WILTON, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 1, 2005--GE has joined the Ministry of Agriculture of China in a strategic partnership designed to meet the huge demand on that country's agricultural resources, a vital development in a country where much of the workforce is comprised of farmers and where remote locations require agro-technical support.
The core of the new technology is a silicones-based additive called Silwet* Super Spreader, developed and marketed by GE - Advanced Materials, Silicones. By helping reduce the heavy water demands for high spray volumes and chemical runoff into soil and groundwater during the application of agricultural pesticides, Silwet additives afford farmers the potential to dramatically reduce their use of water and reduce chemical waste.
"We are honored to have the opportunity to work with the Ministry of Agriculture of China and this is a milestone development for us in China," said Wayne Hewett, president and CEO of GE - Advanced Materials, at the memorandum of understanding (MOU) signing ceremony. "This clearly demonstrates our leadership position in the industry and our long-term commitment to the China market. We believe our cooperative program will spread our eco-beneficial technology across China and help stimulate local agriculture development and environmental efforts."
Silwet Super Spreaders are not pesticides; they are additives that help pesticides and herbicides perform better. Within the framework of the cooperation, testing and demo zones that are backed by the National Agro-technical Extension and Service Center will be established across China. The zones will test and promote newly formulated pesticide sprays that contain GE's Silwet Super Spreaders. Various types of agricultural produce will be targeted. In order to make full use of the new super spreading technology offered by Silwet additives, farmers will also be trained to tailor their pesticide spray practices. Both parties agree that the new technology will help farmers in China achieve optimal results by using less water, while reducing the negative effects of pesticide on the environment. The Chinese government has emphasized the importance of achieving comprehensive and sustained development of agriculture and a township-based economy into the 21st century; therefore, the adoption of advanced technologies is required.
GE's Silwet Silicone Super Spreaders are organosilicone adjuvants that enable agricultural chemical sprays to perform better, spread more easily, be absorbed more quickly, and resist washing off plants. Specifically, they allow water-containing pesticides, growth regulators, and other chemicals to penetrate the surface of plants more readily. This spreading capability means that a lower spray volume can achieve optimal results. The GE materials may reduce water volume in pesticide sprays by up to 70 percent.
The Silwet Silicone Super Spreaders are part of GE's ecomagination* initiative, a new company-wide program to imagine and build breakthrough solutions that address customers' toughest environmental challenges and help benefit society at large.
About GE ecomagination
By combining the strengths of GE's environmental technologies and the collective imagination of its 300,000 worldwide employees, the company aims to create solutions that are as economically advantageous as they are ecologically sound. In support of GE's ecomagination initiative, the company will double its research budget for environmental technologies that have a positive impact on the environment and produce more products that help protect the land, air, and water.
About GE - Advanced Materials
The Advanced Materials business of General Electric Company is part of the Industrial business group and is headquartered in Wilton, Conn. Comprised of Silicones and Quartz, GE - Advanced Materials is a global leader in providing a range of high-technology materials solutions. GE's silicones portfolio includes silicone-based products and technology platforms, silanes, sealants and adhesives. The quartz portfolio includes high-purity fused quartz and ceramics materials. These materials solutions are used as springboards for innovation in hundreds of consumer and industrial applications ranging from car engines to biomedical devices to integrated circuits. Markets served include aerospace, agriculture, appliances, automotive, construction, electronics, furniture and furnishings, healthcare, home care, industrial, lighting, packaging, personal care, plastics, semiconductor, telecommunications, tire, transportation, and water purification. As a Worldwide Partner of the Olympic Games, GE is the exclusive provider of a wide range of innovative products and services that are integral to a successful Games. Experience more at www.ge.com/advancedmaterials.
* ecomagination and Silwet are trademarks of General Electric Company.
Contacts
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Amelia Burkhart, +1-203-761-1934
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Nancy Pitts +1-203-761-1938
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GE Bayer Silicones, Leverkusen, Germany
Robert Scheib, +49 2143040532
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Junko Tsuda, +81 3 5772 5345
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GE Toshiba Silicones, Shanghai, China
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