Verdant Bioscience - A new step toward more sustainable and productive palm oil

Report by Patrick Millecam of the trip to Indonesia organized by SIPEF from Sept. 20 to Oct. 4, 2025, more specifically of the visit to Verdant Bioscience.

‍

1. What is Verdant Bioscience and who is behind it?

Verdant Bioscience (VBS) is a Singapore-based research company that specializes in developing new types of oil palm seeds that yield more oil per hectare.
Two Belgian companies, SIPEF and Ackermans & van Haaren (AvH), are Verdant's main shareholders. Together they own about 80% of the company (SIPEF 38%, AvH 42%).

Verdant was founded in 2013 with one grand ambition: to make the oil palm plant (Elaeis guineensis) more productive, healthy and sustainable - not through genetic engineering, but through classical breeding (the targeted crossing of parent plants).

The ultimate goal is to have the first F1 hybrid oil palm seeds on the market by 2029. Such hybrids have existed for decades in other crops such as corn and tomatoes and have led to huge yield increases there. See chart for hybrid corn, evolution in yield (in bushels per acre).

2. What are F1 hybrids ?

Verdant is developingF1-hybrid oil palm varieties by crossing two (almost) fully homozygous parental lines obtained through advanced breeding, tissue culture ^{andouble-haploid} technology1. This yields genetically uniform seeds with higher yield potential and more crop predictability.

An F1 hybrid is a first-generation cross between two carefully selected parent plants. Because those parents are genetically very different, their offspring develop a natural phenomenon called "hybrid vigor": the plants grow better, are more uniform and yield more.

With oil palms, this is much more difficult than with corn. Oil palm bears its first bunches only after 2-3 years. Assessing newF1 lines takes time: in addition to maximum yield, certain characteristics must be measured, such as oil yield, fruit size, growth rate, stem height, disease resistance and oil quality. Because palm does not reach its peak until around year 8-10, multi-year data is needed to reliably validate results.

Verdant Bioscience therefore uses modern breeding techniques such as "double haploids" - a method to create pure parental lines faster, without genetic manipulation.

The result is parent plants with stable traits, which are then crossed with each other to get the ideal F1 offspring: palms that produce more oil, are more resistant to disease and cope better with drought or poor soils.

_{1 (*) A haploid plant contains only one set of chromosomes (n) - thus half the normal number. Such plants can be obtained from: pollen cells (microspores), eggs (megaspore mother) or through androgenesis / gynogenesis in the laboratory. Because haploid plants are unstable and sterile, their chromosomes are artificially doubled. The result is a double haploid (2n) - a plant with two identical sets of chromosomes, thus completely homozygous.}

3. What specifically do these F1 hybrids mean in terms of yield?

The oil yield per acre depends greatly on the quality of the planting material. According to Verdant's studies, the following is roughly true today:

The 9 tons per acre can be achieved in very favorable locations, on a commercial scale it may be somewhat lower yields. Verdant expects its new F1 seeds to generate even noticeably higher yields (up to 50% or more). In the longer term (> 10 years)this could even yield up to three times more oil per hectare than current generation oil palm seeds.
That means more production on the same area - so no need for additional deforestation or new plantations.

In addition, those higher yields also yield lower production costs per ton of oil, which helps SIPEF become more profitable even with fluctuating market prices.

The F1 hybrid seeds will not immediately yield 15 tons of palm product (palm oil + palm kernel oil) per hectare. The first results are promising, but the management wants to be careful. Moreover, the existing plantations will be replanted at a rate of 4% per year with these new high-yielding seeds, which will only gradually be reflected in the production figures.

4. Disease resistance - the fight against Ganoderma

One of the biggest enemies of the oil palm is the Ganoderma fungus. It attacks the trunk and roots, causing trees to die and yields to drop severely, especially when replanting. Verdant therefore has a separate section in its research that focuses on disease resistance.

Each new cross type is first tested in the laboratory for susceptibility to Ganoderma, drought and nutrition deficiencies.
The best crosses are then planted in fields with high disease pressure to see which genetic combinations are most tolerant.

Only those hybrids that continue to perform well under those difficult conditions are further developed. The goal is to offer commercial planting material that exhibits significantly less failure after replanting and thus offers a great economic advantage to the planters.

5. Healthy soils as the basis for healthy yields

Higher yields can only be sustained if the soil also remains in good condition. That's why Verdant also pays close attention to sustainable agricultural practices that restore rather than deplete the soil. Their programs include:

• Smart fertilization: through analyses of leaves and soils, one determines exactly which nutrients the plant needs. This avoids waste and reduces fertilizer costs - often more than 50% of "field" costs.
• Use of biochar: which is a type of charcoal made from plant residues,which helps the soil retain moisture and nutrients better.
• Compost and natural nitrogen fixers: growing crops that fix nitrogen (such as leguminous plants) and returning organic matter to the soil keeps soil life active and healthy.
• Control erosion and water management: Verdant measures how well water penetrates the soil and adjusts drainage systems to prevent mud and nutrient loss.
• Soft crop protection: one uses mainly natural enemies (such as beneficial insects) against pests and only chemical agents if there really is no other way.

This approach ensures sustainable productivity: not only high yields now, but also within a decade.

6. The role of laboratories and research sites.

Verdant has its own research and seed production center in Indonesia. There, scientists test hundreds of hybrids simultaneously, each with its specific characteristics. They also have a tissue culture laboratory, where they can propagate plants in a controlled manner from small pieces of single-parent plants.

This allows them to produce hundreds of thousands of genetically identical plantlets, which is essential to provide enough F1 seed once the commercial phase starts. The whole process - from cross to usable plant - takes about three to four years. Then with one still tests the F1 hybrid seeds in the field which also requires at least seven years of data, in order to commercially sell these seeds.

7. The schedule and timeline

The development of such seeds takes time and a lot of patience:

1. 2013-2020: establishment and basic research.

2. 2021-2024: first test plots with dozens of F1 crosses; initial results look promising.

3. 2025-2028: refine deselection; expand production capacity.

4. From 2029: commercial launch of the first F1 hybrids.

5. 2030 and beyond: large-scale replanting with F1s; yield per acre gradually increases as more plantations switch.

So it is a multi-year strategy, but with potentially lasting higher returns and lower environmental impact.

8. Why this is important for SIPEF and AvH - and for the environment

The partnership with Verdant is both an economic and environmental investment for SIPEF and AvH.

Economic:

• Higher yields mean more oil without additional land.
• Lower cost per ton of oil improves profitability.
• Better genetics make production more stable, even in difficult weather conditions.

Ecological

• Producing more on existing plantations eliminates the need to cut down forests.
• Healthier soils and fewer chemicals protect biodiversity and water quality.
• Verdant fits squarely into the push for "more with less" - more food and energy crops with less pressure on the environment.

9. What can we expect in the coming years?

• Verdant continues to test new hybrids every year, including on the SIPEF plantations.
• The first commercial F1 seeds will be available from 2029, with priority given to shareholders.
• As more palms of the new type are planted, yields per acre will visibly increase. Replanting will be gradual based on a replanting schedule. Where the F1 hybrid is planted, it is expected that step by step improvement will be seen toward maximum potential over time.

This will allow SIPEF to produce the same amount of oil on less land in the future, while contributing to a more sustainable palm oil sector.

10. Summary

• Verdant Bioscience is developing new oil palm seeds that yield much more oil and are less susceptible to diseases.
• The project is not genetically modified, but based on smart crossing and selection.
• SIPEF and AvH are major shareholders and will be the first to benefit from the new seeds.
• Expected yield: from about 6 to 8 tons of raw palm oil. If we include the palm kernel oil, this could reach 8 to 10 tons of "palm" product. In the very long term, when all the existing acreage has been replanted, the yield per hectare could increase considerably.
• Verdant works simultaneously on healthy soils, environmentally friendly pest management and efficient use of fertilizers.
• The first commercial seeds are expected in 2029.
• It is a long-term project, but with tremendous value for agriculture, the environment and investors.