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Two brothers haul grain together during grain harvest…
One brother is in the combine while the other is driving a semi to their local grain facility. While the brothers are doing different jobs; they’re both able to see the moisture of the grain, the protein, how much they’ve delivered against their contract, what the prices are at–– instantly, no matter where they are. This instance is not a distant dream, it is actually happening at grain facilities such as The Arthur Companies, headquartered in Arthur, North Dakota. These brothers are able to have automated, real-time data through their Bushel-powered grain facility app.
Bushel is the grain industry’s first software platform that allows grain facilities, cooperatives and ethanol facilities to digitally connect with their growers to deliver real-time information that informs better business decisions. Headquartered in Fargo, North Dakota, the Bushel team pays homage to its home state by finding solutions to assist the strong ag community that attests for the financial success of the state. Bushel’s team is deep rooted in North Dakota agriculture. Many team members have farm backgrounds and wanted to find a way to give back to the farms. By having these strong connections within the agriculture community, the Bushel team has pinpointed what it is in a technology solution farmers actually want.
“If your business is not able to be on my phone with fast, reliable data, you are wasting my time.”
That is a quote from a farmer who is involved in making strategic decisions about technology at his local grain facility. They spent two days covering an agenda that was heavily focused on technology investments that their organization was looking to make in the next two years. The Bushel platform was on their shortlist of technology options because of the fast, reliable data that could be easily accessed on farmers’ phones.
There are over 900+ grain buying locations currently launched under the Bushel platform, serving thousands of happy farmers throughout the United States and Canada.
One of these happy farmers, Ryan Evans, hauls to Scranton Equity in Scranton, North Dakota. Evans has been using his Bushel-powered Scranton Equity app since its August 2017 release.
The mobile aspect of real-time scale tickets, contracts, cash bids, prepaids, eSignature and more is what really drove Evans to download the app. Before having access to the information he needed daily, Evans relied on his home desktop computer to log in to the Scranton Equity website, and then search through his statements in order to find critical information.
Not only was this a pain to be able to get timely information, it was sometimes logistically impossible to get to the computer during the work day and the login process itself required more effort than necessary. When asked about the login process for the Scranton Equity app, Evans answered that he didn’t even remember how he first logged in because “it was that simple.”
During different times of the year, farmers like Evans rely on different bits of information to make the best decisions suited for that time. Knowing how many inputs you’ve prepaid for from your grain facility is crucial during spring planting. “Prepaids are very useful this time of year and I end up using that feature more than once a day,” said Evans. The time of year can demonstrate different information needed. Evans appreciates the information at his fingertips that the Scranton app has provided him. “You can keep track of loads coming in and don’t have to call back and forth about a ticket while you’re driving,” Evans continued. “Calling the grain buyer you’re hauling to had been the standard previously in order to know how much grain you have brought in, or how much is left on a contract.” With the Bushel-powered custom branded app, farmers like Evans have this information with them at all times, in real-time.
However, access to this information hasn’t kept Evans from calling his local grain buyer. Evans said that while he might be calling a bit less, he is having more meaningful conversations with his grain facility. “It’s quicker to get to the important stuff,” said Evans. Is his Bushel-powered app helping him strengthen his business relationship with Scranton Equity?
With no hesitation, Evans says, “For sure.”