When you’re dealing with patent-sensitive, original research and formulations, confidentiality is an imperative. Protecting one’s original innovations and inventions is important to facilitate the innovative cycle long-term. After all, the years of research and development, not to mention the investment, should be rewarded. Most companies and academic institutions recognize this, but still companies tend to isolate themselves in order to protect their properties.

Recently, our team stepped forward and allowed professors at Mississippi State  University to share the results regarding our pre-commercial dicamba and glyphosate products and encouraged them to share the contents of the results of the study they had conducted. Normally, study results on pending products are kept confidential, but we wanted them to talk openly about the study to regulators. We only asked that they didn’t share formulation ingredients.

This is noteworthy because our competition would be able to see the data and look closely at the information when published.  Encouraging an open discussion like this can also be seen as a financial risk. Some think it leaves us open to formulation theft. But, in this instance we wanted the data shared. This sharing expedited product acceptance and farmer access to the technology.

Creating a collaborative environment where information can be shared freely to benefit farmers and the world is a new step for us. But it was the right thing to do.