Partner with us

Partnerships with KWS are a driver of innovation

At KWS, we believe that partnerships are key to facilitate the development and adoption of innovative approaches to improve plant breeding, agriculture methods, and sustainable farming practices.

That is why we work closely with academia, scientific organizations, startups, and industry all over the world to enable and access the latest technologies, know-how, digital solutions, and tools that add value to KWS’s established business in seeds and services.

Under the objective of mutual growth, we create partnerships through joint research projects, license deals, market linkages, and/or financial engagement. To date, we have concluded a myriad of reserach collaborations and realized direct investments in early and later-stage startups, joint ventures, spinouts, and indirect fund investments that strategically fit our portfolio.

„Partnering with KWS means moving forward together to achieve the best possible solution.“

Dr. Stefan Schwarz, Head of Innovation of Licensing

Get an overview across our research and innovation fields

Across the company, research and innovation play a key role for KWS. In our fields of innovation, we are looking for strong partnerships to take technologies to the next level.

Plant trait discovery

When it comes to improving crop traits, our focus is on high yields, fewer inputs, adaptation to regional conditions (incl. climate, soil, pests, and diseases), and meeting diverse consumer needs.

Plant breeding technologies

We continuously seek out the latest breeding technologies, e.g. from the fields of phenotyping, biotechnology, genomic selection, omics, data science, and phytopathology.

Crop, soil & field monitoring

As field management increasingly focuses on site-specific conditions, we are interested in topics such as satellite imaging, soil testing, weather analysis, yield prediction, and field mapping.

Sustainable Ag practices

We’re searching for innovations in water irrigation, nutrient & waste management, biologicals & non-chemical alternatives, carbon capture, as well as pest, disease and weed management.

New markets and business models

In this area, we focus on alternative crops, carbon markets, seed to table, financial solutions, eCommerce platforms, and social networks.

Data driven insights

Farmers' needs drive digital agriculture's evolution. We are looking for ways to support farmers with technologies such as extended reality, connectivity, machine learning & AI or blockchain security.

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Empowering Partnerships

In addition to plant research and development we are supporting solutions to enhance the global food and agricultural sector in international excellence centers and networks. Discover some of our activities:

Foundation for Food and Agriculture (FFAR)

The FFAR brings together leading experts to identify and investigate the researchable questions whose answers have the potential to enhance the economic and environmental resilience of food supply. As a longstanding member, KWS is active in different committees and also involved in many research cooperations.

visit FFAR website visit FFAR website

RootCamp

RootCamp is an innovation hub that catalyzes innovation in the agtech and bioeconomy industries. They combine startup programs with corporate innovation to create a scalable positive impact. RootCamp facilitates commercial cooperation by providing the location factors, experience, and a collaborative environment.

visit RootCamp website visit RootCamp website

StartLife

StartLife is Europe's leading startup accelerator in agrifoodtech, co-founded by Wageningen University & Research in 2010. Its mission is to empower founders to build and grow startups with breakthrough technologies that shape a sustainable food system. To this end, it provides a wide range of services, including business development support, business mentors, access to funding and a global network of leading players in food and agriculture.

visit StartLife website visit StartLife website

Insights

Explore our latest plant research and breeding projects. Enhance your knowledge about advancements in plant breeding and how this is revolutionizing agriculture.