Description of Trends

1.    Digital Farming
Precision location methods and data-driven (vs. experienced-based) agronomic decisions will be applied to increase crop yields in a sustainable manner

2.    Changing Grower Buying Behaviors
Growers will focus on maximizing operational efficiency, farm sustainability, and ROI. Farm connections will become less relationship-based and more B2B-like negotiations

3.    Grower Consolidation
Growers will search for greater economy of scale through land or virtual consolidation (buying pools), increasing presence of corporate farming

4.    Integrated Solutions
Changes in the market (e.g., digital, precision farming, commoditization) will require input suppliers and distributors to sell customized solutions beyond agronomic advice, likely involving more than one single player in the value chain

5.    Biotechnology
Biotechnology may make conventional models outdated by improving yield while reducing need for crop protection products or services

6.    Credit & Financing New Models
Digitalization and new financial players will give growers access to new credit models, making it easier, cheaper, and faster to get access to working capital

7.    Regulatory & Consumer Trends
Regulatory bodies (e.g., USDA, EPA) and millennial consumers will pressure the value chain to apply more sustainable practices and increase demand for transparency in agricultural production

8.    Vertical Integration
Role boundaries will become increasingly blurred among agribusiness players in the value chain, which are trying to expand up and down the chain

9.    Flat Commodity Pricing
Flat pricing will continue to create a significant squeeze on grower profitability which can place heightened pressure on the value chain players to be able to demonstrate ROI

10.    Distributor Consolidation
Continued distributor consolidation in the US will lead to a higher concentration of sales, more negotiating power, and decreased influence of local independents

11.    Multichannel to Omnichannel
Growers will demand engagement through their preferred means, whether digital channels, physical channels, or a combination, depending on their specific needs and preferences throughout the growing season

12.    Non-Traditional Players Entry
Powerful players from outside the agribusiness industry, such as Amazon, Uber, or Google, may begin to disrupt the industry and create new competing channels and/or offerings