For agtech, it’s not what’s new, it’s what’s important.

The best way to position and introduce new tools to farmers and their influencers probably doesn’t involve an algorithm or CRISPR. In fact, too much emphasis on what’s new and not enough emphasis on conventional value creation is a guarantee that an agtech company will have trouble breaking through.

Farmers (and their advisors who help determine how input and management dollars are allocated) spend their time analyzing how new practices impact the health of their operation, economically, environmentally and socially. They’re definitely not focusing on the big picture vision of hundreds of startups. Providing value, demonstrating ease of adoption, creating peer support and showing a clear alignment with social expectations is a partial list of elements that when in evidence, lets these critical decision makers recognize you’re focusing on what’s important to them:

1. Fulfilling a recognized need/value creation – with proof points – or else you have just a cool new toy and a skeptical target audience. Precision agriculture got a big boost in the 1990s with GPS systems and immediately started providing value to farmers through more efficient field operations, including less overlap in fertility and chemistry passes. The value offered to farmers continues to grow through advances in variable rate applications. Another value: the ability to document locations and timing of field operations for buyers with defined production criteria.
2. Simplicity – how is this new technology easily incorporated into an existing process or program. A swap out, such as inserting a specific varietal for a marketing advantage, is ideal, as some agronomic or handling practices may need to be adjusted but basic processes are the same. Catlyxt has more than doubled adoption of its high oleic soybean varietal, developed through a gene editing process but not regulated as a GMO. How? They offer a premium and guarantee to buy all grain produced. It’s relatively straightforward for the farmer.
3. Core support groups – farmers like to know how their peers are approaching and handling the challenges that come with new technology adoption. Online forums and in-person seminars with time for one-on-one conversations help surface challenges and build the overall knowledge base among the adopters, and provide valuable feedback for agtech developers.
4. Social approval – with demand in the food chain being flipped to a fork to farm model, farmers are reluctant to expose an existing market to an aggressive social challenge. Sensors for water utilization and probiotics that improve soil productivity and health are easier lifts from a social acceptance standpoint. GMOs, even when providing a consumer benefit, can be more problematic.

MorganMyers takes great pride in innovations we’ve helped clients bring to market, including herbicide-, insect- and virus-resistant agronomic and horticultural seeds, GPS guidance, consumer traits in fruit and vegetable crops and novel veterinary pharmaceuticals and labels for livestock. We understand each technology is unique, yet there are required steps in each journey to ensure all bases are covered, and the offering is well-received throughout the chain.