Rallis India Ltd.: Relating To Growers
30 January 2009 What is the biggest challenge for your business in this macroeconomic environment?
The fundamental drivers for growth of agriculture and the agrochemicals business continue to be robust. The need for raising productivity of farm output and to satisfy the burgeoning requirements from land will intensify in the future. But the main impact of the present macroeconomic environment is the tightening of finance and funds availability. This has restricted the flow of credit into the agri sector for growers and the agri trades. As far as the industry goes, it could prevent enterprises from funding growing business needs and investment plans.
How are you changing your operations to better serve your clients in these tough times?
At Rallis, we have always placed a lot of emphasis on farmer relationships. In these tough times, we are intensifying our connection with farmers to improve the services we provide and promote the right use of agrochemicals. We are also improving our response and agility of the supply chain. Of course, our continued focus in improving operational efficiencies and cash generation remains so that we are able to add value to all stakeholders in these challenging times. Our endeavour to have the right product portfolio to address all farmers’ needs continues to be supreme. The recent introductions from Rallis, such as Applaud and Takumi, bear testimony to this with the encouraging response we have received from the Indian farmers. To improve services to our international customers and our Contract Manufacturing business, we are in the process of setting up new state of the art facilities in Dahej, a designated chemical zone in western India.
What is your most innovative product, service or research initiative?
Rallis has built relationships with farmers in India for more than a century, so we are uniquely placed in the Indian rural segment with a lot of market and customer knowledge and reach. Our ability to understand current and emerging needs of farmers and bring out appropriate products in time is a key strength of Rallis. There are many such examples, including a recent one related to solution for brown plant hoppers (BPH). Timely identification of the BPH problem due to building resistance of other molecules and introduction of Applaud has been a savior for paddy farmers in many rice belts in India. Within a short period of three years, this product has become the largest selling brand for Rallis. We are also working on some new fungicides for the Indian market.
How optimistic are you about the economic health of the agrochemical industry for 2009?
I do see the underlying factors driving agriculture and the need for agrochemicals to sustain during 2009 and beyond. The recent global economic developments will of course have indirect effects on the industry. We could see some degree of value erosion coupled with the impact of volatility in currency movement in the different economies. The basic driver to enhance crop productivity continues, which is fundamental to achieving adequate stocking and overall food sufficiency in the world. While there could be short term blips, the general direction for the industry I reckon will be positive.
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