May 16, 2017

BASF strengthens digital farming portfolio with ZedX purchase

BASF has signed an agreement to acquire ZedX Inc., a developer of digital agricultural intelligence. Headquartered in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, ZedX’s expertise lies in the development of agronomic weather, crop and pest models that rapidly translate data into insights for more efficient agricultural production.

According to a news release, with this planned acquisition, BASF strengthens its digital farming footprint and further invests in helping growers take advantage of big data generated in farming and beyond.

“Growers are embracing cutting-edge technology and tools that can help them increase crop yields,” said Scott Kay, vice president, crop protection, BASF North America. “ZedX’s innovative platforms and strong intelligence capabilities will not only enhance our current digital services, but will also provide growers with critical data to successfully manage their operations.”

In a time where digital transformation is changing business, BASF aims to ensure that agronomic insights and recommendations from digital solutions help its customers make better, more informed decisions.

“BASF is playing an active role in the digital transformation of agriculture and is constantly evaluating where and how to engage further,” said Jürgen Huff, Senior Vice President, Global Strategic Marketing of BASF’s Crop Protection division. “ZedX’s experts impressed us with their extensive and deep know-how in agronomic models. We are very pleased to incorporate their knowledge into our offers to serve farmers’ needs through innovative products and services.”

Joe Russo, ZedX’s Founder and President, pointed out that during a three-year collaboration, the partnership has already shown great results. “Our modeling expertise, coupled with BASF’s knowledge of chemistry, has truly benefited growers and agriculture in general. For example, we developed a model that gave the right window of application for a BASF herbicide based on important weather and environmental conditions.”

Weather conditions, soil temperature, wind speed – all of these factors can influence the performance of crop protection products. By acquiring ZedX, BASF will be able to help farmers use their resources more efficiently and sustainably. Also, it will further complement BASF’s Maglis^™ offer launched in 2016.

“The smart use of digital solutions can open up all sectors of the economy to many new opportunities, and farming is no exception. ZedX is a great fit to our growth plan. We will strengthen our sales by offering targeted advice, insights and recommendations and by interacting more closely with our customers,” concluded Huff.

The acquisition is expected to be completed within four weeks. Products and solutions from ZedX will soon be available to all key markets. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.