Rasi Seeds will be granted a license to candidate genes, identified through Evogene's Athlete computational genomic technology. Rasi Seeds will integrate the licensed genes into its R&D pipeline and evaluate them in rice field trials.
The agreement provides Rasi Seeds the right to commercialize hybrid rice incorporating these genes in India and in additional countries in southern-east Asia. Evogene will be entitled to receive milestone payments and royalties based on the sales of resulting products.
Rasi Seeds CMD M Ramasami said that Rasi Seeds is pleased to collaborate with Evogene to introduce new technologies and excel the company's research and development in rice hybrids.
"With Rasi's leaderships in hybrid seed products in India, this collaboration serves our goal to expand into a multi-crop quality research to contribute the farming community and the industry, primarily in India. Rasi will continuously invest in R&D and new technologies for the sustainability of food production in India," Ramasami added.
Rasi Seeds, based in Tamil Nadu, India, is a leader in cotton hybrids, and is expanding its business in hybrid seeds of maize, pearl millet, rice, wheat, mustard and vegetables.
Israel-based Evogene is a world leading developer of improved plant traits, such as yield and drought tolerance, for a wide diversity of key crops through the use of plant genomics.
