CIMMYT

What CIMMYT does

CIMMYT (International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center) is a non-profit international agricultural research and training organization founded in 1966 in Mexico and headquartered in Texcoco, State of Mexico. As a core CGIAR Research Center, it operates across 88 countries with 1,837 staff of 58 nationalities and runs the world's largest maize and wheat genebanks, holding approximately 28,000 unique maize samples including over 24,000 farmer landraces. CIMMYT's core products and technologies include climate-resilient maize and wheat varieties distributed through national seed systems, AI-driven predictive breeding and genomic selection pipelines, the MARPLE field-deployable wheat rust diagnostic platform, the Digital Climate Advisory Services (DCAS), the Atlas of Climate Adaptation in Indian Agriculture (ACASA-India), the Vision for Adapted Crops and Soils (VACS) initiative, the Feed the Future AID-I hub, the MasAgro program covering more than 1 million hectares in Mexico, and 46 agronomic research platforms across 16 Mexican states.

CIMMYT serves two primary segments: smallholder farmers in the Global South (with more than 9.2 million households reported to have benefited from climate-smart crop solutions in Africa) and National Agricultural Research Systems (NARS) in developing countries. Secondary segments include major food and beverage companies (Grupo Bimbo, GRUMA, PepsiCo, Syngenta) seeking sustainable sourcing, plus development organizations and NGOs. The business model is grant-funded: revenue derives from bilateral government grants (a $40 million U.S. Government award in 2026), foundation grants (Gates Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, Crop Trust), CGIAR pooled funding, and corporate philanthropy (AgMission/PepsiCo $6.7 million in 2024). CIMMYT does not sell products commercially; improved varieties, knowledge, and digital tools are delivered to farmers at no cost through NARS, seed companies, NGO partners, and CGIAR channels.

The organization is led by Director General Bram Govaerts and is governed as an independent non-profit under the CGIAR framework with its own Board of Trustees. Strategic priorities center on accelerating climate-resilient breeding, expanding digital advisory platforms, and broadening crop coverage through the CGIAR Breakthrough Product Network.

Name

CIMMYT

Legal name

International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center

Website

https://cimmyt.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1966

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

CIMMYT (International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center) is a non-profit CGIAR-affiliated research organization founded in 1966 in Mexico. It develops climate-resilient maize and wheat varieties and operates the world's largest genebanks for these crops, partnering with NARS, governments, and donors across 88 countries to serve smallholder farmers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Research Services

SIC

Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

Carbon, Sustainability & Farm Certification Support (Agro-Environmental Advisory) (AFACABAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Sustainable/Regenerative Agriculture & Conservation Practices (EDAOAOAO)

Keywords

• Agricultural research
• Crop breeding
• Maize improvement
• Wheat improvement
• Genetic resources conservation

Headquarters

HQ city

Texcoco

HQ country

Mexico

HQ region

Latin America

Offices18 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Grants and Donor Funding: CIMMYT is primarily funded through grants from governments, foundations, and international development agencies. Major funders include the U.S. Government ($40 million grant), Gates Foundation, African Development Bank, USAID, and various national governments. This constitutes the primary revenue stream for this non-profit international organization.
2. CGIAR System Funding: As a core CGIAR Research Center, CIMMYT receives pooled funding through the CGIAR system for collaborative research initiatives.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

CIMMYT develops and distributes improved maize and wheat varieties and sustainable farming practices to smallholder farmers in the Global South. As a non-profit CGIAR Research Center, it operates the world's largest maize and wheat genebank and delivers outputs through partnerships with national research systems, governments, NGOs, and seed companies, free of charge to farmers. Its research integrates AI-driven predictive breeding, genomic selection, and digital advisory services to address climate resilience and food security.

Product overview

CIMMYT (International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center) is a non-profit agricultural research organization that operates as a platform of interconnected programs rather than a single software product. Its core offerings include the MasAgro program for Mexico, Digital Climate Advisory Services (DCAS) for delivering localized climate information, the Global Surveillance Advisory System and MARPLE Diagnostics for wheat disease detection, the Atlas of Climate Adaptation in Indian Agriculture (ACASA-India) for climate planning, the Vision for Adapted Crops and Soils (VACS) initiative, and Feed the Future AID-I for scaling innovations. CIMMYT maintains the world's largest maize and wheat genebanks and operates 46 agronomic research platforms globally. The organization leverages AI-driven predictive breeding, genomic selection, and speed breeding technologies to accelerate development of climate-resilient crop varieties.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MasAgro (Crops for Mexico) Agricultural innovation program that introduced high-yielding crop varieties, conservation agriculture practices, and income-generation activities for smallholder farmers across 30 states of Mexico, helping over 300,000 farmers adopt improved maize and wheat varieties on more than 1 million hectares.
• Digital Climate Advisory Services (DCAS) Digital platform delivering localized climate information and agricultural recommendations directly to smallholder farmers to help them anticipate climate risks, improve yields, and build resilience against climate variability.
• MASAGRO Innovation Hubs Network of innovation platforms across Mexico serving more than 4,000 farmers with climate-smart agricultural practices, with over half being women farmers, contributing to sustainable practices across more than 10,000 hectares.
• Global Wheat Health Alliance International partnership jointly led by CIMMYT and Cornell University within the HyBread investment to accelerate disease resistance in wheat for vulnerable farming communities in South Asia and East Africa.
• Global Surveillance Advisory System System developed in partnership with John Innes Centre to protect wheat and maize harvests from transboundary pests and diseases while accelerating delivery of disease-resistant varieties.
• Vision for Adapted Crops and Soils (VACS) Global movement endorsed by G7 focusing on crop improvement and soil health, investing in improving and spreading 60 indigenous 'opportunity' crops such as sorghum, millet, groundnut, pigeon pea, and yams to enrich soils and human diets.
• Feed the Future Accelerated Innovation Delivery Initiative (AID-I) Rapid Delivery Hub Partnership between government agencies, private and public partners including CGIAR to provide farmers with greater access to markets and extension services for improved seeds and crop varieties, reducing risk to climate and socioeconomic shocks.
• Atlas of Climate Adaptation in Indian Agriculture (ACASA-India) Web-enabled digital platform developed by ICAR-led NARES in collaboration with BISA-CIMMYT to support location-specific, data-driven climate adaptation planning for policymakers, researchers, and practitioners across India's diverse agro-ecological regions.
• Agronomic Research Platforms CIMMYT operates 46 agronomic research platforms across 16 Mexican states focused on climate resilience and improved crop varieties, with platforms also operating across Latin America.
• Seed Distribution Network Global seed distribution network that provides breeding lines for maize and wheat to partners worldwide, including many varieties offering superior yields and resilience in dry conditions and against crop diseases and pests.
• Maize and Wheat Genebanks World's largest collection of maize and wheat germplasm offering untapped genetic material to develop more resilient varieties, supported by the Crop Trust.

Quantifiable outcome

• 80% reduction in irrigation water use demonstrated in conservation agriculture platform
• +8 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability7 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core and secondary.

• IFDC (International Fertilizer Development Center)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 May 2026IFDC opened an office at CIMMYT headquarters in Texcoco, Mexico as part of a joint effort to establish a Fertilizer Innovation Center (FIC) for Mexico and Central America. The project aims to develop affordable, science-based fertilizer solutions to improve soil health and crop yields, and reduce fertilizer import dependency in the region.
• ICRISAT (International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 May 2026Five-year research initiative funded by Novo Nordisk Foundation to accelerate development of climate-resilient crop varieties for dryland farmers in Eastern Africa and India, initially focusing on sorghum and groundnut. Employs AI-driven predictive breeding, genomic selection, and speed breeding technologies.
• Frontier Counties Development Council (Kenya)secondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 May 2026Partnership to strengthen climate-smart agriculture in Kenya's arid and semi-arid lands, where farmers face mounting challenges from droughts, floods, and shifting growing seasons. Agreement to establish joint technical working team.
• Government of UzbekistancoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2026Letter of Intent signed to deepen collaboration on wheat sector development, aiming to boost productivity, build climate resilience, and strengthen national food security. Partnership to support breeding program modernization, advanced laboratory capacity, and seed system development.
• Munich Security ConferencesecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 February 2026CIMMYT signed joint statement on food security emphasizing the importance of resilient agricultural systems as strategic infrastructure for global security.
• IFPRI (International Food Policy Research Institute)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 February 2026MoU to deepen collaboration on strategic research and policy initiatives addressing global food security challenges. Joint research focuses on scaling innovations in agronomy, mechanization, crop breeding, and nutrition.
• Jilin Academy of Agricultural Sciences (JAAS)secondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 January 2026Delegation visit focused on maize and dryland crops research collaboration, including knowledge exchange, field visits to Kiboko Research Station for drought tolerance testing, and Maize Lethal Necrosis screening facility.
• KAUST (King Abdullah University of Science and Technology)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 December 2025MoU signed to collaborate on genomic innovation and sustainable food systems, focusing on bioinformatics, capacity building, and data platform development. Builds on respective strengths in agricultural science and computational biology.
• ICBA (International Center for Biosaline Agriculture)secondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 January 2024Agreement to jointly advance ecological and sustainable intensification of cereal and legume cropping systems in semi-arid and dryland areas. Covers soil health, salinity management, crop productivity and breeding, gender-transformative capacity development.
• John Innes CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Strategic partnership established in 2021 to advance collaborative wheat research, combining upstream science with field-level translation. Includes Global Surveillance Advisory System and Global Wheat Health Alliance to protect wheat and maize harvests from transboundary pests and diseases.
• MyAgrosecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for participatory pearl millet variety trials in Senegal, engaging 250 farmers across 20 villages. Leverages MyAgro's village entrepreneur network and mobile layaway platform.
• FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership under Vision for Adapted Crops and Soils (VACS) movement endorsed by G7, focusing on crop improvement and soil health in Africa and Central America.
• World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg)secondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerNon-profit partnership to promote vegetable farming, intercropping systems, and connect vegetable farmers to markets for greater financial security.
• Charles Sturt UniversitysecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner in climate-smart agriculture project in Australia, working on regenerative agriculture practices.
• South East Research FarmsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner in Canada for climate-smart agriculture practices and regenerative agriculture research.
• FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFAO supports farmer engagement and extension services while CIMMYT provides agronomic research through demonstration plots in the SIFAZ project in Zambia.
• Total LandCare (TLC)secondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to train farmers in southern and eastern Africa on intercropping systems with maize and legumes.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• ICRISAT (International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics): Fellow CGIAR research center focused on dryland crops in the semi-arid tropics. CIMMYT and ICRISAT launched a five-year climate-resilient crop initiative in 2026, sharing AI-driven breeding and genomic selection tools. Direct peer in mission, governance model, and farmer segments.
• IRRI (International Rice Research Institute): CGIAR research center leading global rice improvement. Same funding model (CGIAR pooled funding plus grants), same non-profit international research mandate, and same delivery model through national partners. Co-participant in the CGIAR Breakthrough Product Network for next-generation crop varieties.
• IFPRI (International Food Policy Research Institute): CGIAR research center focused on food policy research. CIMMYT and IFPRI signed an MoU in 2026 to collaborate on scaling agronomy, mechanization, crop breeding, and nutrition innovations. Comparable mission and governance structure.
• IITA (International Institute of Tropical Agriculture): CGIAR research center focused on tropical agriculture in Africa. Co-participant in the CGIAR Breakthrough Product Network. Same non-profit international research center governance model and smallholder farmer target segments.
• CIP (International Potato Center): CGIAR research center focused on potato and sweetpotato improvement. Co-participant in the CGIAR Breakthrough Product Network. Same pooled funding model, same global non-profit agricultural research mandate.
• ICARDA (International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas): CGIAR research center focused on dryland agriculture in non-tropical regions. Highly comparable mission (climate-resilient dryland crops), governance structure, and partner network for technology transfer to smallholder farmers.
• World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg): Non-profit international agricultural research center focused on vegetable farming and intercropping systems. Active partner with CIMMYT in promoting vegetable farming and connecting farmers to markets. Comparable non-profit research-and-extension model.
• ICBA (International Center for Biosaline Agriculture): International non-profit research center focused on saline and dryland agriculture. Active CIMMYT partner for joint work on cereal and legume cropping systems in semi-arid areas. Comparable mission, scale, and partner-driven delivery model.
• Bioversity International and CIAT Alliance: CGIAR research center alliance focused on agricultural biodiversity and tropical agriculture. Co-participant in the CGIAR Breakthrough Product Network. Same non-profit international research center model with shared CGIAR funding and partner delivery.

Broad incumbents

• Corteva Agriscience: Largest publicly traded pure-play agriculture company, with proprietary maize and wheat seed businesses and substantial breeding R&D investment. Operates in the same crop categories CIMMYT serves but captures value through commercial seed sales rather than public-good research. Comparable end-customer (the farmer) but a commercial rather than non-profit model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CIMMYT
• YouTubeyoutube.com/CimmytOrg
• Facebookfacebook.com/CIMMYT
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cimmyt

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors3 records

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about CIMMYT