S&W Seed Company (Nasdaq : SANW) today announced the continued expansion of its Australian commercial sales organization with the appointment of Shane Kable as Territory Sales Manager in the state of New South Wales in Australia. The appointment of Mr. Kable in New South Wales follows the recent appointment of Nick Willey as Sales Technology Lead, and accompanies the appointments of David Callachor, the Company’s Commercial Manager of Hybrid Field Crops, and Will Bazley, Territory Sales Manager in Queensland.
Mark Wong, President and CEO of S&W Seed Company, commented, “Earlier this year, S&W made the strategic decision to build out its alfalfa, sorghum and sunflower commercial sales focus in Australia. S&W has had a strong presence in Australia through its 2013 alfalfa seed acquisition of Seed Genetics, and its sorghum and sunflower acquisition of SV Genetics in 2016, although the focus of those transactions was primarily on R&D and production, not commercial sales. We believe Australia presents a great opportunity for us due to the stable political and regulatory environment, the fact that much of our germ plasm across our alfalfa, sorghum and sunflower programs was developed in Australia and thus performs very well given the characteristics of the geography, and we believe the size of the market provide us an exciting opportunity to drive global market share relative to other emerging market opportunities. We are excited to further our commercialization efforts in the country and believe someone of Shane’s experience will serve us well.”
Shane Kable has built a strong sales and agronomy career over the past 20 years in the Wee Waa Region of New South Wales in Australia. Mr. Kable most recently served as Field Marketing Agronomist for AGNVET Agribusiness Services from 2007 to the present. From 1998 to 2007 Mr. Kable was employed by Queensland Cotton LTD, including as a Sales Agronomist from 1998 to 2001 and as a Technical Services Officer from 2001 to 2007. Mr. Kable has capably served the agricultural community in the Wee Waa region of New South Wales in various capacities, including sales; product development; crop nutrition; crop rotation; herbicide and insect management; and other pertinent agricultural issues.
Mr. Kable holds a Bachelors’ Degree in Rural Science and a Graduate Diploma in Natural Resources from the University of New England – Australia, and a Master of Agriculture degree from the University of New England – Australia.
David Callachor, Commercial Manager of Hybrid Field Crops, said, “We are pleased to have Shane Kable assume sales and management responsibilities in the state of New South Wales. Over the past two decades Shane has developed a large network of customers. He is an agricultural expert with extensive experience to consult and advise S&W customers in the region. He thoroughly understands the intricacies of operating in the region and we believe he will be an important resource to both our customers and to the S&W agronomic brain trust. We look forward to his leadership to more fully develop our business in the New South Wales region.”
About S&W Seed Company
Founded in 1980, S&W Seed Company is a global agricultural company headquartered in Sacramento, California. S&W’s vision is to be the world’s preferred proprietary seed Company which supplies a range of forage and specialty crop products that supports the growing global demand for animal proteins and healthier consumer diets. S&W is a global leader in alfalfa seed, with significant research and development, production and distribution capabilities. S&W’s capabilities span the world’s alfalfa seed production regions, with operations in the Western United States, including the San Joaquin and Imperial Valleys of California, Australia, and Canada, and S&W sells its seed products in more than 30 countries around the globe. S&W also provides hybrid sorghum and sunflower and is utilizing its research and breeding expertise to develop and produce stevia, the all-natural, zero calorie sweetener for the food and beverage industry. For more information, please visit www.swseedco.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
This release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities This release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. “Forward-looking statements” describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as “may,” “future,” “plan” or “planned,” “will” or “should,” “expected,” “anticipates,” “draft,” “eventually” or “projected.” Forward-looking statements in this release include, but are not limited to, statements concerning commercial opportunities in Australia for our products, including with respect to performance of our products in the region and anticipated market size, our ability to increase global market share, the impact of Mr. Kable’s addition on the development of our business in the New South Wales region, and the advancement of our strategic plans and commercialization strategies. You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risk that our strategic initiatives may not achieve the expected results, and risks associated with our ability to successfully optimize and commercialize our business. These and other risks are identified in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including without limitation our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2017, and in our other filings subsequently made with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date on which they were made. We do not undertake any obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of the receipt of new information, the occurrence of future events or otherwise.