2019
Even though the holiday season is coming to an end, LNZ Group offers Ukrainian farmers a «flight» to corn and sunflower technology fields at the innovative LNZ Hub platform (Cherkasy region).
LNZ Hub is a non-traditional field day. All visitors are asked to «fasten their seat belts», since the richness and informativeness of the program require maximum concentration: LNZ Group specialists share their experience with the participants, the program also includes a tour of the seed plant and hybridization plots, and most importantly, they personally give a qualified answer to any question.
«If we want to attract new clients and not lose existing ones, we must give them more advantages, and one of them is LNZ Hub, where the company generates new ideas and improves existing ones,» says Dmytro Solomoniuk, Deputy Director for Regional Network Development at LNZ Group. «We must be even more flexible, with better service and price. Despite previous achievements, we always need to stay in shape. To look not only back and forward, but also to the sides».
Dmytro Solomoniuk draws parallels with sport and says that championship teams that stop developing rarely achieve the same success in the next game. Competing teams change and hire better players. It is the same in business — the level of competition is constantly growing. You need to get better every day.
«The first day of LNZ Hub was attended by farmers from Vinnytsia, Mykolaiv and Zhytomyr regions. Every day for a month we will be visited by farmers from all over the country. Over the whole period we expect about 200 participants. But we will talk about the results later, after September 20,» adds Dmytro Solomoniuk, Deputy Director for Regional Network Development at LNZ Group.
A unique thematic platform
«We want to share our experience, so the format of the meetings differs from a traditional field day. We decided to concentrate on a smaller number of people in order to put maximum emphasis on information every day for a month. But I want to note, looking at last year, we not only talk about ourselves, but also gain new knowledge from the hub participants. We do not want to stand still, and only new knowledge lets us move forward,» said Andrii Poltavets, Director of the distribution company LNZ LLC.
This year the focus of LNZ Hub is on its own products UNIVERSEED and DEFENDA; multinational brands from LNZ Group's product portfolio are also presented.
LNZ Group develops three business areas: agricultural production (Agro), seed production (Product) and distribution (Market).
«I can proudly say that we are second in the distribution market, but the position is not the main goal. Our aim is quality and efficiency of work,» noted Andrii Poltavets.
According to him, a line of the best 8 proprietary grain corn hybrids and 3 silage corn hybrids has been singled out to date. This is American breeding created specifically for the Ukrainian market under the name UNIVERSEED BREND, represented by LNZ.
He also noted that it is difficult to win trust in a short time, so the company wants to test the presented hybrids together with farmers in different parts of the country, in different climatic conditions and soils. «I think we need another 2-3 years for full confidence in the UNIVERSEED seed brand, although we have no doubts about its effectiveness,» he added.
Roman Franchuk, Director of LNZ-Agro Agricultural LLC, emphasizes that the company wants to demonstrate not only its own product line, but also in-depth scientific research.
Research on 600 hybrids is carried out on micro-plots, not only in central Ukraine, but throughout the country.
«We want to study the yield of each hybrid, taking into account all climatic and soil factors. Because we are not only distributors, we are owners of the breeding, we must study the entire presented line perfectly,» says Roman Franchuk. «We have already proven the uniqueness and effectiveness of the silage hybrids. I think all Ukrainian farmers will soon be convinced of this. There are no analogues to such products on the market yet».
Currently the company gets 600 c/ha, with an average regional yield of 380-400 c/ha. Clients get up to 800 c/ha. «But it should be noted that gross yield is not the main thing; you need to look at the grain-to-green-mass ratio and digestibility of the product. So we can say that the uniqueness of our hybrids is the absence of vitreousness and the absolute availability of green mass,» added the director of LNZ-Agro Agricultural LLC.
A feature of UNIVERSEED breeding is that it was created in difficult phytosanitary conditions: the USA and Canada are territories with a large number of natural pests. The second factor is that the hybrids release moisture well (dent grain, thin cob), which is also characteristic of the American climate.
The presented hybrids have a strong stalk with a powerful root system, characterized by lodging resistance and suitability for standing past maturity. High potential: 16-20 rows with more than 40 kernels per row and a 1000-kernel weight of 250-350 g. Another characteristic is that they are cold-tolerant, so sowing can start earlier, at temperatures from 7 degrees.
The advantages of UNIVERSEED Leafy-type silage hybrids are:
- high nutritional value of the mass;
- high starch content and digestibility;
- optimal balance between digestible and effective fiber;
- wide harvesting window;
- fast ensiling process;
- adaptability to different rations;
- valuable agronomic properties.
Vasyl Kyforuk, Head of the Agrotechnology Department at LNZ Group, notes that the presented hybrids performed excellently in fields with sufficient and unstable moisture: «EXPH 003(FAO 350) can safely be offered to southern regions, it stands out for good drought tolerance. We want to give farmers a product that, at the very least, will not reduce their yields, and that we as a company will not be ashamed of».
The portfolio of crop protection products under the DEFENDA brand is growing. Currently the main crops are cereals, corn, sunflower, as well as soybean, rapeseed and beet.
The company says that a farmer can regulate production costs through seed and crop protection products, while other factors are constant.
With UNIVERSEED seeds you can save 50-70 dollars/ha.
«About 80% of the protection system on LNZ Group's fields consists of DEFENDA products. Of course, there are products from multinational companies that we cannot replace,» noted Andrii Poltavets. «Today the brand's line includes about 60 products, and the number is constantly expanding».
«DEFENDA are single-component products that can be mixed depending on weather conditions or crop condition, which means it is very easy to replace one product with another,» says Vasyl Kyforuk, Head of the Agrotechnology Department at LNZ Group.
He also added that the products are generic, but that does not mean low-quality. The company works with the best plants and is confident in the quality and consistency of results, since everything is tested on its own fields.
«This year we applied the DEFENDA crop protection scheme, and I can say that the efficacy of the products is not inferior to world brands, while the cost is half as much. We were not afraid of generics and did not make a mistake in our choice. We also selected seeds suitable for our region,» shares Hennadii Kazachonok, Director of Agro-Rytm LLC (Kirovohrad region).
Leonid Bovkun, chief agronomist of Yosypivske LLC (Zhytomyr region), says he was interested in the trial plots. «At the end of the year you definitely need to analyze the yield and make a decision for yourself. Last year we set up a demo plot of UNIVERSEED silage corn, and this year we sowed 100% with this hybrid,» he adds.
The farmer is glad that they managed to reduce production costs without losing quality thanks to DEFENDA crop protection products.
Auxiliary engine: going online
Another channel of communication with the modern farmer is the innovative LNZ Web platform presented earlier by LNZ Group, where you can buy seeds, crop protection products and fertilizers.
LNZ Web is the first official distributor in Ukraine that is fully available online.
The new format will make it possible to establish cooperation with farmers who have about 500 ha of land. That is, communication is possible not only through a manager, but also in the online store.
«We need to take into account that a new generation is growing up, used to shopping online, and it will soon become our target audience; you could say we are working ahead of the curve,» the company explains. All hub participants can get advice on using the new LNZ Web platform and test it right in the field.
TERMINAL A: Corn technology field
The participants' first check-in is at the corn.
«This year precipitation was extreme: there was a trend of maximum amounts in 1 day, followed by a long dry period, meaning there was no even distribution of precipitation across ten-day periods. That is why you need to carefully select hybrids suited to a specific zone. Although for the Cherkasy region zone, less precipitation has fallen so far than expected. For example, this month about 14 mm, so the corn is starting to dry quickly,» says Volodymyr Ilchenko, Agrotechnology Development Manager for the Northern Region at LNZ Group, PhD in Agricultural Sciences, about preparing the demo plots.
He notes that for effective preparation for next year, agrotechnological operations must be carried out at optimal times to retain as much moisture as possible. «The main actions are soil tillage and the selection of hybrids that develop intensively in the early stages, i.e. close the inter-rows and have better drought tolerance,» adds Volodymyr Ilchenko.
In the first field, LNZ Hub participants are shown the breeding features of UNIVERSEED grain and silage hybrids and the development of the corn root system depending on plant density. Guests can see the work of DEFENDA herbicides with their own eyes.
Volodymyr Ilchenko analyzed the hybrids' resistance to pest and disease damage, as well as their biological yield.
Another stage was a comparison of the main silage hybrids and a study of the biological features of UNIVERSEED silage hybrids.
The expert also tells participants about research on corn potential depending on plant density, the difference in plant spacing within the row and ear placement height.
He placed emphasis on the study of root system development depending on plant density.
The second part of the field is devoted to the study of corn seed treatment and dressing and foliar feeding with microelements, amino acids and insecticidal-fungicidal seed treatments in order to study the early «fast» start of the plant and ensure optimal plant density.
After the presentation of the demonstration plots, Mykola Hryhorchak, head of the farm «Hryhorchak M.V» (Kirovohrad region), says that he was primarily interested in seeing the effect of density, so he will wait for the results: «The hopper will show everything». He also names the field with mineral fertilizer application as useful for himself.
TERMINAL B: Production corn field with liquid fertilizer application
The second stop is a corn field where a unique technology of commercial corn sowing with 50 cm row spacing was used. Company representatives talk about the features of sowing with localized application of liquid fertilizers and how liquid fertilizers affect root system development.
An assessment of the hybrids' resistance to pest and disease damage and of their biological yield is carried out.
Comparison of the soil-applied scheme in different combinations calculated per hectare and of a post-emergence herbicide at different corn growth stages from 3-7 leaves.
TERMINAL C: Sunflower technology field
The third point for hub participants was the sunflower demo field, where company managers demonstrate an agroecological assessment of sunflower hybrids and analyze the economic efficiency of DEFENDA soil-applied schemes in different combinations calculated per hectare.
The plot presents a unique technology of sunflower sowing with 50 cm row spacing. Study of localized application and the effect of liquid fertilizers on the root system.
You can also explore DEFENDA single-component products in herbicide protection of sunflower when forming tank mixes and analyze the effect of foliar feeding with microelements, amino acids and hormones on the growth, development and yield formation of sunflower.
Duty Free zone
As in every traditional airport. LNZ hub has the passengers' favorite zone — Duty Free. For hub participants the «duty-free» zone is also agro-themed, and without perfume :)
Here hub visitors can learn in detail not only about the products and services of LNZ Group, but also of the company's partners: agricultural machinery, in particular New Holland tractors and a combine, QUIVOGNE tillage equipment and a super-powerful new product on the market — the Fendt IDEAL 9T combine harvester. Ukrainian manufacturer and distributor of crop protection products «Rodynit» also exhibited its products.
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The engine is running, altitude reached!
We wish LNZ Group a tailwind!
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You can visit LNZ Hub until September 20 by registering online in advance on LNZ Group's Facebook page or on the resources of the company's media partners, or by contacting LNZ Group representatives in the regions.
Want to get an invitation? Just book your plane ticket to LNZ Hub!
YOU CAN REGISTER HERE
Nataliia Pomianska, AgroPortal.ua
