Agribusiness giant Syngenta posted double-digit gains in revenue and net income for 2011.
The Swiss company, which employs about 400 at its biotechnology research arm in Research Triangle Park, generated $13.27 billion in sales for the year, a 12 percent increase after adjusting for currency fluctuations.
Net income rose 14 percent to $1.6 billion.
Chief Financial Officer John Ramsay told Bloomberg News that the company is on the prowl for acquisitions to expand both its crop protection and seeds franchises.
Sales of seeds and crop protection products, such as pesticides and herbicides, each rose by double digits. Sales of new products launched since 2006 rose 50 percent.
Total sales in North America rose 10 percent to $3.27 billion after adjusting for inflation.
Syngenta is in the midst of a $71 million, 147,000-square-foot expansion of its RTP campus that will include high-tech greenhouses. Construction is expected to be finished by the end of the year.
David Ranii has been a business reporter at The News & Observer since 1993. Over the years he has covered information technology, banking, insurance, the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, media businesses and real estate. Contact him at 919-829-4877 or 
