Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Co. (Mahyco) is an agricultural company based in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. It is one of the country's major producers of seed. As of 2015, the company was also active in Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines and Bangladesh, and planned expansion to Africa. The company produces seeds for cotton, wheat, rice, sorghum, pearl millet, maize oilseeds and vegetables crops. Through a joint venture with Monsanto named Mahyco Monsanto Biotech, Mahyco sublicenses

Bt cotton Bt cotton is a genetically modified pest resistant plant cotton variety, which produces an insecticide to combat bollworm. Description Strains of the bacterium '' Bacillus thuringiensis'' produce over 200 different Bt toxins, each harmful to ...

technology in India. The Indian government has maintained price controls on Bt cotton seeds since at least 2011. Mahyco has 21 notified research varieties and production of 115 products across 30 crop species. Mahyco has six research centres in India focusing on molecular breeding, applied genomics, crop transformation, plant virus interaction,

molecular microbiology Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and physi ...

, abiotic stress tolerance and molecular entomology. The company has a research and development center at Dawalwadi near Jalna in Maharashtra, with an ongoing hybrid breeding program in over 30 crop species. Apart from the main R&D centre in Jalna, Mahyco has 3 research centres and 18 other location offices distributed across the country with over 150 scientists engaged in the research programs. As of 2014 Mahyco is present in over 20 countries, with offices in Singapore, Vietnam and recently acquired a controlling stake in Quton, the largest Cotton seeds company in Africa.

History

B. R. Barwale founded the company in 1964. In 2002, Monsanto and Mahyco's joint venture introduced Bt cotton technology to India. The joint venture's later attempt to introduce

Bt brinjal The genetically modified brinjal is a suite of transgenic brinjals (also known as an eggplant or aubergine) created by inserting a crystal protein gene (''Cry1Ac'') from the soil bacterium ''Bacillus thuringiensis'' into the genome of various brinj ...

to India was controversial and ultimately unsuccessful. In 2012, the government of

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

blocked sale of Mahyco Bt Cotton seed in response to distribution and transparency problems. The company's licence to sell was reinstated in May 2013. The first hybrid wheat seed in India "Pratham 7070 " was developed by MAHYCO

Awards

2013: The Association of Biotechnology Led Enterprises (ABLE) recognizes Mahyco for outstanding contribution to the Indian agriculture sector 1990: Awards from the International Seeds and Science Technology (ISST) and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FICCI)
http://www.biospectrumindia.com/biospecindia/news/185700/mahyco-bags-able-award-contributions-agri-biotech-sector

References

{{Authority control Seed companies Agriculture companies of India Indian companies established in 1964 Companies based in Maharashtra 1964 establishments in Maharashtra Agriculture companies established in 1964