FRESNO, California – December 13, 2016
S&W Seed Company (Nasdaq: SANW) announced today that David A. Fischhoff, Ph.D., one of the founders of agricultural biotechnology who recently retired after a 33-year career with Monsanto Company, was elected to its Board of Directors at the 2016 annual meeting of its stockholders on December 8, 2016. Dr. Fischhoff has experience in agricultural research and development across a broad range of technologies, product development and business development in areas including biotechnology, plant breeding, genomics, precision agriculture and data science.
From 2002 to 2014, Dr. Fischhoff was Vice President for Technology Strategy and Development at Monsanto with responsibilities for scientific strategy, identification of new growth opportunities, assessment and acquisition of new technologies, and oversight of Monsanto’s research portfolio. Dr. Fischhoff is internationally recognized as a founder of agricultural biotechnology. He was responsible for the development of insect resistant transgenic crops (i.e., Bt crops), which today are a primary tool for insect control in corn, cotton and soybean in multiple countries. He is the co-inventor of the synthetic gene technology for expression of Bt genes in plants, which is the enabling technology for essentially all insect resistant crops today. Dr. Fischhoff served as the scientific expert in the acquisition by Monsanto of multiple biotech and seed companies, including Agracetus, Calgene, Ecogen, Dekalb and Asgrow. He initiated and led Monsanto’s plant genomics research program, and from 1998 to 2002 he was Co-President of Cereon Genomics LLC, a collaborative research venture between Monsanto and Millennium Pharmaceuticals; and he played leadership roles in the establishment and management of genomics research collaborations with Mendel Biotechnology, Paradigm Genetics and Ceres. Dr. Fischhoff most recently served from 2014 to 2016 as Chief Scientist of The Climate Corporation, a subsidiary of Monsanto that develops and provides digital agriculture products and services for farmers and currently serves as a consultant and advisor. He received his S.B. in Biology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Ph.D. in Genetics and Molecular Biology from The Rockefeller University.
Mark Harvey, chairman of the board of S&W Seed Company, commented, “We are extremely pleased to welcome Dr. Fischhoff to the S&W Board of Directors. As one of the founders of agricultural biotechnology, his experience as one of the industry’s foremost innovators in trait development and agricultural scientific advancement, will become a tremendous asset as we further our own product portfolio. We look forward to his guidance and expertise into the future.”
Dr. Fischhoff will become a member of S&W’s Scientific Technology Committee, joining fellow board member, Mark Wong, as well as S&W’s chief executive officer, Mark Grewal, and the Company’s Chief Marketing and Technology Officer, Dan Gardner.
Dr. Fischhoff commented, “I am very happy to join the Board of Directors of S&W Seed Company. This is an exciting time for agriculture, and I look forward to applying my experience and expertise in agricultural research to help S&W continue to grow and develop.”
About S&W Seed Company
Founded in 1980, S&W Seed Company is a global agricultural company, headquartered in Fresno, California. The Company’s vision is to be the world’s preferred proprietary seed company by supplying a range of forage and specialty crop products to support the growing global demand for animal proteins and healthier consumer diets. The Company is the global leader in alfalfa seed, with unrivaled research and development, production and distribution capabilities. S&W’s capabilities span the world’s alfalfa seed production regions, with operations in the United States, Australia, and Canada, and S&W sells its seed products in more than 30 countries around the globe. The company is also a provider of proprietary hybrid sorghum and sunflower seed germplasm, and is utilizing its research and breeding expertise to develop and produce stevia, the all-natural, zero calorie sweetener for the food and beverage industry. For more information, please visit www.swseedco.com.
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