DuPont and Bayer CropScience have announced a series of business agreements related to plant biotechnology traits and weed and insect control products.

The cross-licensing agreements pave the way to the next generation of products from both companies. The companies say that new herbicide products, multi-insect-control products and multi-herbicide-tolerant products in corn and multi-herbicide-tolerant products in soybeans will result.

Within the framework of these agreements, Bayer CropScience grants Pioneer licenses to use the LibertyLink trait in Pioneer proprietary corn and soybean germplasm. In addition, Bayer CropScience will provide Pioneer with worldwide regulatory support for Pioneer products comprising the LibertyLink trait. The company also enables Pioneer to use the glufosinate-tolerance technology in soybean product development.

In the area of insect resistance, Bayer CropScience provides Pioneer with licenses under its Dual Bt patents, with limited rights to grant sublicenses for development of next-generation insect resistance management in corn.

As part of the agreements, Bayer CropScience grants DuPont Crop Protection rights to continue to offer its DuPont Q product formulations containing the Bayer herbicide safener isoxadifen. DuPont also receives rights to offer blends of isoxadifen with certain defined HPPD herbicides and its sulfonylurea herbicides as well as licenses that will enable DuPont to introduce a broad class of future crop protection product offerings.

A number of other cross-licenses on enabling technologies between the two companies are included in the agreements.

The agreements also resolve outstanding legal and patent disputes between the companies in the areas of insect control and herbicide safeners.