FBN focuses on improving farmers’ return on investment

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Farmers Business Network works to develop seed to maximize the return on investment for farmers.

“We recognized early in the FBN seed journey that the value chain for the seed industry is complicated and there are a lot of parties between the developer of the seed and the user,” said Daniel Dyer, FBN head of research and development for seed.

“Somebody has to pay all those people, so it’s adding a lot of costs and it really interferes with the communication,” Dyer said during a FBN webinar. “The breeder needs information from the farmer on what’s working and what they need to get a better return on investment.”

FBN created a seed system that connects the breeder directly to the farmer.

“We do that by using data farmers supply to develop seed products guided by those results and we simplify the distribution to get the seed directly to the farmer,” Dyer said.

“FBN has proprietary genetics, and we offer these with simple, transparent pricing,” he said. “We have an extensive testing system and network of participants to help us evaluate our hybrids, and we get the data back from our members.”

“It all starts with great seed quality to maximize ROI, and we bring better products every year,” said German Muttoni, FBN seed product portfolio and operations manager. “That’s a big focus for FBN because we want you to open our bags or boxes of seed and realize we have invested a lot.”

Consistent seed quality is a requirement for FBN.

“We take a hand screen sample to determine how to condition the lot for consistent seed size,” Muttoni said. “We’ve increased the polymer to improve the flowability, which is critical for good planting and stands.”

The company evaluates its seeds with both warm and cold germination tests.

“We use 95% for the warm germination standard,” Muttoni said. “We focus on 90% or higher for the cold germination, and that’s important for the ability of the corn to emerge in cold, wet soils.”

FBN has many levels for testing seeds that include research and development plots, breeder trials and data supplied by members.

“We also have an on-farm managed strip testing program, so we can see hybrids under hundreds of growing conditions to understand the best placement for each hybrid,” Dyer said. “Now we have three years of data to make sure we put the right product in the right place and deliver on improved ROI.”

“For 2020, in the R&D trials of F2F Genetics against DeKalb and Pioneer, we had a 60% win rate at $20 per acre average ROI,” said Steven Sick, FBN head of the breeding project.

Research and development trials are planted at fairly high populations on high-yielding soils.

“These hybrids with lower ROI are product placement specific and they need lower populations,” Sick said. “Not every farmer has a whole farm that will produce 300 bushels per acre, so we have hybrids that perform and give a good ROI on marginal acres.”

Sick talked about some of the F2F Genetics currently available.

F2F1C-919 is a very healthy hybrid that was launched in 2019.

“It has very good plant health, and there is no need to use a fungicide,” Sick said. “If you put a fungicide on, it will actually hurt it and it will delay maturity seven to 10 days.”

Sick recommends planting F2F1C-030 on high fertility, well drained soils.

“It has a very good disease package and will not benefit from a fungicide application,” Sick said.

“I consider F2F1C-049 a driveway corn because it is very showy dark green with great grain quality,” he said. “It was launched last year and has a very broad area of adaptation.”

F2F1G-060 is a new hybrid for 2021.

“This is our first glyphosate tolerant launch, and it has a very good disease package,” Sick said. “We don’t recommend a fungicide, and it has good late season stalks and roots.”

F2F1C-119 was launched last year.

“It has probably one of the best scores for Goss’s wilt and southern leaf blight in the F2F portfolio,” Sick said. “Fungicide is not recommended, and it has real good grain quality.”

Joining the lineup for 2021 is F2F1C-120, which should be planted in a high-yield environment.

“This is one of the highest yielding products we had in trials last year,” Sick said. “This is your go-to hybrid if you’re going to enter a yield contest.”

One of the most consistent products in the FBN portfolio is F2F1C-139, Sick said.

“I really like it for grain and silage because it has wide leaves,” he said. “It is a really good choice for early planting and no-till because it is a strong emerger.”

FBN members who submit data from their 2020 crops receive a financial reward from the company.

“They will earn $3 per unit store credit on purchases they make for 2021, up to $1,000,” said Meg Brodman, FBN head of product marketing. “We recognize it is an effort to submit data, so we want to reward you, and this is available until Feb. 28.”

For more information about F2F Genetics, call 844-200-FARM or go to www.fbn.com/seed.