These additions join the company’s platform that facilitates agricultural commerce, financing and farm intelligence, the company said in a Monday (July 28) press release.
FBN further expanded its marketplace offerings after growing its private-label product portfolio and opening its platform to third-party sellers earlier this year, the release said. The new additions announced Monday include more private-label and third-party crop protection products, new third-party seed offers, and new products like feed, fencing and farm and ranch supplies to its livestock marketplace.
In addition, FBN Canada expanded its wheat crop protection portfolio, added financing for bulk liquid fertilizer and equipment, and will open two new distribution centers next year, according to the release.
“Our commitment to putting farmers first means a relentless focus on efficiency and convenience,” FBN CEO Diego Casanello said in the release. “Our goal is to reduce a farm’s operating costs 20% or more compared to brick-and-mortar retail.”
FBN is also increasing its investment in AI development, the release said. The company offers a large language model called Norm that answers farmers’ questions about agronomy and crop marketing, and it plans to add personalized agronomy, finance and risk management support, per the release.
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“Artificial intelligence is enabling us to provide our farmer members with more personalized and relevant insights,” Casanello said in the release. “Simultaneously, it offers new tools to automate our marketplace operations, reducing costs and improving the customer experience.”
FBN’s investors include GV (Google Ventures), Temasek, Arteqin, Colle Capital and T. Rowe Price, according to the release.
The company launched its eCommerce arm in 2017, adding that offering to its social network that allows farmers to share knowledge and data during third-party price negotiations and to swap seed and crop data that help them determine which seeds, pesticides and vendors will work best for their businesses.
In August, FBN and ADM launched a joint venture called Gradable that offers a technology platform designed to help farmers and buyers meet the demand for sustainable farm products.
