KWS Semillas Ibérica
The core business in Portugal is selling corn seed. However, seed for fodder plants – in particular oats, hybrid rye, triticales and fodder beet – also contributes to net sales and profits. And sales of fodder plant seeds ensures greater proximity to Portuguese farmers.
The main share of business in Portugal is represented by sales of seed for silage crops that are fed to dairy cattle, at ninety percent. The domestic dairy industry is very important in Portugal. We work directly with cooperatives, dealers and farmers. The focus is on creating value added for every farmer, and we regard consulting and service as key contributors to selling seed.
The biggest growth opportunities in the corn segment are in the south of the country and on the Azores, where we launched marketing this year. Grain corn, late-maturing varieties and genetically modified varieties (MON810) are mainly grown in the southern corn market. On the Azores, 1,700 kilometers from Lisbon, where around 15,000 hectares of corn a year are cultivated for milk production, we can expand our footprint sharply and leverage opportunities for synergies with fodder beet.
Activities: breeding and sales
KWS Semillas Ibérica operates in the areas of sales and breeding. We sell seed for sugarbeet, corn, hybrid rye, winter rapeseed, sorghum and self-pollinators for the Business Units. We also produce hybrid rye seed. Basic seed for sugarbeet and winter rapeseed is produced at the Aguilar de Campoo station. Trial fields are available to the corn breeders for their projects. The Business Unit Vegetables was launched in Murcia and Almería last season. It focuses on breeding and selling tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, melons and watermelons. The growth plan looks very promising.
Cultivating the market in Portugal: field service staffers Maciel Fernandes (left) and Eduardo Coelho. The trio is rounded out by the freelancer Manuel Baleia.
Multi-crop approach
In Spain and Portugal, the three Business Units work under one roof with a multi-crop approach. We want to become the trusted seed company for Iberian farmers – including for future generations.
Last fiscal year (2019/2020), KWS Semillas Ibérica generated net sales of €10 million and a return on sales of eight percent in commercial seed business for all BUs. That offers the stability we need for a highly promising future.
We have defined the following main objectives in our strategic planning up to 2029/2030:
- Optimization of structures and processes to enhance customer centricity
- Net sales of €15 million from commercial seed for the BUs Sugarbeet, Corn and Cereals.
- Increase in brand value
More than forty employees in Spain and Portugal are working with dedication, day after day, to achieve those goals. |
© KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA 2025
