From its beginnings to the present day, the French company Novag has undergone rapid technological and economic development, maturing from a “barnyard forge” to a recognized specialist in no-till and conservation agriculture.
The beginnings
“My no-till adventure began in 2009 with a semester abroad in New Zealand as part of my mechanical engineering studies,” recalls Ramzi Frikha, founder, CEO and Export Manager of Novag SAS. It was during an internship at Cross-Slot that he first came into contact with agriculture and became interested in no-till technology and the cultivation method of conservation agriculture. Cross-slot coulter technology had its scientific origins in New Zealand in the 1980s. No-till has been practiced there successfully for a long time. It was also in New Zealand that he met his fellow countryman and later co-founder of Novag, farmer Antoine Bertin. They shared a passion for agricultural technology and no-till and developed the idea of bringing the Cross-Slot coulter from France to Europe.
The milestones
The actual starting signal for this venture was given in 2011: Ramzi Frikha and Antoine Bertin developed their own T-ForcePlus cross-slot coulter and, together with Ramzi’s father Lotfi Frikha, founded the start-up Novag SAS based in western France. Ramzi saw potential for technical improvement in the coulter system. He optimizes the interaction between the cutting disc and openers and stores all components maintenance-free. Antoine Bertin contributes useful practical experience and tests the devices on his own fields. He is an agricultural engineer and runs a farm in Heubécourt-Haricourt near Paris.
In 2018, its no-till technology is ready for series production and Novag expands its production capacity to 50 machines per year at the new factory site in Fressines, western France. As a favorable location with numerous agricultural suppliers within a radius of only 100 km, Novag can concentrate on final assembly and manufactures to order.
This was the starting signal for the internationalization of the company’s activities and Novag delivered its 100th no-till seed drill in February 2021. Novag is using the anniversary to present the new T-ForcePlus 150, which is going to the New Zealand vineyards of Marlborough via Carrfields Ltd.
International business and the German market in particular are developing so positively for Novag that the first sales and service branch is founded in Hanover in 2022. Since then, the 4-person Novag GmbH team has been responsible for sales, marketing, customer service and spare parts service for all Novag customers and sales partners worldwide. The Novag Demo Tour 2022 reaches a record number with more than 200 demonstrations in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and opens up new markets.
In spring 2023, the delivery of a Novag T-ForcePlus 350 to Lower Austria marks the market entry in this country. In addition, the Novag DemoTour 2023 starts, which this time also leads to Poland. This is because Novag gains Agrihandler as a new and exclusive sales partner for Poland and intends to expand its activities in Eastern Europe. April sees the launch of the new Novag T-ForcePlus 250, an additional, particularly compact and lightweight series with a low center of gravity and innovative ballasting system. This means that Novag now also offers small-scale farmers in southern Germany, Austria and Switzerland individual no-till solutions with working widths of between 2 and 3 meters.
Next Generation Farming
Despite this rapid development, Novag retains its start-up mentality with flat hierarchies and consistently pursues its vision of a “better” agriculture. “With our slogan “Next Generation Farming”, we are advocating fundamental changes in the agricultural system. For us, the future lies in the cultivation system of conservation agriculture. It is the core of our corporate philosophy and our sowing technology. Avoiding all tillage and working with varied crop rotations and dense layers of mulch protects the soil from drying out. In addition, arable land in erosion-prone areas such as slopes can be protected from water and wind erosion. However, this only works with no-till and with technology that can cope with these extremely high demands. Our no-till technology has been developed and built precisely for such tough applications. We are convinced that, alongside harvesting technology, the no-till machine will be the key machine in agriculture worldwide in the future. The political and climatic challenges facing agriculture are giving this vision a boost. Farmers around the world are observing that their soils are becoming increasingly depleted, while the cost of inputs is rising and skilled labor is in short supply. They are questioning conventional cultivation methods and are looking for individual solutions to improve the health and structure of their soils, maintain their yield levels, save valuable working time and improve the profitability of their farms. That’s why we see ourselves not only as a provider of modern, high-quality no-till technology, but also as an ambassador for conservation agriculture,” says Ramzi Frikha, explaining the company’s philosophy.
Concept of direct sales & partnerships
Novag is currently successful in over 15 countries in and outside Europe and relies on a flexible concept of direct sales and sales partnerships. The three most important markets in terms of sales figures are Germany, Latvia and Australia/New Zealand.
“Around 25 Novag machines are in operation in our home market of France. We want to continue to grow here, but so far no-till has had a low-input image among French farmers. It’s completely different in Germany. There is now a large community of no-till professionals here,” says Lucas Zickermann, Sales and Product Manager Novag GmbH, Germany.
Novag serves the French, German and, since this spring, the Austrian market through direct sales. In the other countries, the company is represented by sales partners. Novag is looking for additional importers for Great Britain, where some Novag machines are already in operation, and the new Swiss market, historically one with the greatest no-till expertise.
Sharing know-how and network
In countries with little no-till history, such as Germany, direct sales have proven their worth. “Customer proximity and networking are key components of our success here. After all, we are not just selling sowing technology, but essentially a completely new cultivation system. We support our customers very closely and they appreciate the fact that we provide them with the necessary know-how and our network of no-till experts and practitioners. As part of individual machine demonstrations, our own soils events, our annual roadshow and at trade fairs, we bring together people interested in soil and no-till and share knowledge and experience. In addition to our unique Novag T-Slot coulter system and the sustainability of our technology, this is exactly what sets us apart from the competition,” says Lucas Zickermann and explains: “We offer no-till technology in the premium segment. It is designed and built so solidly and robustly that it will last a lifetime. A no-till machine from Novag is an investment for life and for future generations. It pays for itself through the overall process and the benefits that result from this farming method.”
Outlook
In Germany, 40 machines will be in operation by the summer. This is the target that Novag wants to achieve there every year in the future. Accordingly, Novag GmbH will be expanding its team by two service technicians in the short term and is also planning to expand its spare parts supply in Germany in the future with spare parts warehouses at local service partners and a spare parts center.
The first machine has been in operation in Austria since this month. With the new Novag T-ForcePlus 250 series, Novag sees good opportunities here to place a double-digit number of machines within the next two years. The new series should also help with market entry in Switzerland, where Novag is currently carrying out a special demonstration tour aimed at attracting potential sales partners as well as customers.
In all three countries, Novag sees potential for its no-till technology in the in-house mechanization of smaller farms as well as in inter-company use by machinery rings and contractors.
At Agritechnica, Novag plans to present the new Novag T-ForcePlus 250 and, as a premiere, a Novag T-ForcePlus 950 on tracks with 9 m working width. The target group for the new top model is large-scale farms, particularly in Eastern Europe, Oceania and, in future, Africa.