Company Evaluation: Agrium Company - Research Paper Example

? Company Evaluation: Agrium Company Company Background Established in 1931, as Cominco Fertilizers Limited (Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company Limited), the company changed its name to Agrium in 1995. Agrium Inc is the main supplier of agricultural products and services in South and North America. On the global perspective, Agrium Inc is a major player in wholesale production and marketing of three major agricultural products, namely, agricultural nutrients, industrial products and specialty fertilizers. The company supplies specialty fertilizers in North America by use of advanced technologies in the business unit (Agrium, 2005). This Canadian company has operations in three fronts, retail, wholesale and Agrium advanced technologies. The headquarters of the company is in Calgary, a town in Canada and has a subsidiary branch in Denver, a town in Colorado. This is the location of the company’s head office in retail. The company takes every available opportunity in improving the performance of crops in the field, market share of the company and growth of its business operations. In this respect over the last decade, the company has seen expansions in its operations and undertakings. For instance, in 1969, the company opened potash operations in Vanscoy and later on built Fort Saskatchewan plant in Alberta. The significance of this was to increase the company’s revenue stream by exporting Potash from Saskatchewan. After changing its name to Agrium in 1995, it took West farm services and Nu west industries. It was in continuation of its expansion trend in 2000 by opening Unocal nitrogen fertilizers (2000), Astaris production limited (2004), Western Canadian Fertilizer distribution (2005), Purcell technologies (2006) and in 2010, the company also acquired over 350 locations in Australia for its operations. Agrium Company is proud of its achievements and its expansion strategies. These strategies are within a framework of financial discipline which is the corners stone of its long term operations. The company equally encourages its staff to grow within the ranks of the establishment as it pursues means and ways of making the organization a good place to work. Markets and Products Agrium Company produces and markets three groups of agricultural nutrients, namely; potash, nitrogen and phosphate. The company produces and markets fertilizers and micro-nutrients. Agrium Company bases its operation across the entire-agricultural value-chain. This means that the company manufactures the products, distributes them to retailers or sells directly to the fields where customers use their products and services on technology commonly referred to as Agrium Advanced Technology. On wholesale, the company produces and distributes potash, nitrogen and phosphate for industrial and agricultural customers around the globe. The particular target groups in its wholesale market are grower’s oilseeds, grains and other crops whose objectives are to enhance crop yields and quality. Around 15% of Agrium sales come from this unit (Chee, 1996). In retail, the company distributes seeds and provides agricultural crop protection services to farmers in order to help them achieve better crop yields. This unit is responsible for supplying crop nutrients, crop production products and services directly to customers in its 872 retail centres, 19 distribution centres and 72 terminals in Chile, Canada, Argentina and United States of America. The target groups of this sector are farmers who want to meet the increasing demand of nutritious food in South and North American markets. The company has certified crop advisors who directly work with growers to provide consultancy services on how to effectively administer crop management program by use of its products. Through its Agrium Advanced Technology, the company the company offers environmentally controlled release fertilizers and products which are in relation to agriculture, consumer lawns and professional turf (Agrium, 2010). The company sells these products to lawn companies, golf course, tree nurseries, horticultural companies and pest control operators. Agrium Inc is in partnership with a number of corporations to enhance the production of its products and services. Some of these companies include: MISR Oil Processing Company in Egypt Crop Production Services in Western Canada United Agri Products Profertil SA Canpotex Current Strategies This section of the report explains three of the key strategic areas that Agrium Inc currently emphasizing: economics, expansion, and social responsibility. Economic Strategies Agrium Inc manages its financial operations in a fair and transparent manner. The company advocates for honest dealings with its suppliers, customers and employees. Agrium adheres to standard level of best practices in economic management. The company prohibits its employees from taking unfair advantage of its suppliers and customers by concealing information that might be useful for the other party in financial aspects. The company prohibits activities that constitutes unfair trade practices, for instance, agreements among competitors to decrease or increase prices, allocate markets and limit the quality of the product. The company also prohibits discrimination in price in relation to products that sell directly under Agrium brand or its affiliates. Unfair trade practices such as trying to create a monopoly are against the company’s policies since it advocates for a competitive market. The company does not pay bribes or loans from its funds in order to influence the conduct of the recipient for its favor in terms of creating a niche in the market. The targeted individuals are any foreign government official, foreign political candidate or political party or an official of a public international organization. The company identifies that the purpose of giving gifts and entertaining business associates is to create a good working conditions and not to gain undue advantage over competitors. Therefore the company does not offer or accept any gift in form of cash or that is in excessive value or that violates the proper payments and foreign business dealings. Expansion Strategies Agrium Inc has opened up several branches all over the world and continues to expand with new properties in United States, Egypt, Australia, Canada, Chile and Argentina. For instance, in 2010, the company acquired over 350 locations in Australia for its expansionist programme. Social Responsibility Strategies Agrium Inc has agronomists who help researchers identify proper crop management tools. The company has in its staff certified crop advisors who work directly with growers advising them on effective use of crop management tools for better crop yield (Agrium, 2004). The company was a key player in developing 4R Global Nutrient Stewardship Framework which was to help reduce the impact of scientific agricultural products to the environment. The company advocates political participation on their behalf and not on an individual basis. The company is against contributing funds to any political party unless authorized by the board of directors in accordance to corporation’s political donations policy. References Agrium Incorporated annual reports and 10-Ks. (2005). Calgary, Alberta: Agrium Inc.. Agrium Products Inc. phosphogypsum storage expansion, Redwater, Alberta. (2004). Edmonton: Natural Resources Conservation Board. Agrium Redwater groundwater monitoring proposal. (2010). Edmonton: Stantec]. Carbon capture & storage: a Canadian environmental superpower opportunity. (2007). S.l.: ICO2N. Chee, E. (1996). Agrium Inc. (AGU - TSE): nitrogen fertilizer stocks are approaching a cyclical peak. Toronto: Nesbitt Burns. Read More