S And W Seed Co's

Competition in the alfalfa seed industry both domestically and internationally is intense. We face direct competition by other seed companies, including small family-owned businesses, as well as subsidiaries or other affiliates of chemical, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, many of which have substantially greater resources than we do.

Our principal competitors in our alfalfa seed business are Forage Genetics International (a subsidiary of Land O Lakes, Inc.), Alforex Seeds (owned by Dow AgroSciences LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company), Seed Services, Inc. and Pacific International Seed Company, Inc. We believe that the key competitive drivers in the industry are proven performance, customer support in the field and value, which takes into account not simply the price of the seed but also yield in the field.

Breeding a new variety of alfalfa seed takes many years and considerable expertise and skill. We believe that our reputation for breeding and producing high-quality proprietary varieties of alfalfa seed that manifest the traits the farmers need provide us with a competitive advantage, not only in the niche market for high salt- and heat-tolerant, non-dormant alfalfa seed, which has been our core business for several decades, but also, with the December 2014 acquisition of the research and development assets of DuPont Pioneer, in the full range of dormant varieties suited for colder climates as well. We believe our research and development capabilities are unmatched in the industry and provide us with a distinct competitive advantage.

In addition to our competitors, SGIs principal regional competitors in the proprietary alfalfa seed market are Heritage Seeds Pty. Ltd. Blue Ribbon Seeds Pty. Ltd., PGG Wrightson Seeds Ltd, Naracoorte Seeds Pty. Ltd., Seed Distributors Pty. Ltd. and various other minor companies compete with SGI through sales of Siriver, a common alfalfa variety. SGI also faces competition from lower value alfalfa seed produced in the European Union and, to a lesser extent, Argentina. With the exception of Blue Ribbon Seeds, SGI faces similar competitors in its proprietary white clover business. These companies compete with SGI for acres and in sales by selling Haifa, a common white clover variety. Competitively priced white clover is also produced and sold from the European Union and New Zealand.

In relation to the SV Genetics business, sorghum and sunflower genetics tend to be concentrated globally amongst a few large international companies, resulting in a significant barrier to entry for many intermediate and regionally based seed companies and their reliance on just a few suppliers for elite genetics.

Despite the advantages we perceive we have over many of our competitors, many of our existing and potential competitors have substantially greater research and product development capabilities and financial, marketing and human resources than we do. As a result, these competitors may:

succeed in developing products that are equal to or superior to our products or potential products or that achieve greater market acceptance than our products or potential products;
devote greater resources to developing, marketing or selling their products;
respond more quickly to new or emerging technologies or scientific advances and changes in customer requirements, which could render our products or potential products obsolete or less preferable;

obtain patents that block or otherwise inhibit our ability to develop and commercialize potential products we might otherwise develop;
withstand price competition more successfully than we can;

establish cooperative relationships among themselves or with third parties that enhance their ability to address the needs of our customers or prospective customers;
take advantage of acquisition or other opportunities more readily than we can; and
control acreage and growers located in zones where GMO seed production is forbidden, thereby lessening the risks of GMO traits contaminating seed produced for overseas markets.

We are not aware of any significant domestic or international persons or companies engaged in ongoing stevia breeding activities similar to or that could be considered competitive with our stevia breeding program.