The fundamental and applied research programs are primarily centered on the development of field and vegetable crop cultivars including forage and industrial crops, medicinal plants and spice herbs. The breeding programs place emphasis on high yielding capacity, tolerance to major diseases and resistance to unfavorable biotic and non-biotic factors. Work on special-purpose cultivars receives due attention. In addition to the breeding of new cultivars, the Institute provides a complete production technology for each cultivar. In short, the Institute's extension service provides farmers with superior seed and detailed recommendations for soil preparation, other cultivation practices and crop protection measures. So far, over 1000 cultivars of field and vegetable crops have been developed at the Institute. Of that number, almost 500 have been registered and commercially grown abroad. The Institute places its cultivars on the most demanding foreign markets through commercial seed sales, parent seed sales and license agreements. The institute's cultivars compete for their place at seed markets of 26 countries, from Argentina, through EU countries, Ukraine and Russia, to China and India.