DES MOINES — Strong global demand for corn and record commodity prices are driving up demand for high-yielding seed. For leading seed companies like Pioneer Hi-Bred, a DuPont business, that means significantly increasing the number of acres needed to grow their seed and the number of people they need to hire to produce the crop.

Pioneer says today that demand for its products is driving a 30 percent increase in the number of acres it needs for seed corn production in 2008. That is on top of another significant increase in 2007. In Indiana, Pioneer has corn production plants located in Tipton, Plymouth, Rushville and Worthington.

Along with the increase in acres comes a sharp increase in the number of part-time workers needed in the fields this summer to detassel the corn - a key step in the process of producing the high-value hybrid seed corn that farmers will plant in the spring of 2009.

"Detasseling gives people - often young people, while they are off from school - near our seed production locations a chance to earn money over a couple of weeks and still have some summer left to spend it," says Bill Tomlinson, supply operations director, Pioneer.

Across North America, Pioneer plans to hire more than 30,000 detasselers this summer in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Nebraska, Texas, Washington and Ontario, Canada. The detasseling season runs from late June or early July through early or mid-August, depending on when a field gets planted and the weather.

Those looking for part-time work this summer aren't the only ones benefiting from the increased demand for Pioneer seed. The increased acres also means additional opportunities for farmers who grow the seed and others who help harvest and transport the crop, condition the seed and ship it to Pioneer customers.

"Much of the financial investment Pioneer makes to produce a corn hybrid is spent where the seed is grown," Tomlinson said. "Contract seed growers, our workforce and their communities reap the benefits of this investment."

Detasseling is the act of removing the pollen-producing tassel from a corn plant. Detasselers walk through seed fields and remove the tops of corn plants that were not removed by machines. Their work helps ensure genetic purity is maintained when the hybrid cross is produced commercially.

For more information or to apply for a detasseling job, visit the "Careers" section at www.pioneer.com and select "Summer Jobs."

Pioneer Hi-Bred, a DuPont business, is the world's leading source of customized solutions for farmers, livestock producers and grain and oilseed processors. With headquarters in Des Moines, Iowa, Pioneer provides access to advanced plant genetics in nearly 70 countries.

DuPont is a science-based products and services company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture and food; building and construction; communications; and transportation.