The world is a stage for AgraCo marketing
The world is a stage for AgraCo marketing
International markets are highly evident on the passport of David Webster. This chief executive officer of AgraCo Technologies International LLC in Lafayette Hill, PA, travels to distant parts of the world about once a month as he promotes a variety of agricultural technologies.
AgraCo's products include "Extend-A-Life" ethylene removal filters; "Produce Saver" sachets to extend fruit and vegetable shelf life; "Nitro Max," a microbial fertilizer; and "No Fly Zone," which is a non-toxic fly trap.
AgraCo was launched five years ago when Mr. Webster bought the ethylene removal business from Agway. Mr. Webster is CEO and a partner in the business with company President Ken Potter.
"We set up the business not only because of the ethylene removal products but to market the many technologies invented by scientists and engineers," Mr. Webster told The Produce News. These "inventors of good products in many cases don't know how to market. Our intention is to add one or two of these products a year to our line. We try to find technologies that are ag-related and maybe also have consumer applications."
He said, for example, that the Produce Saver sachets are effective in commercial markets for packers and shippers but the company also packaged a retail version to be sold to consumers for home use to extend fruit and vegetable life in refrigerator bins. The fly traps have been used by the U.S. Army in Iraq, but also are effective in consumers' backyards, he said. "We also have poultry houses, dairy farms and packing facilities that use our non-toxic fly traps."
Mr. Webster said that AgraCo's products are currently used in a number of countries, including Nicaragua, South Korea, Brazil, Israel, Egypt, the Dominican Republic, Croatia, China, Indonesia, Morocco and Uganda. The fly traps are also used on the base camp of the largest private game preserve in South Africa.
Mr. Webster thrives on the international travel and is heavily involved with global trade groups in Philadelphia and the state of Pennsylvania. Late in 2005, he participated in a Philadelphia World Trade Center trade mission to Brazil, Chile and Argentina. Two weeks later he traveled to Beijing to promote his technologies to the Science & Technology Organizing Committee of the XXIX Olympiad. He is in the running to sell ethylene removal goods for the cold storages and restaurants of the upcoming 2008 Beijing Olympics. AgraCo's fertilizers may be used on the Olympic Village turf and the non-toxic fly traps for protecting Olympic parks and refuge areas.
"People have no idea how beautiful and powerful China is," Mr. Webster said. "They're going to make sure everyone knows through the Olympics."
A week after the China trip, Mr. Webster flew to Morocco to attend an agricultural exposition with a Moroccan distributor.
Mr. Webster noted that AgraCo has others in his company who concentrate on developing the "very important" U.S. market. "I spend much of my time on the international side. That may be a longer term effort, but the orders are larger. We generally make international sales by the container, vs. cases" in domestic sales. Foreign governments recognize that food produced by domestic agriculture is critical to national economies, and so Mr. Webster's efforts "are very well received by private industry and the governments" abroad.
"People are people around the world," he said. "They want to know how to do better business, how to have better lives and how to help their families." Mr. Webster noted that the World Trade Center Association's motto is "peace through trade," adding, "I absolutely believe in that. If business people were allowed to do business, I doubt if there would be that many wars."
He added, "I enjoy visiting other countries because not everything was invented in the U.S. I constantly look for new and different products that are not on the market in the U.S. We also look at how people market and merchandise fruits and vegetables." For instance, Chinese airports have produce stores that have nice displays of produce that the Chinese give as gifts, he said. Furthermore, Chinese hotels serve grape tomatoes and cut fruit that are part of the daily fruit intake.
In addition to his involvement in the advisory board of the Philadelphia World Trade Center, Mr. Webster sits on the board of directors of the International Visitors Council of Philadelphia. This organization is partially funded by the United States to bring up-and-coming international leaders to this country. He is also on the board of the Jamaican Trade Council, he is a past board member of the United Fresh Fruit & Vegetable Association, and he served on several committees for United and the Produce Marketing Association. He noted that AgraCo has been recognized by Commercial News USA, a U.S. Department of Commerce publication, as the "Exporter of the Year in 2005" under the agricultural category.
Mr. Webster entered the produce business in 1974 working for Dole. He also worked for Orval Kent Food Co. and Coronet Foods. Before starting AgraCo, he was president of Agway CPG Technologies.
"I've had some ups and downs in this industry," he stated. "But the key is to never, never give up."
Persistence can lead to interesting opportunities. He recently was invited to Washington to meet with Said Tayeb Jawad, Afghanistan's ambassador to the United States. Mr. Jawad "invited me to the Afghan Embassy in Washington to discuss the rebuilding of the agricultural sector in Afghanistan," said. Mr. Webster. "Afghanistan was a major producer of fresh fruits and vegetables for the country and region before the Taliban took over. They are very much committed to rebuilding this portion of their economy. They have also been working with the organization Roots for Peace and held an informational meeting this past November called Harvest of Hope - Turning Mines Into Vines. The purpose of this collaboration is to replace the scourge of landmines with the nectar of sweet Afghan grapes."
Mr. Jawad is one of many international dignitaries whom Mr. Webster has met.
"International business sometimes takes time to develop, but once you get the business, you usually have a customer that stays with you for a very long time. Personal relationships may be more important than pricing" in such international deals, he said. "In most cases, our international customers treat us like family when we visit them. One time I went to a customer's family wedding in India. It was a three-day wedding and I stayed in their guest house. I saw a Hindu ceremony that few Americans have ever seen. When they come here, we treat them like family as well."
AgraCo's products include "Extend-A-Life" ethylene removal filters; "Produce Saver" sachets to extend fruit and vegetable shelf life; "Nitro Max," a microbial fertilizer; and "No Fly Zone," which is a non-toxic fly trap.
AgraCo was launched five years ago when Mr. Webster bought the ethylene removal business from Agway. Mr. Webster is CEO and a partner in the business with company President Ken Potter.
"We set up the business not only because of the ethylene removal products but to market the many technologies invented by scientists and engineers," Mr. Webster told The Produce News. These "inventors of good products in many cases don't know how to market. Our intention is to add one or two of these products a year to our line. We try to find technologies that are ag-related and maybe also have consumer applications."
He said, for example, that the Produce Saver sachets are effective in commercial markets for packers and shippers but the company also packaged a retail version to be sold to consumers for home use to extend fruit and vegetable life in refrigerator bins. The fly traps have been used by the U.S. Army in Iraq, but also are effective in consumers' backyards, he said. "We also have poultry houses, dairy farms and packing facilities that use our non-toxic fly traps."
Mr. Webster said that AgraCo's products are currently used in a number of countries, including Nicaragua, South Korea, Brazil, Israel, Egypt, the Dominican Republic, Croatia, China, Indonesia, Morocco and Uganda. The fly traps are also used on the base camp of the largest private game preserve in South Africa.
Mr. Webster thrives on the international travel and is heavily involved with global trade groups in Philadelphia and the state of Pennsylvania. Late in 2005, he participated in a Philadelphia World Trade Center trade mission to Brazil, Chile and Argentina. Two weeks later he traveled to Beijing to promote his technologies to the Science & Technology Organizing Committee of the XXIX Olympiad. He is in the running to sell ethylene removal goods for the cold storages and restaurants of the upcoming 2008 Beijing Olympics. AgraCo's fertilizers may be used on the Olympic Village turf and the non-toxic fly traps for protecting Olympic parks and refuge areas.
"People have no idea how beautiful and powerful China is," Mr. Webster said. "They're going to make sure everyone knows through the Olympics."
A week after the China trip, Mr. Webster flew to Morocco to attend an agricultural exposition with a Moroccan distributor.
Mr. Webster noted that AgraCo has others in his company who concentrate on developing the "very important" U.S. market. "I spend much of my time on the international side. That may be a longer term effort, but the orders are larger. We generally make international sales by the container, vs. cases" in domestic sales. Foreign governments recognize that food produced by domestic agriculture is critical to national economies, and so Mr. Webster's efforts "are very well received by private industry and the governments" abroad.
"People are people around the world," he said. "They want to know how to do better business, how to have better lives and how to help their families." Mr. Webster noted that the World Trade Center Association's motto is "peace through trade," adding, "I absolutely believe in that. If business people were allowed to do business, I doubt if there would be that many wars."
He added, "I enjoy visiting other countries because not everything was invented in the U.S. I constantly look for new and different products that are not on the market in the U.S. We also look at how people market and merchandise fruits and vegetables." For instance, Chinese airports have produce stores that have nice displays of produce that the Chinese give as gifts, he said. Furthermore, Chinese hotels serve grape tomatoes and cut fruit that are part of the daily fruit intake.
In addition to his involvement in the advisory board of the Philadelphia World Trade Center, Mr. Webster sits on the board of directors of the International Visitors Council of Philadelphia. This organization is partially funded by the United States to bring up-and-coming international leaders to this country. He is also on the board of the Jamaican Trade Council, he is a past board member of the United Fresh Fruit & Vegetable Association, and he served on several committees for United and the Produce Marketing Association. He noted that AgraCo has been recognized by Commercial News USA, a U.S. Department of Commerce publication, as the "Exporter of the Year in 2005" under the agricultural category.
Mr. Webster entered the produce business in 1974 working for Dole. He also worked for Orval Kent Food Co. and Coronet Foods. Before starting AgraCo, he was president of Agway CPG Technologies.
"I've had some ups and downs in this industry," he stated. "But the key is to never, never give up."
Persistence can lead to interesting opportunities. He recently was invited to Washington to meet with Said Tayeb Jawad, Afghanistan's ambassador to the United States. Mr. Jawad "invited me to the Afghan Embassy in Washington to discuss the rebuilding of the agricultural sector in Afghanistan," said. Mr. Webster. "Afghanistan was a major producer of fresh fruits and vegetables for the country and region before the Taliban took over. They are very much committed to rebuilding this portion of their economy. They have also been working with the organization Roots for Peace and held an informational meeting this past November called Harvest of Hope - Turning Mines Into Vines. The purpose of this collaboration is to replace the scourge of landmines with the nectar of sweet Afghan grapes."
Mr. Jawad is one of many international dignitaries whom Mr. Webster has met.
"International business sometimes takes time to develop, but once you get the business, you usually have a customer that stays with you for a very long time. Personal relationships may be more important than pricing" in such international deals, he said. "In most cases, our international customers treat us like family when we visit them. One time I went to a customer's family wedding in India. It was a three-day wedding and I stayed in their guest house. I saw a Hindu ceremony that few Americans have ever seen. When they come here, we treat them like family as well."
