French agri products firm Vilmorin & Cie, which is engaged in the production, marketing and sale of vegetable and crop seeds, has acquired 61.01 per cent stake in for an undisclosed amount.
Bisco Bio Sciences manufactures hybrid seeds, bio fertilizers & bio pesticides. It is one of the key players in India for hybrid seeds of maize, bajra, jowar, sunflower, paddy, mustard and vegetable crops etc. The company was incorporated in 2005 and is based in Secunderabad, Andhra Pradesh.
"This acquisition will enable us to set up a significant base on the Indian corn market, which is characterized by a high growth rate and extremely dynamic perspectives for development in the medium term. This new organization will benefit from the conditions necessary to reach our strategic ambitions: well-adapted local genetic resources, breeding station and production unit, backed up by an extensive sales network,” said, Emmanuel Rougier, CEO of Vilmorin.
He added, “Through this operation we have managed to open up a new relay for growth in this country. After the recent progress made through our diverse operations in Brazil, we continue to extend our world cover of the corn market which is also reliant on the development of our proprietary GMO technologies through Genective. With the strength of these assets and sales of almost €15 million, we are aiming for an Indian corn market share of 20 per cent by the year 2020.”
Vilmorin said Atash Seeds, an initial platform for Vilmorin's research and development in field seeds for the Indian market, will soon be integrated into the new set-up.
Paris-based Vilmorin produces and sells vegetable and field seeds including tomato, melon, carrot, pepper, squash, bean, cauliflower, water melon, onion, lettuce, and cucumber seeds for the professional agri-food market. The company also provides field seeds consisting of cereal and oil crop seeds such as corn, straw cereals, rapeseed, and sunflower, as well as wheat and barley for farmers.