380. AgReliant Genetics’ Dave Pugh on GDM + uniting strengths to deliver innovation to the American farmer

·32 min·3 clips

Dave Pugh, CFO of AgReliant Genetics, discusses the pending GDM acquisition and its impact on 180 million acres of corn and soybeans.

The episode begins with a disclaimer about GDM's pending acquisition of AgReliant Genetics, subject to regulatory approvals. Host Kayla Chittister introduces guest host Megan DeVelvis, who interviews Dave Pugh. Pugh shares his background in computer science, risk management, and finance, with roles at Eli Lilly and Elanco. He recounts a formative experience as a Lilly sales rep during the Cialis launch, learning about formal corporate culture. His work in Brazil for Lilly's animal health assessment exposed him to informal customer relationships in agriculture. Pugh joined AgReliant to focus on innovation for American farmers, noting 95 million acres of corn and 83 million acres of soybeans in the U.S. He discusses GDM's acquisition, highlighting GDM's 15% R&D spend and 55% of employees in R&D, which aligns with AgReliant's innovation focus. Pugh explains the importance of reliable innovation amid uncertainty for farmers. He delves into decision sciences, learned from Jay Anderson at Lilly, applying Monte Carlo simulation and behavioral techniques to reduce bias in forecasting. Pugh describes AgReliant's forecasting process, which uses data from sales reps to create 80% confidence intervals. After a break sponsored by Indiana Farm Bureau, the conversation shifts to AgReliant's brand portfolio, including Agrigold, LG Seeds, and Pride Seeds, spanning 31 U.S. states and Canada. Pugh notes the emotional connection farmers have to seed brands. He discusses AgReliant's R&D engine, with 100,000 hybrids tested and 500 pre-commercial research plots. Pugh shares an anecdote about teaching an economics class at Purdue, where he realized discussing tariffs was a distraction from focusing on farmers. He uses a Jurassic Park analogy to emphasize the danger of distraction. The episode concludes with Pugh's excitement about integrating corn and soybean genetics as GDM North America, aiming to increase yields for farmers.

As heard by us

A grounded look at how decision science can support agricultural forecasting while GDM's AgReliant deal remains conditional.

GDM's proposed acquisition of AgReliant Genetics gives this AgBioScience episode a focused business question: how seed companies can make innovation dependable for farmers.

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Want to see what anchor bias does to a seed-sales forecast before it becomes a business decision? Press play.

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