b'Independent SeedMERGERS AND ACQUISITIONSrock the boat in every sectorits no different in agriculture. The question comes into play: how are independent seed companies responding?Companies AspireWhile weve seen consolidation recently, its not necessar-ily a sharp increase, says Todd Martin, CEO of the Independent Professional Seed Association (IPSA). Its for a whole host of reasons: business is tougher, companies have to be able to mark for Longevity andgrowth and were seeing retirements and succession planning play into this.Independent seed companies play an important role in pro-viding choices to farmers in the U.S. and beyond. Understanding Differentiation the challenges they face and the current environment will give you a better idea as to the health of this sector of the U.S. seed industry.Mergers, acquisitions and strategicM&As in the NewsIn 2021, Seed World reported several mergers or acquisitions business decisions show a path for thewithin the seed sector. One independent in the news includes future of this sector of the seed industry.Rob-See-Co, making headlines twice, once for acquiring Sonja Begemann NorthStar Genetics in March and again in August for its acquisi-tion of Masters Choice.In each of these acquisitions, Rob Robinson, CEO of Rob-See-Co, shares his excitement for bringing in other family-owned businesses. The footprints of the companies will remain largely the same, with small changes outlined by Robinson in their announcement of the acquisitions.Acquisitions like this can excite some in the independent sector because it provides businesses the opportunity to con-tinue when owners decide not to stay involved in the operation for one reason or another. The business lives onjust under a different name.Legacy Agripartners, a recently-renamed holding company, aims to bring together seed companies in the Midwest. Their goal isnt to change their operations or names, but instead to give them more power under a unified leadership team. Right now, Legacy Agripartners community of seed companies includes Legacy Seeds and DF Seeds.If we were just seeing these companies being eliminated from local communities in rural America, this would be a step 6/ SEEDWORLD.COMJANUARY 2022'