The business of farming is changing. Consumers are demanding sustainably produced food, the global population is exploding, issues such as hypoxia, algae blooms and climate change are dominating the news, and the threat of environmental regulation looms near.
As the call for more conservation practices continues to rise, growers will increasingly turn to their trusted service providers (their ag retailer) for assistance.
In my conversations with ag retail leadership, it is obvious they are becoming acutely aware of the need to implement a viable program that delivers sustainable solutions directly to growers. The leadership understands that retail agronomists have tremendous influence over a grower’s decisions. But, the real challenge is to provide a program that offers real solutions and real value to growers. Not an easy task.
The question I have to ask is, are ag retailers ready to make accurate and reliable recommendations that provide value to the grower and transparency to the food industry? Have they equipped themselves with the technology necessary to help growers?
Sustainability isn’t a fad. It isn’t going away. Sustainability is the crop input of tomorrow.
Buffer Strips: The last ditch effort for conservation?