As the new year approaches, three major seed companies have announced new products and services in their continuing efforts to serve U.S. crop farmers.

Beck’s. Beck’s made a statement when it announced the groundbreaking for a new soybean seed processing facility in New Madrid, Mo. The facility, expected to be in full operation by fall 2026, will encompass 60,000 square feet on 105 acres, processing 3 million units of soybeans annually when fully operational. Construction will occur in phases and is already underway.

Beck’s, based in Atlanta, Ind., is the largest family-owned retail seed company in the U.S. This move clearly signals the company’s intentions to deliver products and services to farmers in the Midsouth region. New Madrid is in the Bootheel of Missouri, in the extreme southeastern portion of the state.

“We are thrilled to expand our presence in the Midsouth and put down roots in the New Madrid community,” says Scott Beck, president of Beck’s. “This new facility represents our ongoing commitment to serving farmers by providing them with high-quality soybean products and elite customer service.”

Channel. Channel Edge becomes a reality for 2025. It’s an exclusive, new offering of downstream seed treatment products, developed based on feedback from Channel SeedPro seed advisers. Available for soybeans for 2025, the suite of seed treatments that make up Channel Edge is designed to help mitigate key pests and diseases. Farmers can choose which treatments are needed based on previous experience.

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“Channel Edge is exciting because it really puts us in lockstep with our farmers and Channel SeedPros to understand what products and offerings will meet their needs,” says Sarah Berger, seed growth portfolio manager.

Spokespersons note that Channel brand seed and soybean seed of other authorized products treated with Channel Edge products may qualify for up to 100% replant coverage if all criteria are met.

The 2025 season will be the first time products from 10 former Bayer regional brands are incorporated into the Channel lineup. What does that mean? The portfolio of seed available from Channel will expand to include products originally sold and supported by its legacy brand companies.

“The combination of Channel and the regional seed brands creates an expanded, ‘best of both worlds’ portfolio that provides farmers more choices for their acres,” says Jared Thomas, Channel brand marketing lead.

In corn, the lineup for ’25 includes VT4Pro with RNAi Technology-type hybrids, with aboveground and belowground protection against pests. It also includes SmartStaxPro with RNAi Technology for areas where rootworms are a particular issue.

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BASF’s Xarvio Bioenergy. Do you deliver your corn to an ethanol plant? If so, check out this development. BASF is launching Xarvio Bioenergy, a low-carbon-intensity program that reduces, tracks and documents carbon intensity levels in corn grown for ethanol production.

Spokespersons for Xarvio, the seed arm for BASF, say this quality-assured, complete, end-to-end solution for tracking carbon intensity complies with the U.S. Department of Energy’s models related to carbon intensity. The program uses the agronomic intelligence built into Xarvio Field Manager to deliver timely field and field-zone-specific recommendations for seeding rates, fertilizer rates and much more.

Spokespersons believe that if farmers follow these recommendations, they can continually lower carbon intensity levels by optimizing input efficiency while retaining plant health and maximizing yield at the same time.