b'However, seed companies have tosays. Examples of innovation are just deal with competition, so its also impor- around the corner. Bayers Short Stature tant to consider how competitors haveCorn and Smart Corn System are cur-changed their prices, adds Widmar. rently being developed to provide value The quantity sold and the expensesfor farmers thorough the ability to apply are just as significant when it comes toinputs more precisely and protect against the businesss financial performance.yield lossespecially in the case of Therefore, its essential not to get singu- extreme weather events.larly focused on just one financial metric,Schweigert believes the moment for such as price, revenue or expense. technological change is here.Scott Stein is the North AmericanNew technologiesacross both Corn Product Manager Lead for Bayerseed and grainare carving out new Crop Sciencea company with officessegments. Even past closed loop system in the U.S, Canada and worldwidethatideas are getting new life as innovations is committed to improving lives throughin germplasm and grain composition now a food system that is better for farmers,come with competitive-yielding germ-consumers, and the planet.plasm, he writes. The trade-off between With respect to pricing, he says, Weyield and quality is closing in on zero. The earn our customers business every yearTom Hopper serves as director of businessopportunity for true margin expansion is and know that they have a lot of optionsat Becks Hybrids. here.in who they choose to do business with. Consistent with our pricing strategy,GMO free corn, corn of livestock feed, orWhats Next?we look at performance, product mix,corn for ethanol production. These seg- As for what the next five to 10 years competitive dynamics, and value that thements might create opportunities but canholds for the seed industry, Hooper says product provides our customers whenincrease the complexity of customer rela- technology is helping corn yields increase setting the price for our products. tionships and supply chains. Therefore,with greater velocity.Stein adds that this year and 2022,just as the grower customer pursuesWe will see the industry change at growers are likely to see modest pricedifferent components, seed companiesincreasing levels, providing smaller com-increases influenced by yield value gainswill need to consider their customer seg- panies and start-up businesses greater and inflation. ments which they can serve. opportunities. By customers demanding a There are several inflationary impactsTom Hooper is the director of businesscloser relationship with their seed sup-that play a role in seed production includ- at Becks. With access to the best traitplier, it will create a sense of loyalty and ing the cost of technology, labor, andtechnologies from suppliers worldwide,advocacy with their seed brand.logisticsincluding transportation, fuel,he has a different take on the subject.Adds Stein, I see the expansion and more. Twenty years ago, RoundUp Readyand use of digital tools as the biggest soybeans dominated the market- game changer in the industry in the next Industry Challenges place, whereas recent technology hasdecade or so. We are currently working Every industry has its share of challenges.not assumed this position, he says.with growers to use data, data analyt-The seed industry is no different. Therefore, farmers are given more prod- ics and digital prescriptions to drive Weve seen a resurgence of pests likeucts and options in the marketplace forefficiency, increase yield and optimize the corn rootworm that present chal- their farming operations. Consequently,the use of inputsbenefiting both the lenges for farmers over the past couplethe cost of seed is increased from prod- growers bottom line as well as the envi-years. And we continue to see the effectsucts that are produced, but not plantedronment and society at large.of climate change play a role throughby farmers. Widmar adds that the demographics extreme weather events such as droughtof farms are such that many farm princi-and strong storms, says Stein. ThroughNew Technologypals will likely retire in the next decade.some of the industrys leading hybridsNew technologies in the industry areThings are changing and evolving and traits and next generation of prod- definitely carving out opportunities forquickly between partners vs. competi-ucts, such as SmartStax PRO, available inthe industry. tors. Today, many disruptors in agriculture 2022, and Short Stature Corn, availableThrough innovation and breedinginputs werent even founded 10 years early this decade, were working hard totools like artificial intelligence (AI), wereago, Widmar says. Furthermore, the meet the needs of growers.working to deliver new hybrids to thebusiness models are changing even faster. Thirty years ago, farmer customersmarket even faster, says Stein. What might have seemed like a potential were all selling the same output, such asOur breeding platform not only helpsbusiness partner is now perhaps a com-yellow No. 2 corn, says Widmar. Today,drive enhanced yield gains for grow- petitor of sorts, or vice versa. In short, the buyers of corn seed might be selling com- ers, but we also look at positive benefitscompetitive landscape is rapidlymodity No. 2 yellow corn, organic corn,such as disease resistance as well, hechanging.SW58/ SEEDWORLD.COMDECEMBER 2021'