Miller Magazine Issue: 122 February 2020

36 NEWS MILLER / FEBRUARY 2020 AGI announces strategic addition to Suretrack Platform Ag Growth International Inc. (AGI) announced that it has acquired 100% of the shares outstanding of Affinity Management Ltd. Affinity was launched in 2007 and cur- rently has 18 employees, with headquarters in Oakville, Ontario . The transaction was funded from the Com- pany's operating facilities. Affinity was founded by Neal Dilawri and was deve- loped over 12 years in partnership with one of the wor- ld's largest agricultural inputs manufacturers. Affinity is a provider of software solutions to the agriculture industry under the brand name Compass® and includes a comp- rehensive Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system for growers and ag retailers, as well as an agronomy tool. The ERP system provides full accounting functionality, including management of accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, and inventory tracking. Additionally, Af- finity employs on-staff accountants who provide bookke- eping services to its grower customers. Compass® also acts as a central data repository and portal which allows for the sharing of information with a grower's trusted ad- visors, including agronomists, accountants, lenders, and insurance providers. “The Compass® product suite is highly complementary to AGI's current offering and will be a key component of the full AGI SureTrack platform. Compass® customers include independent growers, agronomy companies and ag retailers, representing over 8,000 individual farmers across North America” the company said in a statement. "AGI SureTrack is an independent platform bringing together data across the farm, providing our customers with the ability to manage their crop production, mana- ge their overall business, and market their grain based on content and robust traceability," said Tim Close , President and Chief Executive Officer of AGI . "Compass takes AGI SureTrack to the next level, adding comprehensive ERP capabilities for AGI Dealers and agriculture retailers, and significantly adding to our offering for farmers. I am lo- oking forward to working closely with Neal in his new le- adership role with AGI SureTrack as we continue to grow this platform. I also want to welcome the entire Affinity team to the AGI family." AGI is a leading provider of equipment solutions for agriculture bulk commodities including seed, fertilizer, grain, and feed systems with a growing platform in pro- viding equipment and solutions for food processing fa- cilities. AGI has manufacturing facilities in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Brazil, France, Italy, and India and distributes its product globally.