Companies Involved with the Export
There are many different companies across Canada that supply rutabagas including NORSECO, W.H. Perron, Stokes, and Veseys. However, the company that will be focused on is NORSECO. This company is headquartered in Montreal, Quebec and is one of the most popular seed distributer in Canada (NORSECO, 2013). It currently sells its Laurentian Thomson rutabagas for $2.22 per thousand seeds (NORSECO, 2013). However, if bought in bulk, the price goes down. For example, if 500 000 seeds are purchased the price of seeds goes down to $1.179 CAN per thousand seeds for a total of $589.5 CAN (NORSECO, 2016). The company distributes its seeds from its warehouse in Laval, Quebec across Canada (NORSECO, 2013). It is currently working with horticultural companies from different parts of the worlds to increase its commercial agreements and therefore could be a great potential company to work with to export seeds to Nepal (NORSECO, 2013)
Required Documentation
Like any other product being exported to another country, seeds require documentation called a phytosanitary certificate (FAO, 2016). Since seeds can carry pathogens and pests, they must be certified in order to ensure diseases are not carried into other countries (FAO, 2016). Some of the information that must be put on the certificate are the plant protection agencies of Nepal and Canada, name of product, scientific name, place of origin, type of passage, and many more (FAO, 2016). In order to export rutabagas to Nepal this certificate must by obtained.
Transportation
To get the rutabaga seeds to Nepal, there are many methods that can be used. Since seeds are not a huge product it does not make sense to ship by boat. Instead, air freight is a more efficient method. Using the shipping company UPS to ship the product from NORSECO’s warehouse in Laval, Quebec to Kathmandu, Nepal it would cost $249.40 CAN (UPS, 2016). In the Nepalese currency, this would equal 20 191.69 rupees. Once in Nepal the seeds would be delivered to the National Seed Board where they would be trucked to the hill region. However, transportation to this region often comes at a high cost. If rutabaga seeds can make it to the hills region in Nepal, farmers throughout the region would benefit greatly.
Competition
When exporting a product to a foreign country, there is always competition with other countries. Since Canada and Nepal are separated by an ocean, there are closer countries that could export the product at a cheaper cost that would make it more affordable to the Nepalese. One of these countries is India. As the second largest vegetable producer in the world, India also produces a lot of seed (Kumari, Singh, & Vanitha, 2014). India could be a potential competitor for seed supply, however, they were not discovered to grow rutabagas. However, India could still pose a problem as they can offer new seeds that are cheaper, that offer the same benefits as rutabagas.
Total Costs
One of the major crisis ailing Nepal is poverty, with 55% of the population living in poverty (Regmi et al., 2013). Many farmers in Nepal cannot afford to buy new technologies, including seeds, that could greatly improve their farming practices (Conroy et al., 2012). Therefore, one important question must be asked: Can farmers in Nepal afford to purchase rutabaga seeds? If a 33.15 lbs. bucket, containing 500 000 seeds, is purchased the price would be $589.5 CAN (NORSECO, 2016). With shipping, the total price would be $838.90 CAN which is equivalent to 67 999.19 rupees. For a Nepalese farmer, this would be very expensive as they earn an average of $1.25 per day (Regmi et al., 2013). One way to combat this expensive price tag would to be to go through an organization like the National Seed Board (Shrestha, 2012). This public-sector organization’s purpose is to organize seed programs and control the release of new seeds (Shrestha, 2012). If the National Seed Board were to purchase the seeds, they could distribute the seeds to farmers in the hills region. With this strategy, exporting rutabaga seeds would be more affordable for the average Nepalese farmer.
Marketing
Most farmers in Nepal do not know when a new variety of seed is released (Johsi, 2000). In order for farmers to learn of the release of rutabaga seeds, advertising must be done which could be in the form of pamphlets. This form of advertising would be particularly effective as it can tell farmers the seed variety available, how they should be grow, harvesting, and storing techniques, and the benefits of rutabagas. One challenge with this method is many Nepalese are illiterate (Conroy, 2012). To combat this the pamphlet would have to be in pictures so the Nepalese can understand fully why they should grow rutabagas.
Challenges
In general, the Nepalese have very limited access to new varieties of seeds due to problems in distribution and production (Devkota, Joshi, Witcombe, 2010). Seeds from commercial companies and the public sector account for a maximum of 10% the seeds distributed in Nepal (Devkota et al., 2010). Seeds are usually saved by farmers and then exchanged between farmers within their communities (Shrestha, 2012). As a result, it poses a problem for the export of rutabagas seeds. If farmers save seeds, exporting them would not create a continuous cycle of trade. However, the Nepalese would be primarily using rutabagas as a food source and since they are a biennial plant, it means that they would not be able to save seeds as well as other crops (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 2014). Additionally, if they set aside plants for seeds, the root of those plants would become inedible (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 2014). To still have the stable food source rutabagas offer, the Nepalese would still need to get some seeds from other sources other than their own supply of seeds. Even if farmers do not save the rutabaga seeds, supplying the farmers with seeds is still a challenge. The seed system in Nepal is very weak (Joshi, 2000). According to Deepa Singh Shrestha (2012), a scientist with the Horticulture Research Division in Nepal, the three major weaknesses of the seed system are insufficient breeders, limited access to modern breeding techniques, and not enough marketing knowledge. These weaknesses provide opportunities for Canada seed exports but also poses a lot of problems. Due to the lack of marketing, farmers often do not know of new varieties of seeds being released (Joshi, 2000). If rutabagas seeds are exported to Nepal, farmers may not know that they have the opportunity to grow a new variety of crop. Another weakness of the seed system is role of the public sector in seed distribution (Devkota et al., 2010). The main distributor of seed in the public sector is the National Seed Board (Shrestha, 2012). As highlighted above, this sector distributes very little of the seed found in Nepal, and is the board that would regulate the release of the rutabaga seeds (Devkota et al.,2010). All of these challenges pose problems in exporting rutabaga seeds to Nepal.
Projected Success of Export
In Nepal, this export would have great success. Rutabagas would provide the Nepalese with a food source that stores well and is very nutritious to help prevent food insecurity and malnutrition (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 2014). To help alleviate poverty, rutabagas can help increase yields and provide an income for farmers (Bishal et al., 2008; Shrestha, 2012). Along with these successes, there are many challenges facing the exportation of rutabagas, as highlighted previously. One of the biggest challenges that will be faced is that farmers save their seeds for the next year (Devkota et al., 2010). Once rutabaga seeds are introduced, the Nepalese would not rely on Canada to continue to export seeds for them to plant. Even though rutabaga seeds are biennial and take two years to produce the seeds, farmers in Nepal would still set aside plant to go to seed simply because it is more cost productive. However, some farmers will take the option of buying seeds as the roots of plants that have gone to seed are inedible, and it is more profitable to harvest all the plants each year. This challenge significantly decreases the success of exporting rutabaga seeds as only a small percentage of farmers will continue to the purchase seeds.
There are many different companies across Canada that supply rutabagas including NORSECO, W.H. Perron, Stokes, and Veseys. However, the company that will be focused on is NORSECO. This company is headquartered in Montreal, Quebec and is one of the most popular seed distributer in Canada (NORSECO, 2013). It currently sells its Laurentian Thomson rutabagas for $2.22 per thousand seeds (NORSECO, 2013). However, if bought in bulk, the price goes down. For example, if 500 000 seeds are purchased the price of seeds goes down to $1.179 CAN per thousand seeds for a total of $589.5 CAN (NORSECO, 2016). The company distributes its seeds from its warehouse in Laval, Quebec across Canada (NORSECO, 2013). It is currently working with horticultural companies from different parts of the worlds to increase its commercial agreements and therefore could be a great potential company to work with to export seeds to Nepal (NORSECO, 2013)
Required Documentation
Like any other product being exported to another country, seeds require documentation called a phytosanitary certificate (FAO, 2016). Since seeds can carry pathogens and pests, they must be certified in order to ensure diseases are not carried into other countries (FAO, 2016). Some of the information that must be put on the certificate are the plant protection agencies of Nepal and Canada, name of product, scientific name, place of origin, type of passage, and many more (FAO, 2016). In order to export rutabagas to Nepal this certificate must by obtained.
Transportation
To get the rutabaga seeds to Nepal, there are many methods that can be used. Since seeds are not a huge product it does not make sense to ship by boat. Instead, air freight is a more efficient method. Using the shipping company UPS to ship the product from NORSECO’s warehouse in Laval, Quebec to Kathmandu, Nepal it would cost $249.40 CAN (UPS, 2016). In the Nepalese currency, this would equal 20 191.69 rupees. Once in Nepal the seeds would be delivered to the National Seed Board where they would be trucked to the hill region. However, transportation to this region often comes at a high cost. If rutabaga seeds can make it to the hills region in Nepal, farmers throughout the region would benefit greatly.
Competition
When exporting a product to a foreign country, there is always competition with other countries. Since Canada and Nepal are separated by an ocean, there are closer countries that could export the product at a cheaper cost that would make it more affordable to the Nepalese. One of these countries is India. As the second largest vegetable producer in the world, India also produces a lot of seed (Kumari, Singh, & Vanitha, 2014). India could be a potential competitor for seed supply, however, they were not discovered to grow rutabagas. However, India could still pose a problem as they can offer new seeds that are cheaper, that offer the same benefits as rutabagas.
Total Costs
One of the major crisis ailing Nepal is poverty, with 55% of the population living in poverty (Regmi et al., 2013). Many farmers in Nepal cannot afford to buy new technologies, including seeds, that could greatly improve their farming practices (Conroy et al., 2012). Therefore, one important question must be asked: Can farmers in Nepal afford to purchase rutabaga seeds? If a 33.15 lbs. bucket, containing 500 000 seeds, is purchased the price would be $589.5 CAN (NORSECO, 2016). With shipping, the total price would be $838.90 CAN which is equivalent to 67 999.19 rupees. For a Nepalese farmer, this would be very expensive as they earn an average of $1.25 per day (Regmi et al., 2013). One way to combat this expensive price tag would to be to go through an organization like the National Seed Board (Shrestha, 2012). This public-sector organization’s purpose is to organize seed programs and control the release of new seeds (Shrestha, 2012). If the National Seed Board were to purchase the seeds, they could distribute the seeds to farmers in the hills region. With this strategy, exporting rutabaga seeds would be more affordable for the average Nepalese farmer.
Marketing
Most farmers in Nepal do not know when a new variety of seed is released (Johsi, 2000). In order for farmers to learn of the release of rutabaga seeds, advertising must be done which could be in the form of pamphlets. This form of advertising would be particularly effective as it can tell farmers the seed variety available, how they should be grow, harvesting, and storing techniques, and the benefits of rutabagas. One challenge with this method is many Nepalese are illiterate (Conroy, 2012). To combat this the pamphlet would have to be in pictures so the Nepalese can understand fully why they should grow rutabagas.
Challenges
In general, the Nepalese have very limited access to new varieties of seeds due to problems in distribution and production (Devkota, Joshi, Witcombe, 2010). Seeds from commercial companies and the public sector account for a maximum of 10% the seeds distributed in Nepal (Devkota et al., 2010). Seeds are usually saved by farmers and then exchanged between farmers within their communities (Shrestha, 2012). As a result, it poses a problem for the export of rutabagas seeds. If farmers save seeds, exporting them would not create a continuous cycle of trade. However, the Nepalese would be primarily using rutabagas as a food source and since they are a biennial plant, it means that they would not be able to save seeds as well as other crops (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 2014). Additionally, if they set aside plants for seeds, the root of those plants would become inedible (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 2014). To still have the stable food source rutabagas offer, the Nepalese would still need to get some seeds from other sources other than their own supply of seeds. Even if farmers do not save the rutabaga seeds, supplying the farmers with seeds is still a challenge. The seed system in Nepal is very weak (Joshi, 2000). According to Deepa Singh Shrestha (2012), a scientist with the Horticulture Research Division in Nepal, the three major weaknesses of the seed system are insufficient breeders, limited access to modern breeding techniques, and not enough marketing knowledge. These weaknesses provide opportunities for Canada seed exports but also poses a lot of problems. Due to the lack of marketing, farmers often do not know of new varieties of seeds being released (Joshi, 2000). If rutabagas seeds are exported to Nepal, farmers may not know that they have the opportunity to grow a new variety of crop. Another weakness of the seed system is role of the public sector in seed distribution (Devkota et al., 2010). The main distributor of seed in the public sector is the National Seed Board (Shrestha, 2012). As highlighted above, this sector distributes very little of the seed found in Nepal, and is the board that would regulate the release of the rutabaga seeds (Devkota et al.,2010). All of these challenges pose problems in exporting rutabaga seeds to Nepal.
Projected Success of Export
In Nepal, this export would have great success. Rutabagas would provide the Nepalese with a food source that stores well and is very nutritious to help prevent food insecurity and malnutrition (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 2014). To help alleviate poverty, rutabagas can help increase yields and provide an income for farmers (Bishal et al., 2008; Shrestha, 2012). Along with these successes, there are many challenges facing the exportation of rutabagas, as highlighted previously. One of the biggest challenges that will be faced is that farmers save their seeds for the next year (Devkota et al., 2010). Once rutabaga seeds are introduced, the Nepalese would not rely on Canada to continue to export seeds for them to plant. Even though rutabaga seeds are biennial and take two years to produce the seeds, farmers in Nepal would still set aside plant to go to seed simply because it is more cost productive. However, some farmers will take the option of buying seeds as the roots of plants that have gone to seed are inedible, and it is more profitable to harvest all the plants each year. This challenge significantly decreases the success of exporting rutabaga seeds as only a small percentage of farmers will continue to the purchase seeds.