Ensuring the Sustainability of Modern Agriculture
Agrinos is a biological crop input provider committed to improving the productivity and sustainability of modern agriculture. Its products help farmers by providing increased crop yield, yield stability and quality in an environmentally friendly manner. In addition, the products improve the efficiency of traditional crop inputs such as conventional fertilisers and crop protection products while increasing the health of the soil microbiome. Healthy soil is the critical foundation required for crops to reach their full potential and, ultimately, to bring prosperity to the grower. Agrinos holds a leading position within the biostimulant segment and plans to continue to follow a global growth strategy, driving technology adoption and increased crop production efficiency around the world.
CEO Today had the pleasure to connect with the CEO of Agrinos, Kevin Helash, to hear about the company’s sustainable, robust and value-added agricultural solutions, achievements and overall mission.
Tell us about Agrinos’ products and the ways they improve the productivity and sustainability of modern agriculture worldwide.
At Agrinos our commitment to agriculture and sustainability drives us to harness new technologies that power naturally derived microorganisms and biological nutrient compounds. We develop crop inputs that deliver tangible environmental benefits as well as meaningful financial returns to our customers. Our products can enhance crop health, productivity and quality, and empower growers to improve soil health, water and nutrient use efficiency and overall land stewardship.
Agrinos focuses on two platforms of products—microbials and biostimulants. Agrinos’ microbials enhance crop nutrition by improving the soil microbiome to support plant health and yield. Agrinos’ biostimulants deliver complex nutrient solutions which support and promote healthy plant function across a variety of crops and growing conditions. In the future, we plan to expand our portfolio to include biopesticides as well.
Our products are compliant with organic production standards, are OMRI-listed in the US and are recognised by several regional certification organisations. Agrinos products are widely used on both conventional and organic farming operations.
You joined Agrinos as a CEO in November 2017. What are your goals in driving success within the company?
First and foremost, I am very fortunate to be part of a fantastic company with an amazing team. Our objective is to rapidly grow Agrinos to be one of the global leaders in the ag biological market. Agrinos’ philosophy is built on three key pillars—our customers, people and products.
For our customers, we aim to provide value that helps ensure their ability to provide a sustainable benefit all along the agrifood business chain.
For our employees, we are building on a strong foundation and will continue to attract and retain the most talented people in the industry to meet the needs of Agrinos’ stakeholders.
For our products, we have developed and commercialised an innovative portfolio that stands out in the ag biological sector. Our offering supports growing crops profitably and in an environmentally sustainable manner.
Agrinos operates across the globe and our objective is to be the best in terms of product quality, performance and customer service. Establishing goals and measurements to monitor our success is a core principal of ours. At the same time, we have to recognise that our industry is evolving rapidly and that the agricultural market in which we operate can be volatile. It’s important for us to remain agile and be able to make decisions quickly.
What have you been working on thus far with Agrinos?
Taking the time to speak with and listen to our key stakeholders has been an important precursor to developing our short- and long-term strategic direction. Spending time with our employees, customers and shareholders around the world has helped me gain an understanding of the company from many angles and perspectives.
I like to “start with the end in mind.” This means developing a picture of what success ultimately looks like, and then breaking down the strategy and tactics that will drive the achievement of our objectives. This ensures everyone in the company clearly understands our objectives and the role they play in achieving them. Along with our global leadership team, I’m working to build a culture that is truly “Innovative by Nature” and to create a workplace that our employees value. We’re also establishing ourselves as a company that is laser-focused, energetic and aggressive, while never losing sight of the fact we are here to serve our customers.
How do you make sure that Agrinos is at the forefront of microbial and biological crop input innovation?
It starts with a commitment to be an innovative leader in our space. We have attracted some of the best talent in the industry and, along with our corporate mission to continue to invest in agricultural R&D, we have developed an extremely robust pipeline of products in the biological, biostimulant, and biofertiliser space, and we are working on commercialising products in the biopesticide market as well.
It’s all very important work because the world needs innovative and sustainable solutions to increase agricultural output and meet the needs of our growing global population. I’m confident the Agrinos team will continue to deliver solutions that make a positive difference.
