STXNEWS LATAM-Monsanto to open corn seed plant in Argentina

BUENOS AIRES, June 15 (Reuters) - U.S.-based seed agricultural Monsanto said it will invest $334 million in a corn seed development plant in Cordoba province, Argentina, scheduled to open in December 2013, the company said in a statement on Friday.

Argentina, the world's second-biggest corn exporter after the United States, has seen an explosion of soybean cultivation over recent years. The South American country - the No. 1 supplier of soymeal and soyoil, and the No. 3 exporter of soybeans - is hungry for better corn technology as it seeks to protect its soils by expanding crop rotation.