Agriconnection adopts new model for importing and directly selling pesticides

The Brazilian company Agriconnection has adopted a new model for importing and directly selling agricultural inputs, achieving revenues of BRL2 billion. 

Flavio Mata, CEO of Agriconnection, said the company's goal is to grow by 40% in 2024. The executive stated that the company aims to become an easier access route for international manufacturers to the Brazilian market. He explained that Agriconnection facilitated the entry of industries that could not establish a sales structure in Brazil.

Additionally, many of these suppliers are unfamiliar with Brazil’s financing and payment model for inputs, which operates on a per-harvest basis. Agriconnection's portfolio primarily includes input suppliers from India and China, he said. 

Currently, the company's revenue comprises 90% agrochemicals, with the remaining 10% consisting of a specialty line called Essentials, including biological inputs. However, the company already plans to enter the fertilizer distribution market, which is considered to have high volume, high volatility, few players, and is more commoditized than the pesticide market.

To structure its portfolio, Agriconnection offered so-called post-patent pesticides with the same molecules as those sold by multinationals in Brazil. The company serves more than 2,000 clients, including farmers, resellers, and cooperatives, with branches in the central agricultural states of Brazil.

The company's financial structure combines its funds, credit with suppliers, and Credit Rights Investment Funds (FIDCs) with a net worth of BRL114 million. Agriconnection can offer clients payment terms of 240 to 360 days with this capital, while suppliers typically provide only 180 days.

The founders of the company are executives with experience in significant agrochemical multinationals. For instance, Flavio Mata has had a career with companies such as Bayer CropScience and Corteva. 

Co-founder Evaldo Pereira Junior, COO of Agriconnection, also worked at Corteva and the former Dow AgroSciences. Daniel Dias, chairman of Agriconnection, is a consultant specializing in Brazilian agribusiness.

(Editing by Leonardo Gottems, reporter for AgroPages)

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