Japanese company wants to develop seed business in Argentina

With an investment of US $ 1 million, the Japanese vegetable and flower seed production company Sakata landed in the country . Although, for the moment, it will only have commercial offices, the president of Sakata Seed Argentina, Marcello Takagui, confirmed to a national media, that the plan includes the installation of an experimental farm, where seeds would be produced.

Currently, the firm is a leader in the marketing of broccoli and squash seeds in the country. With the installation in Argentina, Sakata seeks to strengthen its position in other vegetables, such as tomatoes, peppers, zucchini and spinach. In addition, they plan to increase sales of flower seeds.

“Argentina is a big consumer of vegetables, so we see an important opportunity for the company. Our goal in four years is to quadruple the current turnover of US $ 2 million, ” said Takagui.

The local subsidiary will have a commercial director, who will report to the offices in Brazil. There, the company has been present since 1994, with the purchase of Agroflora, a Brazilian company founded in 1968. From then on, it began a strong expansion through that country. In 1998, he built his headquarters in Bragança Paulista to house the Sakata operations center in South America and an experimental farm.

“We carry out research around the world, both in the vegetable and flower seed market. We seek to improve production in both fields and develop seeds that serve all types of regions and climate regimes, ”said Takagui.

The executive added that the trend of vegetable consumption in Argentina is on the rise. In that sense, he said, the arrival in the country seeks to take advantage of the momentum of the local market.

Takagui stressed that Sakata seeds have been present in the Argentine market for more than 50 years . However, with the landing in the country, the Japanese company strengthens its presence in the South American market. In addition to the offices in Brazil, the company also has a presence in Chile.

As reported by the firm, the expansion in the region is part of a global growth strategy to be among the top three global seed marketers by 2025.

With the installation of the commercial office in the country, Sakata will also strengthen its plan for constant training, technical assistance and technology transfer to its customers. At present, it has more than 250 vegetable crops, 500 of flowers and 100 distribution channels throughout South America.

Editor's note: This article was originally published in Spanish. This English summary has been prepared with Google Translate and edited for clarity.