Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4
Page 5
Page 6
Page 7
Page 8
Page 9
Page 10
Page 11
Page 12
Page 13
Page 14
Page 15
Page 16
Page 17
Page 18
Page 19
Page 20
Page 21
Page 22
Page 23
Page 24
Page 25
Page 26
Page 27
Page 28
Page 29
Page 30
Page 31
Page 32
Page 33
Page 34
Page 35
Page 36
Page 37
Page 38
Page 39
Page 40
Page 41
Page 42
Page 43
Page 44
Page 45
Page 46
Page 47
Page 48
Page 49
Page 50
Page 51
Page 52
Page 53
Page 54
Page 55
Page 56
Page 57
Page 58
Page 59
Page 60
Page 61
Page 62
Page 63
Page 64
Page 65
Page 66
Page 67
Page 68
SUPPORTED BY 14 ically important Hansen says. Plant breeding is on a 10-year time line. If we see trends or market demands chang- ing the genetics must evolve to meet the changing market demands. Because suppliers and manufactur- ers are often planning more than one to two years out Sutherland says you can gain a great deal of insight from having a positive relationship with them and taking the time to sit down with them to understand the impact on technologies in your trading area. Dont be afraid to ask how they see the world changing and what the impact may be Sutherland says. What do they see as opportunities Every company is constantly assessing how they can meet farmers changing needs. Pinkerton says its also important to have access to products before they hit your shelves. You need to have success with a product on your farm or in your plots before others will want to grow it he says. This will also help you know when something is not working and better protect your reputation. It allows you to make better recommendations on whose farm the product best fits and those it will not. McCann says at Crop Production Services they work closely with their internal development team with breed- ers and seed companies. When it comes to trialing products his team relies on a two-pronged approach. First products start in small plots and then as they come closer to market they transition to field scale trials McCann explains. I would rather have mistakes in my own plots than in a customers field he says. Approach New Opportunities After taking in all the information retailers must decide if action is needed. Its really an ongoing dialogue with your retail partners Sutherland says. Its always changing so its important to assess if it the changes are significant or not to take action. Hansen says there are lots of fun- damentals that go into the evolution of any new crop type. Farmers are so adaptable to oppor- tunities and move very quickly they make decisions on economics he says. In examining new opportunities Hansen advises retailers to Determine the rate of return for new investments. Know what the demand is. Understand how it impacts those up and down the value chain. Its really a chain of events that happens Hansen says. It starts with processors then moves to genetics and then is available for customers but it works back to front and front to back. For example Hansen says a lot of work is being done with biofu- els. In Canada companies such as Agrisoma are working on biojet fuel and CANTERRA is a seed partner. Thats us investing in a long-term project he says. There are no guar- antees that it will be successful but we decided to invest because of the long- term potential benefits to growers and the partnership with Agrisoma. CPS has multiple programs and varieties tied to end use programs and McCann says that he is in constant con- versation with end users to make sure his team is ahead of the curve. Even if you dont have a lot of resources dedicated to analyzing the market our consumptive customers have people forecasting and making these types of business decisions McCann shares. Another important factor in approaching or implementing a new strategy is communication. Sutherland says Communication is key regardless if you have a small staff or large staff. Everyone needs to be on the same page and working with the same goal in mind. The other important thing to rec- ognize is that you cant be all things to all people Hansen says. As a company its critical to stay focused and make sure what you do has value to your customers the grower he says. Its the three-leg- ged stool you have to have market demand the genetics or products and the farmer customers. However Hansen recognizes that its not an exact science adding that the partnership with Agrisoma is out of the ordinary. Staying up on the shifting crop landscape and industry trends is an evolution and were constantly working to understand and assess Sutherland says. Weve moved from an annual planning process to an ongoing planning process this is one of the bigger changes. Julie Deering TheFundamentals 1. Take in as much information as you can about whats happening at the local level. 2. Stay connected with your customers the farmer. 3. Network and exchange information with peers. 4. Keep end users needs in mind. 5. Determine if action is needed.