Horticultural supplier Fargrohas announced the launch of a new finance division to help growers access flexible loans that account for seasonal fluctuations.
Fargro Finance will work with specialist lenders to support growers to find the right finance arrangements to expand their business or support their cashflow.
Among other things, the new division will support growers with the purchase or lease of production equipment, the refinancing of existing arrangements, equity release for existing assets, and secured loans for land and buildings.
Fargro Finance will also offer a commercial line of credit service which can work alongside existing bank facilities.
The supplier of bio-pesticides and other horticultural products said it had launched the new arm to meet an increasing demand for “responsible, flexible finance in a sector where cashflow can be greatly impacted by seasonal fluctuations”.
“In the past growers have had to rely on standard banking finance, which rarely takes the crop cycle into account in repayment terms,” the company said.
A Fargro Finance broker will speak with each business to understand their financial needs and to find an effective solution, with the option of seasonally phased repayments to assist the cashflow of the business.
Advice will be based on knowledge and understanding of customers’ businesses gained through years of personal interaction, rather than online and impersonal call centres.
“We know from our strong relationships with UK growers there is an urgent need for more flexible finance options in a sector which is at the mercy of seasonal fluctuations.” said Fargro’s managing director Richard Hopkins.
“Traditional financing options for horticultural firms are often not effective due to a lack of understanding of the sector and the seasonal fluctuations which have such a big impact. We are launching Fargro Finance, to support growers in financing their business with seasonally phased repayments.”
He added: “We are at the forefront of the move towards automation and smart tech to improve horticultural efficiency, but we also understand that financing investment in new technologies can be a struggle,particularly when growers have to rely on standard finance options. We’ll be putting personal relationships back into business finance.”
Fargro Finance will be officially launched atthe Horticulture 4.0 Conferenceon 26October at the University of Chichester.
The conference is hosted by The West Sussex Growers’ Association and aims to explore the evolution of smart technologies and their effect on the future of commercial horticulture.
