Gavin McEwen

How can information technology make seed companies more successful?

Seed companies worldwide are embracing information technology to gain a competitive advantage and win greater market share.

Advances in computer and Internet technologies allow seed companies to unlock the potential of seed development and trialing techniques, boosting their efficiency and effectiveness in bringing new seed varieties to the market more quickly.

“Bringing a new seed variety to the market is not a trivial undertaking, particularly as only an estimated 1% of new seed varieties make it to full commercial production,” says Xen-AGRI Developments Ltd Director Gavin McEwen.

“Also, it is estimated that only 50% of the seed samples sent to distributors ever become a trial in the commercial environment, and furthermore, only an estimated 10% of the trial results ever get back to the breeding company.”

What specific solutions does your company offer?

Sensing the need for information technology, Xen-AGRI Developments Ltd and sister company Xenacom Ltd developed Xen-AGRI™, an enterprise software application designed specifically for seed breeders and distributors to process data in an efficient and easy-to-use web-centric software system.

Xen-AGRI™, which manages the entire product development process, brings together the best seed development techniques and innovation of database and mobile Internet technologies into one powerful solution to assemble and analyse seed development information. 

Not only does Xen-AGRI ™ provide a platform for users to enter test data directly from the field, it also enables breeders to monitor the results of their projects in real-time. 

“Standardising and collating trial results are a major benefit to seed breeders,” says Gavin McEwen.

“In the past, raw data that eventually filters back to the breeder has gone from the farmer in the field to the local sales representative and finally through to the distributor.  This could take months, particularly if the seed varieties are grown in remote areas.  And that doesn’t even include any errors that might accrue if the data is collated or otherwise transcribed.”

With Xen-AGRI™, the data is entered in a standard format, and is recorded into the master database.  When the trials of a product are complete, the results can be viewed and summarised easily – information that is a valuable asset in gaining a competitive advantage.

Given that on average only 10% of trial results ever get back to the breeding company, it is clear there are significant inefficiencies in the entire seed trial process.  Xen-AGRI™, which is proven in the field, addresses these inefficiencies and makes each step of the process more effective for seed companies.

Xen-AGRI Developments Ltd. is a leading provider of software solutions and professional services for the agricultural industry.

For more information about Xen-AGRI™, please visit www.xenagri.com.

May 2004