Bayer launches business model to personalize transactions via Barter

Multinational agricultural inputs Bayer will start using data and digital tools to enable barter operations, in line with its strategy of becoming an enabler of digital transformation in the field. Still in the pre-commercial phase, the company launches Barter+ powered by FieldView, a business model that seeks to personalize transactions made through this sales method according to the productivity of each farmer.

The project pilot started in 2022 and was only available to a select list of customers who met some prerequisites, such as being a FieldView Plus customer. “The focus of Barter+ powered by FieldView was the 22/23 harvest and, for this year, it becomes a company product, targeting Barter operations in the 23/24 harvest, which keeps us in line with our mission of reach an increasing number of rural producers, offering solutions that facilitate and optimize day-to-day life in the field”, says Carlos Branduliz, leader of commodities and customer finance at Bayer's agricultural division.

Barter operations have gained ground in the Brazilian market, especially in periods of high interest rates and credit restrictions. This is a type of sale between rural producers and agricultural input companies in which payment occurs in a different way than conventional, with an agreement made before harvest, in which the producer purchases the products and makes payment with the harvested production. in the subsequent harvest.

For operations to be formalized, the producer undertakes to deliver a certain quantity of cultivated products as payment, to be registered on the Rural Product Certificate (CPR), one of the documents requested for the transaction via barter. The calculation of this quantity is traditionally based on a productivity standard in the region obtained from averages calculated by the National Supply Company (Conab). With Barter+, the calculation stops being based on averages and starts looking at the farmer's individual production data, through the productivity history recorded on the Climate FieldView platform.

According to Branduliz, carrying out a standard calculation for a group of producers ends up placing productions of different technological levels on the same level. “That’s when we felt the need to look at the producer in a customized way, so that we could demonstrate their real level of productivity and, at the same time, show the benefits of adhering to the use of digital technologies, such as those from Climate FieldView”, he says. .

The executive also states that Bayer also seeks to be a protagonist in the process of digitalizing the field, supporting farmers on their journey from start to finish. For him, the program, which is still in the pre-commercial phase, is another advance in the company's digital transformation strategy and new business models, which proves how committed the company is to becoming a digital facilitator with producers. rural.

With some initial tests carried out on soybean, corn and cotton crops, it was already possible to notice its efficiency and precision with the first negotiations carried out in Mato Grosso and Bahia. Through the data obtained with FieldView, it was possible to verify that the farm's production was higher than the official CONAB standard estimate, resulting in an increase in the producer's purchasing power.

“Digital transformation is one of Bayer’s strategic pillars and allows us to serve customers in an increasingly personalized way, improving the way we support them in solving problems and improving the efficiency of our own operations”, says Branduliz. “Barter+ Powered by Fieldview is another step by Bayer to generate value, improve the experience of rural producers and use digital data as an enabler of new business models”, adds the executive.

In addition to starting to collect and process data through the Climate FieldView platform, interested parties can seek more information from Bayer representatives in their region.