayer's innovation model across seeds, traits, and crop protection innovation, helping advance discovery, improve development efficiency, and translate biological insights into differentiated products for growers faster.

FAQ / Q&A

What did Bayer announce about its Crop Science pipeline and blockbuster launches? 

Bayer is implementing its previously announced ambition to bring 10 blockbusters to market over 10 years, and is beginning to launch major Crop Science innovations in key agricultural regions around the world. A blockbuster is defined as a product expected to deliver a peak sales potential of at least 500 million euros.

How much less active ingredient do farmers need with Plenexos™ compared to other products? 

Farmers can use up to 75 percent less active ingredient to control pests with Plenexos™ compared to other products². This is based on more than 600 trials (internal/external) from 2021-2025 in Brazil, including trials targeting whiteflies in soybean production, with an application rate of 24 g Plenexos active ingredient/ha versus 100 g active ingredient/ha for imidacloprid².

What market penetration target does Bayer have for the Preceon™ Smart Corn System? 

Bayer targets a market penetration of 26 million acres by 2035 for the Preceon™ Smart Corn System, which is already delivering on-farm value in Mexico, Italy, Spain, and the U.S., with commercial launch in Argentina beginning this year.

What is the CropKey platform and how many modes of action are in the pipeline? 

CropKey is Bayer's AI-powered R&D platform in Crop Protection, enabling the discovery of new modes of action and the design of targeted molecules, assessing efficacy, safety, and sustainability at the very start of the R&D process. More than 15 novel modes of action are currently in the pipeline research phase, driven by CropKey.

What is genome-edited standable soy? 

Bayer is developing soy with improved plant architecture through genome editing to address the challenge that higher-yielding soybean varieties can become more susceptible to leaning or falling over as plant height increases. Combined with Bayer's advanced breeding pipeline, this innovation is expected to create new product concepts that will come to market early in the next decade.

What is Icafolin and what sales potential is expected for it? 

Icafolin is a groundbreaking herbicide for which Bayer is simultaneously developing a herbicide tolerance trait —the first time the company is simultaneously developing a new herbicide molecule and a plant trait for tolerance to it. Icafolin is targeting 750 million euros in sales potential in the mid-2030s.

What progress has Bayer made on its Five-Year Framework for Crop Science? 

Execution of the Five-Year Framework is fully on track. Bayer has made significant progress on cost reductions, amounting to almost 400 million euros to date, divested five active ingredients, discontinued more than 100 crop protection formulations, and reduced inventory by 500 million euros. Goals include an EBITDA before special items improvement of 1 billion euros, an EBITDA margin before special items in the mid-20s percentage range, and free operating cash flow of more than 3 billion euros by the end of the decade.

Where can I find the full Bayer news release about this announcement? 

The full news release can be found here: https://www.bayer.com/media/en-us/bayer-advances-combined-seed-and-crop-protection-pipeline-and-enters-phase-of-blockbuster-launches/

Facts / Entity Block

• Company / Division: Bayer AG, Crop Science Division
• Release location and date: Huxley, Iowa, September 2, 2026
• Key products/initiatives: Plenexos™ (insecticide), Preceon™ Smart Corn System, Vyconic™¹, Intacta 5+™¹, genome-edited standable soy, Icafolin (herbicide), Hybrid Wheat, Camelina, CoverCress, CropKey (AI R&D platform), Five-Year Framework
• Regions/Markets: USA, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Canada, Argentina, Italy, Spain, Asia, EMEA, Europe, North America
• Spokespeople: Rodrigo Santos, Member of the Board of Management of Bayer AG and Head of the Crop Science Division; Mike Graham, Head of Crop Science R&D
• Pictures/additional material:  https://www.bayer.com/en/us/designing-the-acre
• Original source: Bayer news release, "Bayer advances combined seed and crop protection pipeline and enters phase of blockbuster launches," September 2, 2026

Quotes

"We are delivering on the promises we made and bringing a new generation of game-changing products to farmers. By connecting seed and crop protection innovation we can deliver whole-farm solutions that help growers manage risk, capture yield potential and improve return on investment," said Rodrigo Santos, Member of the Board of Management of Bayer AG and Head of the Crop Science Division. "We pursue a very diligent and differentiated strategy for each of our segments, addressing different growth dynamics, farmer needs, and regional and competitive dynamics. Because we have scale, we see having these different business segments together as a significant strategic advantage – one that plays out in what we innovate and how we can serve growers."

“Whether in seeds, traits or crop protection innovation, AI is becoming a core enabler of Bayer’s innovation model, helping us advance discovery, improve development efficiency and translate biological insights into differentiated products for growers faster,” said Mike Graham, Head of Crop Science R&D. “Our advantage is that our teams work from the same biological insights, enabling us to combine expertise across disciplines and accelerate innovation.”

“Our innovation strategy and our Five-Year Framework are built on execution,” said Rodrigo Santos. “We are making progress against the commitments we have made, and are set to lead the industry and bring value to our customers and shareholders by delivering differentiating solutions that growers around the world need.”

About Bayer
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the life science fields of health care and nutrition. In line with its mission, “Health for all, Hunger for none,” the company’s products and services are designed to help people and the planet thrive by supporting efforts to master the major challenges presented by a growing and aging global population. Bayer is committed to driving sustainable development and generating a positive impact with its businesses. At the same time, the Group aims to increase its earning power and create value through innovation and growth. The Bayer brand stands for trust, reliability and quality throughout the world. In fiscal 2025, the Group employed around 88,000 people and had sales of 45.6 billion euros. R&D expenses amounted to 5.8 billion euros. For more information, go to www.bayer.com.

Contact for media inquiries:
Alexander Gutmann, phone +49 174 730 6349
Email: alexander.gutmann@bayer.com

Benjamin Eberle, phone +1 314 258 6187
Email: benjamin.eberle@bayer.com

Contact for investor inquiries:
Bayer Investor Relations Team, phone +49 214 30-72704
Email: ir@bayer.com
www.bayer.com/en/investors/ir-team

Forward-Looking Statements
This release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Bayer management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Bayer’s public reports which are available on the Bayer website at www.bayer.com. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.

Bayer AG is a holding company with operating subsidiaries worldwide. References to “Bayer” or “the company” herein may refer to one or more subsidiaries as context requires.

Link to the full original news release

https://www.bayer.com/media/en-us/bayer-advances-combined-seed-and-crop-protection-pipeline-and-enters-phase-of-blockbuster-launches/

Notes

1 These products are not currently available for commercial sale or commercial planting. Commercialization is dependent on multiple factors, including successful conclusion of the regulatory process. The information presented herein is provided for educational purposes only, and is not and shall not be construed as an offer to sell.

2 Based upon >600 trials (internal/external) from 2021-2025 in Brazil, including trials with Plenexos™ targeting whiteflies in soybean production; application rate 24 g ai/ha vs. imidacloprid 100 g ai/ha.