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Monsanto Co. and Dole Food Co. said they’ll work together to develop new varieties of vegetables with the goal of giving consumers more choices when they shop for groceries.

The companies entered a five-year agreement to focus on developing more nutritious, better tasting vegetables through plant breeding, they said in a joint statement. Initially, their efforts will focus on four key vegetables — broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce and spinach.

Any new products would be commercialized by Dole, based in Westlake Village, Calif., the companies said.

Additional terms of the agreement weren’t disclosed.
The venture pairs Monsanto’s expertise in plant research and breeding and Dole’s position as the world’s largest producer and marketer of fresh fruit and vegetables affordable health insurance for children.

Monsanto, better known as a seller of genetically modified row crops such as corn, soybeans, cotton and canola, jumped into the vegetable business four years ago with its acquisition of vegetable seed giant Seminis Inc. for $1.4 billion.

Last year, the company spent $860 million to acquire Netherlands-based De Ruiter Seeds Group BV, one of the world’s largest sellers of seeds for vegetables grown in protected environments, such as greenhouses.

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