Pioneer Hi-Bred, a DuPont business, is releasing 96 new Pioneer brand corn products to growers across North America for the 2009 planting season.

This new advancement class includes 39 new genetic platforms providing improved genetic gain across all maturities. The 2009 lineup features new double-stack and triple-stack products that feature Herculex insect protection and the Roundup Ready Corn 2 trait.

The 2009 class is the result of an increased effort in localized testing, featuring advancement decisions made by local area sales and agronomy teams. The localized testing and decision-making help ensure that Pioneer continues to deliver local performance advantages and traits that meet customers’ needs on a field-by-field basis.

Of the 96 new commercial hybrids, 35 are double-stack products. These hybrids contain the Herculex I gene and the Roundup Ready Corn 2 trait. The Herculex I trait protects against European and southwestern corn borer, western bean cutworm, black cutworm, fall armyworm, corn earworm, sugarcane borer, southern cornstalk borer and lesser cornstalk borer.

“Our double-stack products and hybrids with the Roundup Ready Corn 2 trait for refuge are performing very well,” says Bob Heimbaugh, North American director of corn product evaluation for Pioneer. “We provide growers with options that include agronomic, disease and technology traits that fit the performance and technology compliance needs of their own farming operations.”

The 2009 class also contains 36 triple-stack hybrids, with protection featuring the Herculex XTRA traits. Herculex XTRA is a combination of Herculex I and Herculex RW rootworm protection, which in addition to above-ground protection, delivers below-ground protection from western, northern and Mexican corn rootworms.

“The new 2009 triple-stack hybrids have improved yield and better drydown compared to our 2008 hybrids,” Heimbaugh says.

“With local testing results, Pioneer professionals can continue to help growers make better decisions to improve their productivity and protect their investment on a field-by-field basis.

“For 2009, we will introduce two new white platforms, three triple-stack white hybrids, two double-stack white hybrids and three double-stack waxy hybrids,” Heimbaugh says. “We want to provide contract growers the technology to protect their corn against above- and below-ground insects. These hybrids that contain double- and triple-stack traits are becoming more readily accepted by end-use industry processors.”

Pioneer also is the first to provide a hybrid with genetic resistance to anthracnose stalk rot — Pioneer brand hybrid 34F26 with the Roundup Ready Corn 2 trait — with more hybrids expected in 2010.