6 ways to manage risk in Agri-business

Risk is an unavoidable aspect of agri-business. Every day we face uncertainties such as weather, prices, yields, changes in global markets or government policies. Although  a lot of the risk associated with agri-business is beyond our control, much can be done with how we manage risk to create the best possible food outcomes. 

Managing risk includes using a number of strategies and tools but most importantly harnessing the power of data to better understand our businesses and plan for better outcomes. Greenlight Farm Management (GLFM) is a collaborative platform for farmers, agronomists and their workforces. GLFM helps farmers to manage their spend and continuously ensure compliance to audit standards. The impressive analytics and reporting capabilities of GLFM give detailed insights into the dynamics of the farm business, supporting improved forecasting and performance management.

Here are six ways Greenlight Farm Management helps to manage risk in agri-business; 

1. Avoid expensive errors

GLFM lets growers and agronomists record and share crop records, fertiliser plans, nutrient plans and much more. With an up-to-date list of pesticides and their crop approvals provided as standard, agronomists recommendations can be auto-checked for label compliance and any associated warnings that need to be highlighted to their growers. Growers can keep an eye on spending throughout the season and control and monitor costs through cost analysis down to field level.

2. Be compliance and audit ready

For agronomists, supporting their farmers to manage the burden of compliance is an essential part of the day job. Integral nutrient management features, reduce the complexity of nutrient planning and compliance safeguards. Farmers can also feel confident and ready for audits knowing that they can demonstrate compliance to chemical and fertiliser applications. In GLFM, the range of reports ensure growers can select the exact data they or their auditor needs.

3. Understand your costs 

Growers can better understand their cost of production to make informed business decisions by using GLFM. Recording the spend on seed, fertiliser, ag-chem and activity costs as they are used provides real time visibility on production costs. Furthermore, growers can analyse their costs in detail with an understanding of the performance of each field, crop and variety.

4. Time is money  

Waiting to go back to the office in order to write up farm visits is now a thing of the past. With the mobile app, agronomists can upload pictures of their findings whilst walking the fields and audit their recommendations, then simply hit ‘sync’ to automatically update when they have an internet signal. Templating chemical recommendations is a great way of administering time saving features for agronomy teams, plus the added bonus of providing improved steer on recommending the right inputs for the job. Growers can add their team as ‘extra users’ so that they can record applications directly into the app from their phone or tablet and upload pictures of any problems they encounter in the field. This empowers the workforce to record operational data such as confirming spray applications, whilst on the move. All of this activity saves time and workload. 

5. Harness the power of data  

Our impressive analytics and reporting capabilities give growers insights on the landscape and in-season dynamics of their businesses, supporting improved forecasting and performance management. A full range of reports are available as standard, including multi-site cropping, nutrient management, cost of production, crop rotation, product use and gross margin. Advanced Business Insights reporting provides a wider range of analytics providing users with the ability to benchmark their performance and optimise business decisions.

6. Collaboration is key 

Sharing data between grower and agronomist  has never been easier and means no unnecessary duplication of work. Agronomists can record geo-located inspections to pinpoint pest and disease problem areas, so immediate action can be taken by the grower. 

Growers can see plans instantly as they are created by their agronomist and plan work accordingly. This saves time, improves accuracy and ensures compliance. Ag-retailers can activate the product ordering functionality, enabling them to assign price and pack size information to products. Agronomists can convert recommendations directly into product orders, speeding up delivery. 

What next? 

Good risk management decisions depend on accurate information which requires reliable data, and good information can help make rational risk management decisions. When so much of the risk associated with agri-business is beyond our control, Green Light Farm Management puts the grower in control of their data. A solution created by growers, for growers, to produce the best food outcomes and business results.