News

Unlocking Production Through Smart Input Models

At the Smart Seeds & Fertiliser Innovation Forum, on 26–27 August 2026, Ryan New, Managing Director of The Original Grain Company, explores how smarter agricultural finance models can help unlock production and support the long-term growth of South African farmers.

Agriculture continues to grow in value, but rising production costs, increasing farming debt and pressure on margins mean that access to finance alone is not enough.

The challenge is ensuring that capital reaches farmers at the right time and is supported by the systems needed to turn agricultural inputs into successful production and, ultimately, marketable crops.

Moving beyond standalone agricultural credit
Traditional agricultural lending can fail even when the underlying credit decision is sound.

Finance may be approved too late for the planting window. Inputs may arrive late or be incorrectly specified. Production risks may only become visible after damage has occurred. And repayment structures may not align with the realities of a seasonal agricultural cash cycle.

A smarter approach is to finance the production system, rather than the farmer in isolation.

This means bringing together:
• capital
• appropriate agricultural inputs
• agronomic support
• production and field data
• market access and offtake
• controlled repayment mechanisms

The result is a financing model built around a verified production plan with visible milestones throughout the season.

Different crops need different financing models
There is no single finance structure that works for every agricultural operation.

Smart input finance can take several forms, including input-on-credit programmes, offtake-backed finance, managed-input services and blended funding structures.

The correct approach depends on the crop, its production cycle, the risks that can be controlled and the point at which income is generated.

For grains and oilseeds, for example, finance may be linked to inputs, insurance and repayment from silo or buyer proceeds. Other agricultural sectors may require completely different structures.

The principle remains the same: finance should follow the agricultural cash cycle, rather than forcing agricultural production into an arbitrary repayment schedule.

Building the system around the farmer
Effective agricultural finance also requires the different parties in the value chain to take responsibility for the risks they are best equipped to manage.

Input suppliers can help manage product quality. Agronomists and farmers manage field execution. Insurers can address weather and biological risks. Buyers provide market certainty and settlement channels. Financiers provide capital and financial discipline.

When these functions operate as part of one coordinated system, finance becomes more closely linked to actual production.

This can also create a pathway for developing farmers to progress over time — from supported seasonal production to repeat financing, revolving facilities and ultimately investment in longer-term assets and expansion.

From finance to production
The objective is not simply to extend more agricultural credit.

It is to create the conditions in which finance can successfully translate into hectares planted, crops harvested, markets supplied and sustainable farming businesses.

By building the production system around the finance, smart agricultural models have the potential to unlock the next hectare, the next season and the next generation of South African producers.

Click here for details