2008 Precision Agricultural Services Dealership Survey Results

Precision technologies are now well-integrated into the agricultural industry – both at the farm level and at the crop input dealer level. No longer are crop input dealers only using the technologies to bring new services to their customers, they are also utilizing the technology in their own businesses to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their operations. In early 2008, Crop Life magazine and Purdue University’s Center for Food and Agricultural Business conducted a survey for the 13th consecutive year to assess the adoption of precision agriculture practices in the U.S. from the perspective of the retail crop input dealer. The questionnaire was mailed to 2500 retail crop input dealerships across the U.S. A total of 298 questionnaires were returned, with 275 being usable providing an effective response rate of 11 percent. Consistent with previous surveys, dealers were asked questions about the types of precision services they offer and/or use in their businesses, the fees they are charging for precision services, how their customers are adopting precision agriculture practices, and how profitable they are finding precision services to be in their businesses. Key findings include: 1) 61% of the dealers surveyed offered some type of precision service, down from 67% in 2006; 2) locations owned by cooperatives and regional/national organizations were much more likely to offer precision services relative to independent locations; 3) 43% of the respondents believe they make a profit on their precision service offerings, while some 30% believe they breakeven, covering only the fixed and variable costs of offering the services; and 4) dealers continue to expect growth in precision services, and this growth is more substantial in the Midwest relative to other states.