The 2023 Retailer Roundtable at ARA: Three Key Takeaways
March 4, 2024 
At the 2023 Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) meeting in Orlando, FL, many topics of interest to ag retailers were discussed. And as it has for the past several years now, CropLife® magazine used the opportunity to host a roundtable of select ag retail representatives, along with guests from event sponsor AGI. Here are the three key takeaways from that half-day long discussion.
1. AI in 2024
Retailer roundtable participants were “cautiously optimistic” that artificial intelligence (AI) developments would progress at a regular pace during the 2024 growing season. Already, many attendees reported working with John Deere’s See & Spray system in their operations during 2023 and expect to continue with these efforts throughout 2024 (although how retailers should charge for these AI-driven services remains an unanswered question at this point). Most participants believed the use of such AI and semi-autonomous vehicles would help alleviate the persistent labor shortages many ag retailers are dealing with in their operations.
Regarding drones, many of the retailers in the roundtable reported working with these units in their operations during 2023 – and expect to continue employing them for 2024. However, instead of actually owning drones themselves, some companies said that they were instead leasing them through third-party operators. For ag retailers that do business in multiple states (with potentially multiple drone regulatory issues to deal with), this has proven to be a more cost-effective approach to drone use.
With all these kinds of technology developments taking place in agriculture, the question was asked if agronomists will become “obsolete over the next five years?” No was the answer. However, the skill set required for agronomists to do their jobs with grower-customers going forward will need to change and become more varied than it currently is.
2. Proactively Finding Labor
Finding and keeping qualified workers remains a big concern for ag retailers. However, according to retailer roundtable participants, many of them are now proactively recruiting their workforces. Some ag retailers have expanded their internship programs, working with their local community and technical colleges to locate future employees. Others have introduced in-house training programs to find commercial driver license (CDLs) holders to join their operations. Another is working with a nearby Army base to identify retirees who might be interested in starting a second career in ag retail. As many roundtable attendees put it: “The labor force isn’t going to grow over the next 10 years. We need to not only find but train the next group of workers with the skills they will need to help our businesses and customers.”
3. Keep an Eye on Interest/Insurance Rates in 2024
With a slew of recent interest rate hikes at the federal level, participants say that these – and rising insurance rates – should be watched carefully during the 2024 growing season. Attendees said these could have a big impact on their overall bottom lines next year if they continue to stay high. Also, participants said in this kind of higher interest/insurance rates environment, proactive inventory management at the ag retail level will be the key for most companies in agriculture to maintain their profitability throughout 2024.
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