Detroit Lakes, Minn.esota, USA
November 9, 2021
Russell Oberg, Limagrain Cereal Seeds Northern Plains regional commercial manager
Russell Oberg is all about relationships.
Oberg grew up on his family’s farm in the small town of Ulen, Minn., helping tend wheat and sunflower acres along with livestock. After marrying the love of his life, he started a farming operation of his own and ran it for a decade. Then he found his calling: seed sales, where he could nurture and expand on his favorite part about the agriculture industry, connecting with people.
With so much on-farm experience, Oberg was offered a regional sales manager position and began selling canola seed in northern Minnesota and North Dakota. He started from scratch, putting together a dealer network across his 75-mile region and making lasting contacts along the way.
“Some of my relationships are more than 30 years old,” says Oberg, Limagrain Cereal Seeds (LCS) Northern Plains regional commercial manager since 2017. “In fact, now it’s like, ‘How’s your dad doing?’ because I started out working with the father, who has since retired. That means I’ve been around a long time!”
In the case of connecting with LCS, what goes around comes around. One of Oberg’s first contacts as a seed salesman was Dave Hansen, now the president of CANTERRA SEEDS. Hansen heard about an opening at LCS and immediately thought of Oberg.
“I said I might be interested. And Dave’s answer was, ‘That’s good. I already told them you would be.’ He knew me pretty well,” laughs Oberg. “So that’s how I got started with LCS — from a relationship.”
Out in the country
With LCS, Oberg calls on wheat seed dealers and growers throughout Montana, the Dakotas and Minnesota — the largest area he’s ever served by far. But he considers all the traveling a perk, an opportunity to make more connections and help more farmers.
“I’m a people person. I really like to get out and see what’s going on. My strongest suit is meeting people on their turf, getting to know them and building a relationship. Then I try to find solutions. When I’m out in the country, I get an idea quickly how they farm and what they’re looking for.”
Every area is different. South Dakota farmers need consistent returns during drought conditions. In the Red River Valley, eastern North Dakota and western Minnesota, growers know they can get consistency and are looking for higher returns per acre to compete with other crops. West of Bismarck, cattle play into their plans — farmers want wheat they can use as straw or an early-maturing variety.
Oberg credits the diverse portfolio of LCS wheat genetics for being able to serve grower needs by region, farm and even down to the acre level.
“Our lineup is not alike, and that’s a plus because we’re more able to fit niches and solve problems,” asserts Oberg. “LCS Cannon is the earliest wheat on market to harvest with consistent protein. So farmers can get started earlier, or if they have a lot of wheat, they’ll have more time to harvest it. LCS Trigger will out-yield anything. LCS Rebel works really well to the west and has high protein and high grain quality. And LCS Buster is new and high-yielding.”
An exciting time for wheat
Last season saw historic drought conditions in much of the Northern Plains, and Oberg had low expectations for wheat returns. But LCS acres fared well: “Almost all the guys I talked to said the crop was considerably better than they expected,” says Oberg. “We got good performance from all our lines, even in stress conditions.”
Wheat production per acre has risen sharply in the last few years thanks to advances in wheat genetics from LCS and other wheat breeding programs. Oberg thinks the improved production rates will help drive an increased percentage of wheat acres this season, along with the main motivator of price.
“The biggest reason for wheat to increase is the price is finally becoming competitive with other crops,” explains Oberg. “In the last 2–3 years, $5 per bushel was a good market. If they got $6, everybody was happy. Now it’s $9. It’s a new ballgame. And farmers have gotten better at raising wheat, so it doesn't take as many acres to get the bushels.”
In addition to current wheat farmers taking acres from other crops to plant more grain, Oberg predicts growers who haven’t raised wheat for some time will be giving it a second look. He’s ready.
“I have really good seed availability and seed quality,” says Oberg. “Optimism is high.”
A foundation of trust
“LCS’s focus on our breeding program is really second-to-none, and I think the industry is noticing,” says Oberg, adding that multi-location, multi-year testing is part of the vetting process for all LCS varieties, new and old. “We’re in all the trials that we’re aware of. If it’s a public trial, we’re in it. That really adds credibility."
Trial data is important, but growers have other concerns, too: Who am I buying seed from? How far will I have to travel to get it? What is the quality of the seed? Is it consistent?
“Well over half the people I meet are already aware of the LCS product line, and they can — and do — look things up instantly online when they want information,” says Oberg. “I just have to answer questions and make it easy to do business with me.”
It all comes down to relationships. Oberg listens to his customers and provides them with a tailored list of varieties that will perform best on their fields. He also works closely with his network of dealers, wheat experts who have been in the seed business for quite some time and have earned the trust of local farmers. “If their dealer is selling LCS varieties and planting LCS seed themselves, growers know it must be high quality — it must work.”
When Oberg isn’t making connections on wheat fields, he’s helping combat veterans connect and heal off the battlefield. The Brady Oberg Legacy Foundation honors the memory of Oberg’s son by increasing awareness about post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), providing outdoor retreats for combat veterans and offering scholarships to veterans entering mental health careers.
Topics
Species
