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"We will see significant productivity growth with better use of technologies" - Interview with Daniel Bachner
Jun. 18, 2019
InstaAgro
BrazilFollow
BrazilBy Leonardo Gottems, Reporter for AgroPages
AgroPages exclusively interviewed Daniel Bachner, a former senior executive at the multinational agrochemical company, Syngenta, and who now works as a successful consultant. In Brazil, he participated in the launch of one of the main agribusiness startups in the world, Indigo. Today, he is working with InstaAgro, the first Brazilian online agricultural inputs retailer.
Tell us your experience in the agribusiness sector.
I started in the agribusiness sector with ICI, now known as Zeneca, in 1985. In 1993, I worked in the pharmaceutical sector at Zeneca and AstaZeneca, before returning to Syngenta in 2004.
I went through several roles, including as Chief Financial Officer for Brazil and Latin America, then as Director of Marketing Services for a Pharmaceutical company, and later as Global Head of a sugarcane business in Brazil, which rose from the seventh largest company in the market to second under my management.
I also promoted innovation in the agribusiness sector, including by launching the Plene Platform, which revolutionized sugarcane agriculture. I also launched related financial tools, such as the Barter models.
I worked in Integrated Solutions during my last year at Syngenta, where I was responsible for Financial Solutions, NuTrade and ICS Integrated Crop Solutions, as well as for creating integrated offerings for producers.
I left Syngenta in early 2018, when I was invited to join a start-up known as Indigo, where I managed the business in Brazil.
What are the technological trends in the industry?
Numerous platforms are being created that will help producers focus on increasing productivity, such as the SmartBio Platform and the recent acquisition of the Strider Platform by Syngenta.
Other technologies, such as satellite imaging linked to artificial intelligence, will also help producers.
How did you begin working for InstaAgro?
In 2016, while working at Syngenta, we decided that it is important to utilise e-commerce and create a new sales channel in Brazil. As the head of Integrated Solutions, we contacted several suppliers and eventually launched InstaAgro. I headed of this project at Syngenta and launched the startup at our offices to facilitate its development. Unfortunately, I left the company in March 2018 and could not witness the launch of the platform.
In December 2018, InstaAgro executives came to me and made an investment proposal. I already knew the project and I always believed in its idea, and since they proved the platform’s significant progress, with the addition of major suppliers, such as Albaugh, Rotam, Sipcam, Koppert and NaanDanJain, I decided to join the project again as an investor.
How can this startup revolutionize the purchase of inputs in Brazil?
InstaAgro is a shopping portal for small and medium-sized producers, where they can find everything they need for their farms, including pesticides, seeds, fertilizers and other items they use regularly. It also offers them a simple, easy and secure business solution that provides origin certification for products purchased directly from the industry, as well as payment security and customer data confidentiality.
Today, most small producers are completely unassisted and cannot get any technical support, and they are forced to buy retail products at higher prices without knowing products origins.
The platform took a long time to finally launch because of regulatory and safety issues, such as guaranteeing agronomic prescriptions. It also does not sell to those who are not producers and have no record of operation.
Producers will have the freedom to choose the best brands based on active ingredients and not be forced to buy from a single brand.
What is the future of the agribusiness sector in Brazil?
The agribusiness sector will continue to grow exponentially. We will see increased productivity through the better use of both production and management technologies. Tools, such as e-learning, GPS and imaging, will be key to the decision-making process of farms.
New forms of financing and risk mitigation are also being created, and a new generation of producers will progress their businesses to new levels of profitability. Biotechnology and natural products will witness greater demand, significantly improving food security.
Source: AgroNews
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