S&W Seed Company (SANW)

[JackAskSlap]

Worth a fill here soon

[wesley_]

$3.46 nice

[Dleather25]

$sanw 1.87

[whytestocks]

News: $SANW S&W Announces Fiscal 2019 Financial Results

SACRAMENTO, Calif. , Sept. 18, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- S&W Seed Company (Nasdaq: SANW) today announced financial results for fiscal year ended June 30, 2019 . "During fiscal 2019, we successfully executed key steps in our plan to transform S&W into a leading multi...

Find out more SANW - S&W Announces Fiscal 2019 Financial Results

[whytestocks]

News: $SANW S&W Seed Company to Conduct Conference Call to Discuss Agreement with Corteva Agriscience(TM), Agriculture Division of DowDuPont on Thursday, May 23, 2019

SACRAMENTO, Calif. , May 23, 2019 /PRNewswire/ --  S&W Seed Company (Nasdaq: SANW)   has scheduled a conference call to discuss its recent announcement with Corteva Agriscience™, Agriculture Division of DowDuPont for Thursday, May 23, 2019 at 11:00am ET ( 8:00am ...

Got this from https://marketwirenews.com/news-releases/s-w-seed-company-to-conduct-conference-call-to-discuss-agreement-with-corteva-agriscience-tm-agriculture-division-of-dowdupont-on-thursday-may-23-2019-8233998.html

[whytestocks]

News: $SANW S&W and Corteva Agriscience(TM), Agriculture Division of DowDuPont, Enter New Mutually Beneficial Alfalfa Licensing Agreement

SACRAMENTO, Calif. , May 23, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- S&W Seed Company (Nasdaq: SANW) and Corteva Agriscience™, Agriculture Division of DowDuPont, today announced they have entered into a new mutually beneficial alfalfa agreement that terminates and replaces the December...

Got this from https://marketwirenews.com/news-releases/s-w-and-corteva-agriscience-tm-agriculture-division-of-dowdupont-enter-new-mutually-beneficial-alfalfa-licensing-agreement-8233878.html

[02opida]

SANW

[WallStreetMyWay]

Thin it will revere Im holdings lungs.

[stocktrademan]

$SANW recent news/filings

bullish daytrade

## source: finance.yahoo.com

Thu, 14 May 2015 11:07:07 GMT ~ Q3 2015 S&W Seed Co Earnings Release - After Market Close


read full: http://biz.yahoo.com/research/earncal/20150514.html?t=sanw
*********************************************************

Mon, 04 May 2015 10:03:56 GMT ~ S&W SEED CO Files SEC form 8-K, Other Events


read full: http://biz.yahoo.com/e/150504/sanw8-k.html
*********************************************************

Fri, 01 May 2015 15:26:49 GMT ~ S&W Seed Company Sets Third Quarter Fiscal 2015 Conference Call and Earnings Release for Thursday, May 14, 2015

[at noodls] - Financial results to be released after the close of the market; Conference call to be conducted at 4:30 pm ET For Immediate Release Contact: Robert Blum, Joe Dorame, Joe Diaz Lytham Partners, LLC 602-889-9700 ...

read full: http://www.noodls.com/view/C7F5E8A96346E17C02D50F8623BA3D1E7C96D8A9
*********************************************************

Thu, 30 Apr 2015 12:00:00 GMT ~ S&W Seed Company Sets Third Quarter Fiscal 2015 Conference Call and Earnings Release for Thursday, May 14, 2015

[PR Newswire] - FRESNO, Calif., April 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- S&W Seed Company (SANW) will report financial results for its third quarter of fiscal year 2015 ended March 31, 2015 after the market closes on Thursday, May 14, 2015. The Company has scheduled a conference call that same day, Thursday, May 14, 2015, at 4:30 pm ET, to review the results. Founded in 1980, S&W Seed Company is a global agricultural company, headquartered in the Central Valley of California. The Company'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.

read full: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/w-seed-company-sets-third-120000316.html
*********************************************************

Thu, 23 Apr 2015 20:15:40 GMT ~ S&W SEED CO Files SEC form 8-K, Creation of a Direct Financial Obligation or an Obligation under an Off-Balance Sheet


read full: http://biz.yahoo.com/e/150423/sanw8-k.html
*********************************************************

$SANW charts

basic chart ## source: stockcharts.com



basic chart ## source: stockscores.com



big daily chart ## source: stockcharts.com



big weekly chart ## source: stockcharts.com



$SANW company information

## source: otcmarkets.com

Link: http://www.otcmarkets.com/stock/SANW/company-info
Ticker: $SANW
OTC Market Place: Not Available
CIK code: not found
Company name: S&W Seed Co.
Incorporated In:

Business Description:

$SANW share structure

## source: otcmarkets.com

Market Value: Not Available
Shares Outstanding: Not Available
Float: Not Available
Authorized Shares: Not Available
Par Value: No Par Value

$SANW extra dd links

Company name: S&W Seed Co.
## STOCK DETAILS ##
After Hours Quote (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/after-hours
Option Chain (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/option-chain
Historical Prices (yahoo.com): http://finance.yahoo.com/q/hp?s=SANW+Historical+Prices
Company Profile (yahoo.com): http://finance.yahoo.com/q/pr?s=SANW+Profile
Industry (yahoo.com): http://finance.yahoo.com/q/in?s=SANW+Industry

## COMPANY NEWS ##
Market Stream (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/stream
Latest news (otcmarkets.com): http://www.otcmarkets.com/stock/SANW/news - http://finance.yahoo.com/q/h?s=SANW+Headlines

## STOCK ANALYSIS ##
Analyst Research (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/analyst-research
Guru Analysis (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/guru-analysis
Stock Report (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/stock-report
Competitors (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/competitors
Stock Consultant (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/stock-consultant
Stock Comparison (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/stock-comparison
Investopedia (investopedia.com): http://www.investopedia.com/markets/stocks/SANW/?wa=0
Research Reports (otcmarkets.com): http://www.otcmarkets.com/stock/SANW/research
Basic Tech. Analysis (yahoo.com): http://finance.yahoo.com/q/ta?s=SANW+Basic+Tech.+Analysis
Barchart (barchart.com): http://www.barchart.com/quotes/stocks/SANW
DTCC (dtcc.com): http://search2.dtcc.com/?q=S%26W+Seed+Co.&x=10&y=8&sp_p=all&sp_f=ISO-8859-1
Spoke company information (spoke.com): http://www.spoke.com/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&q=S%26W+Seed+Co.
Corporation WIKI (corporationwiki.com): http://www.corporationwiki.com/search/results?term=S%26W+Seed+Co.&x=0&y=0

## FUNDAMENTALS ##
Call Transcripts (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/call-transcripts
Annual Report (companyspotlight.com): http://www.companyspotlight.com/library/companies/keyword/SANW
Income Statement (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/financials?query=income-statement
Revenue/EPS (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/revenue-eps
SEC Filings (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/sec-filings
Latest filings (otcmarkets.com): http://www.otcmarkets.com/stock/SANW/filings
Latest financials (otcmarkets.com): http://www.otcmarkets.com/stock/SANW/financials
Short Interest (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/short-interest
Dividend History (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/dividend-history
RegSho (regsho.com): http://www.regsho.com/tools/symbol_stats.php?sym=SANW&search=search
OTC Short Report (otcshortreport.com): http://otcshortreport.com/index.php?index=SANW
Short Sales (otcmarkets.com): http://www.otcmarkets.com/stock/SANW/short-sales
Key Statistics (yahoo.com): http://finance.yahoo.com/q/ks?s=SANW+Key+Statistics
Insider Roster (yahoo.com): http://finance.yahoo.com/q/ir?s=SANW+Insider+Roster
Income Statement (yahoo.com): http://finance.yahoo.com/q/is?s=SANW
Balance Sheet (yahoo.com): http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bs?s=SANW
Cash Flow (yahoo.com): http://finance.yahoo.com/q/cf?s=SANW+Cash+Flow&annual

## HOLDINGS ##
Major holdings (cnbc.com): http://data.cnbc.com/quotes/SANW/tab/8.1
Insider transactions (yahoo.com): http://finance.yahoo.com/q/it?s=SANW+Insider+Transactions
Insider transactions (secform4.com): http://www.secform4.com/insider-trading/SANW.htm
Insider transactions (insidercrow.com): http://www.insidercow.com/history/company.jsp?company=SANW
Ownership Summary (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/ownership-summary
Institutional Holdings (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/institutional-holdings
Insiders (SEC Form 4) (nasdaq.com): http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/SANW/insider-trades
Insider Disclosure (otcmarkets.com): http://www.otcmarkets.com/stock/SANW/insider-transactions

## SOCIAL MEDIA AND OTHER VARIOUS SOURCES ##
PST (pennystocktweets.com): http://www.pennystocktweets.com/stocks/profile/SANW
Market Watch (marketwatch.com): http://www.marketwatch.com/investing/stock/SANW
Bloomberg (bloomberg.com): http://www.bloomberg.com/quote/SANW:US
Morningstar (morningstar.com): http://quotes.morningstar.com/stock/s?t=SANW
Bussinessweek (businessweek.com): http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot_article.asp?ticker=SANW



$SANW DD Notes ~ http://www.ddnotesmaker.com/SANW

[Not_a_Doubt]

Still going strong ?

[exlud]

I really like what I see in S&W and the warrants have been good to me. Monarch Bay is a bitter pill to swallow, however. Having held MSTF for too long while Walters and Co. screw everyone dumb enough to have bought shares really makes me wonder.

[flemsnopes]

Beware the MBW (Monarch Bay Way)
http://monarchbayassociates.com/investment-banking.htm
http://monarchbayassociates.com/sales-and-trading.htm

If we issue shares of preferred stock, your investment could be diluted or subordinated to the rights of the holders of preferred stock.

Our Board of Directors is authorized by our Articles of Incorporation to establish classes or series of preferred stock and fix the designation, powers, preferences and rights of the shares of each such class or series without any further vote or action by our stockholders. Any shares of preferred stock so issued could have priority over our common stock with respect to dividend or liquidation rights. Although

20

we have no plans to issue any shares of preferred stock or to adopt any new series, preferences or other classification of preferred stock, any such action by our Board of Directors or issuance of preferred stock by us could dilute your investment in our common stock and warrants or subordinate your holdings to the shares of preferred stock.

[Penny Roger$]

~ Tuesday! $SANW ~ Earnings posted, pending or coming soon! In Charts and Links Below!

~ $SANW ~ Earnings expected on Tuesday *
Want more like this? Search Keyword: MACMONEY >>> http://tinyurl.com/MACMONEY <<<
One or more of many earnings sites has alerted this security has or will be posting earnings on or around the day of this message.








http://stockcharts.com/h-sc/ui?s=SANW&p=D&b=3&g=0&id=p88783918276&a=237480049




http://stockcharts.com/h-sc/ui?s=SANW&p=W&b=3&g=0&id=p54550695994



~ Google Finance: http://www.google.com/finance?q=SANW
~ Google Fin Options: hhttp://www.google.com/finance/option_chain?q=SANW#
~ Yahoo! Finance ~ Stats: http://finance.yahoo.com/q/ks?s=SANW+Key+Statistics
~ Yahoo! Finance ~ Profile: http://finance.yahoo.com/q/pr?s=SANW
Finviz: http://finviz.com/quote.ashx?t=SANW
~ BusyStock: http://busystock.com/i.php?s=SANW&v=2


<<<<<< http://www.earningswhispers.com/stocks.asp?symbol=SANW >>>>>>



http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/post_prvt.aspx?user=251916

*If the earnings date is in error please ignore error. I do my best.

[EZ2]

S&W Seed Company (SANW)
$ 3.40 +0.40 (13.33%)
Volume: 7,228

[roger wilco]

S&W PR OUT!
S&W Seed Expands Global Sales Distribution Network

Today : Thursday 7 April 2011

S&W Seed Company (NASDAQ: SANW) today announced the expansion of its global distribution network with the addition of an international distributor of forage crops currently serving international agricultural markets. The new international dealer relationship was marked by the issuance of an initial $260,000 purchase order for the Company's proprietary alfalfa varieties. The seed is expected to be shipped within the next 30 days, and is anticipated to represent the first of several orders from this new distributor over the coming months.

"Late last year, S&W undertook a strategic imperative to expand our international distribution channels and, by extension, the number of farmers worldwide who benefit from the planting of our leading alfalfa varieties," noted Mark Grewal, S&W's President and CEO. "We continue to look for new international distributors to complement and not displace our existing international distribution channels, which should result in us achieving significant and more diversified market penetration worldwide."

About S&W Seed Company

Founded in 1980 and headquartered in the Central Valley of California, S&W Seed Company is a leading producer of warm climate, high yield alfalfa seed varieties, including varieties that can thrive in poor, saline soils, as verified over decades of university-sponsored trials. S&W also offers seed cleaning and processing at its 40-acre facility in Five Points, California. In fiscal 2010, the Company launched a business expansion initiative centered on its plan to mass produce stevia leaf in the U.S. in response to growing global demand for the all-natural, zero calorie sweetener from 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 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." 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 risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors and other risks identified in the Company's 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2010, and other filings made by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

[roger wilco]

PR out!
S&W Seed Expands Global Sales Distribution Network

Today : Wednesday 6 April 2011


S&W Seed Company (NASDAQ: SANW) today announced the expansion of its global distribution network with the addition of an international distributor of forage crops currently serving international agricultural markets. The new international dealer relationship was marked by the issuance of an initial $260,000 purchase order for the Company's proprietary alfalfa varieties. The seed is expected to be shipped within the next 30 days, and is anticipated to represent the first of several orders from this new distributor over the coming months.

"Late last year, S&W undertook a strategic imperative to expand our international distribution channels and, by extension, the number of farmers worldwide who benefit from the planting of our leading alfalfa varieties," noted Mark Grewal, S&W's President and CEO. "We continue to look for new international distributors to complement and not displace our existing international distribution channels, which should result in us achieving significant and more diversified market penetration worldwide."

About S&W Seed Company

Founded in 1980 and headquartered in the Central Valley of California, S&W Seed Company is a leading producer of warm climate, high yield alfalfa seed varieties, including varieties that can thrive in poor, saline soils, as verified over decades of university-sponsored trials. S&W also offers seed cleaning and processing at its 40-acre facility in Five Points, California. In fiscal 2010, the Company launched a business expansion initiative centered on its plan to mass produce stevia leaf in the U.S. in response to growing global demand for the all-natural, zero calorie sweetener from 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 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." 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 risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors and other risks identified in the Company's 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2010, and other filings made by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

[roger wilco]

The CEO's pay seems excessive considering the company currently is not profitable and sales are down.

This pay package is equivalent to roughly $20,000 a month.

From the 8K:

http://www.otcmarkets.com/edgar/GetFilingHtml?FilingID=7785322

Item 1.01. Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.

On March 8, 2011, S&W Seed Company (the "Company") entered into a two-year Employment Agreement with its President and Chief Executive Officer, Mark S. Grewal (the "Employment Agreement"), a copy of which is filed as Exhibit 10.1 to this report. A summary of the terms of the Employment Agreement are set forth under Item 5.02 below and are incorporated herein by this reference.

Item 5.02. Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

As set forth above under Item 1.01, the Company and its President and Chief Executive Officer, Mark S. Grewal, entered into a two-year Employment Agreement on March 8, 2011. The term and provisions of the Employment Agreement were made retroactive to January 1, 2011.

Under the terms of the Employment Agreement, the Company has agreed to pay Mr. Grewal an annual salary of $225,000 (the "Base Salary") and $1,000 per month to cover an automobile allowance, plus reimbursement for gasoline and oil. Mr. Grewal will also be entitled to receive periodic bonuses from time to time in the discretion of the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors (the "Committee"), and he will entitled to participate in the Company's equity incentive plans that are in effect from time to time.

[flemsnopes]

Financial Highlights When Comparing Six Months Ended December 31, 2010 to Six Months Ended December 31, 2009:

Total revenues were $1,842,799, a 60% decrease from $4,661,198.

For the reason noted above*, revenues from alfalfa seeds totaled $1,195,739, down from $4,076,111.

As anticipated, revenues from seed milling and related services normalized and increased 11% to $647,060 from $585,087.

Gross profit margin on sales rose to 45% from 31%, due to higher margin sales of seed cleaning and processing services.

Total operating expenses increased 218% to $1,407,238 from $443,122.

The net loss totaled $336,276, or $0.06 loss per basic and diluted share, compared to net income of $849,730, or $0.28 earnings per basic and diluted share.

As of December 31, 2010, assets totaled $17.52 million; working capital was $11.86 million; there was zero long term debt and stockholders' equity totaled $14.98 million.



*excerpted from:
http://ih.advfn.com/p.php?pid=nmona&article=46455178&symbol=SANW

[flemsnopes]

This operational note seems a little troubling and might be something to monitor in the upcoming second quarter 10Q.


Our largest customer, Genetics International, Inc., owed us $850,481 at September 30, 2010. These outstanding invoices have 90 to 120 day payment terms. We are in communication with this customer and have an excellent, long-standing relationship with this company and its principal. In over 25 years of selling to Genetics International, we have never had to write off any receivables due from it. To the best of our knowledge, there is no company-related issue that might be delaying payment, nor are there any negative issues impacting our relationship with this customer. Moreover, we believe that all of our outstanding accounts receivable balances are fully collectible, and we anticipate collecting the remaining outstanding balances over the next two fiscal quarters. Our relationship with this customer is strong, and we intend to continue to do a significant amount of business together

[flemsnopes]

Information about "related party" transactions should always be carefully examined, in my opinion.

Transactions with Related Parties

Grover T. Wickersham, our Chairman of the Board, also serves as the Chairman of the Board of Triangle T Partners, LLC (“Triangle T Partners”) and is a member of the board of directors of Triangle T Ranch, Inc. (“Triangle T Ranch” and, collectively with Triangle T Partners, “Triangle T”). Mr. Wickersham indirectly owns a controlling interest in Triangle T Partners. Michael Nordstrom, one of our directors, is also a director of Triangle T Partners and Triangle T Ranch. Until October 2010, Mark S. Grewal, our President and Chief Executive Officer, as well as a member of our board, also served as President and Chief Executive Officer and was on the boards of Triangle T Partners and Triangle T Ranch. He no longer holds these positions.

Triangle T is one of our alfalfa seed growers and is also a customer. We enter into annual alfalfa seed production contracts with Triangle T on the same commercial terms and conditions as with the other growers with whom we contract for alfalfa seed production. For the fiscal years ended June 30, 2009 and 2010, we purchased from Triangle T $488,949 and $832,486, respectively, of alfalfa seed Triangle T grew and sold to us under one-year production agreements. We entered into agreements with Triangle T to plant 893 acres of various alfalfa seed varieties as part of our calendar 2010 production for which we will pay Triangle T the same price we have agreed to pay our other growers. None of Mr. Wickersham, Mr. Grewal nor Mr. Nordstrom personally received any portion of these funds.

As one of our customers, Triangle T purchases milled alfalfa seed from us to plant alfalfa on its own property for the production of alfalfa hay and to grow alfalfa seed for us. We sell milled alfalfa seed to Triangle T under the same commercial terms and conditions as other alfalfa seed customers in the San Joaquin Valley. For the fiscal years ended June 30, 2009 and 2010, we sold milled alfalfa seed in the amount of $197,858 and $405,601, respectively, to Triangle T. None of Mr. Wickersham, Mr. Grewal nor Mr. Nordstrom personally received any portion of these funds.

Triangle T also works with us as the initial provider of stevia leaf for our pilot stevia cultivation program. We paid Triangle T $102,000 in fiscal 2010 for its services and costs in connection with our stevia cultivation program. None of Mr. Wickersham, Mr. Grewal nor Mr. Nordstrom personally received any portion of these funds. Through September 2010, we paid Triangle T $15,000 per month for management services, plus reimbursement of its direct and indirect costs in connection with our stevia cultivation program. In October 2010, this arrangement was modified to provide a monthly payment of $2,500 plus reimbursement of costs. The arrangement changed because, with Triangle T’s consent, S&W has directly hired the key Triangle T people who are working on the stevia project.

We have entered into indemnity agreements with each of our executive officers and directors providing, among other things, that we will indemnify such officers or directors, under the circumstances and to the extent provided for therein, for expenses, damages, judgments, fines and settlements they may be required to pay in actions or proceedings to which they are or may be made a party by reason of their positions as directors, officers or other agents of us, and otherwise to the full extent permitted under Delaware law and our By-laws.

[flemsnopes]

Important information gleaned from the most recent 10Q.

S&W Seed Delaware is authorized to issue up to 50,000,000 shares of its $0.001 par value common stock. At September 30 and June 30, 2010, there were 5,800,000 shares issued and outstanding. The Company’s equity section of the consolidated financial statements has been retroactively restated as if the Company was a Delaware corporation at June 30, 2008.

and,

On May 7, 2010, the Company issued common stock purchase warrants to Cardiff Partners, LLC (“Cardiff Partners”) pursuant to its prior agreement under which Cardiff Partners provided certain consulting services in connection with the Company’s IPO. The warrants grant Cardiff Partners the right to purchase up to 25,000 shares of the Company’s Common Stock at an exercise price of $4.00 per share, vest upon issuance and are subject to a cashless exercise right. The warrants expire on May 7, 2015. The issuance of these warrants were treated as equity offering costs and recorded to additional paid in capital accordingly.

[LincolnStocks]

Thanks, is alfalfa that useful? They were considering Stevia at one point, are they still considering it?

[j$tops]

Great Linedrive looking over SANW do far I like what I see here!!

[Linedrive]

Nice article on S & W

http://seekingalpha.com/article/247864-s-w-seed-co-worth-risks-for-small-cap-agricultural-play

[Linedrive]

NEWS: S&W Seed Effects Name Change of Salt Tolerant Alfalfa Varieties to Provide Greater Marketing Differentiation

S&W Seed Company (Nasdaq: SANW) today announced that its proprietary, non-dormant, high yield alfalfa varieties marketed as "SW 9720" and "SW 9215" have been renamed "SW 9720S" and "SW 9215S." The added "S" will serve to distinguish and emphasize the varieties as highly tolerant to salty soil and salty irrigation water. The name change has been reviewed and authorized by the California Crop Improvement Association, the seed certifying agency under the California Seed Law.

In field trials conducted at UC Davis and the University of Arizona, SW 9720S and 9215S have consistently demonstrated high yields of high quality hay grown in a wide array of harsh farming conditions. SW 9720S has won distinction as the number one high yielding alfalfa variety in university trials, and led all entries in both yield and feed quality in trials conducted at the USDA Salinity Laboratory where alfalfa and other forage species are under salt water irrigation management. Similarly, SW 9215S has tested among the highest yielding salt-tolerant alfalfas certified to date, yielding 18% above salinity check varieties when irrigated with water with very high saline content.

Mark Grewal, President and CEO of S&W, stated, "Adding the 'S' to 9720 and 9215 is expected to allow S&W to achieve greater marketing differentiation for these alfalfa varieties, providing an important indicator to farmers that they are indeed well suited for yielding the highest quality hay grown in areas around the world where salty soil and salty irrigation would otherwise prohibit or greatly limit the production of essential forage crops."


http://ih.advfn.com/p.php?pid=nmona&article=46123569

[Linedrive]

Hope this helps....

S&W Seed Company (Nasdaq: SANW) today announced that its proprietary, non-dormant, high yield alfalfa varieties marketed as "SW 9720" and "SW 9215" have been renamed "SW 9720S" and "SW 9215S." The added "S" will serve to distinguish and emphasize the varieties as highly tolerant to salty soil and salty irrigation water. The name change has been reviewed and authorized by the California Crop Improvement Association, the seed certifying agency under the California Seed Law.

http://ih.advfn.com/p.php?pid=nmona&article=46123569

[LincolnStocks]

what is the product exactly?

[Linedrive]

These guys look like they know what they are doing.

[Linedrive]

Looking like this company has some great history

[Linedrive]

Looks like a winning product.

[Linedrive]

Wow Great Chart!

[Ben Carn]

HAHA..ooops!

[LincolnStocks]

No longer feeling good about this investment... might come back in a few months...

[LincolnStocks]

Mr. Wickersham seems legitimate, but the I'm not so sure about the people around him in this company. Mr. Culhane seems to have too many divergent interests and focuses on real estate. Not to say that real estate won't help here, but I'm not sure him being split too thing will give him time to focus on this company. As for what the previous fellow said about Szot.....I now feel timid about my investment with this company.




GROVER T. WICKERSHAM

Customer to his own company, could be good or bad....
Mr. Wickersham is a private investor, as well as co-owner of Triangle T Ranch, a 13,000 acre water rich farm that has been in his family for four generations. Triangle T Ranch is a major grower of alfalfa seed for the company, and a valued longtime customer.

Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Purisima
http://www.google.com/finance?q=MUTF:PURIX
http://www.google.com/finance?q=MUTF_GB:GB0031428351
http://www.google.com/finance?q=MUTF_GB:GB0031428468
http://www.google.com/finance?q=MUTF_GB:GB0031428575
http://www.google.com/finance?q=MUTF_GB:GB00B06LQB93
http://www.google.com/finance?q=MUTF_GB:GB00B06LQC01
http://www.google.com/finance?q=MUTF_GB:GB00B1PF5127
http://www.google.com/finance?q=MUTF_GB:GB00B1PF6X12
http://www.google.com/finance?q=MUTF_GB:GB00B1PF4T36
http://www.google.com/finance?q=MUTF_GB:GB00B1PF4T36
http://www.google.com/finance?q=MUTF_GB:GB00B1PF4Y88
http://www.google.com/finance?q=MUTF_GB:GB00B1PF6R51
http://www.google.com/finance?q=MUTF_GB:GB00B1PF6T75

Although he is no longer employed as an attorney, is of counsel to Wickersham & Murphy, P.C., the successor to a law firm he founded in 1986.
http://wickershamlawfirm.com/Firm%20Info/Lawyers/183745.aspx

Mr. Wickersham holds an A.B. from the University of California at Berkeley

an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School

and a J.D. from University of California, Hastings College of the Law
MICHAEL M. FLEMING (who is also on this board) went to the same school.

--------------------

Mike culhane

*The Oakwood Group
http://www.oakwoodglobal.com/

*Future Mortgages, London (past)


*Pepper Homeloans, Australia (current, but ownership changed hands june?)
http://www.pepperhomeloans.com.au/Corporate_News_Details.asp?ID=237&Year=All
http://www.pepperhomeloans.com.au/corporate_executives.asp

*Friedman, Billings, Ramsey (FBR), founded the London office [Fbr Capital Markets International Ltd] (past)

*Edeus Mortgage Creators Ltd. based in Wolverhampton, UK (past) left due to conflict of interest
http://www.mortgagestrategy.co.uk/culhane-resigns-from-edeus-board/165928.article

Mike Culhane serves as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of The Oakwood Group.
Prior to founding Oakwood Group, Mr. Culhane served as the Founder and Chairman of Future Mortgages, London.
He currently serves as the Founder and Chairman of Pepper Homeloans, Australia.
In addition, Mr. Culhane worked with Friedman, Billings, Ramsey (FBR) from 1992 to 2003.
In 1997 Mr. Culhane established FBR's London based office, where he served as the Chief Executive Officer.
... He served as a Director of Edeus Mortgage.
Mr. Culhane has generated and overseen in excess of $1.6 billion in assets.
He graduated from the London School of Economics with honors.

[LincolnStocks]

CHARLES B. SEIDLER

Charles was elected to the Board in June 2010. In July 2010, he joined Nomura Securities as a senior member of a proprietary trading group in New York City. For the last three years, he held various senior positions at Deutsche Bank AG in Tokyo, Japan, including Head of JPY/UST International Sales (from March 2009 until his departure in June 2010), JPY Flow Trader (from September 2008 to March 2009) and Rates Proprietary Trader from January 2007 to September 2008. Between March 2003 and January 2007, Charles was Co-Portfolio Manager of Caxton Associates, L.L.C., where he focused on macro and relative value trading with a particular focus on the Japanese markets. Currently and over the last five years, he has served on numerous corporate boards. Charles is a graduate of Colgate University where he earned a Masters of Arts degree.

He apparently goes by the name Chip:
http://people.forbes.com/profile/charles-b-chip-seidler/145054

[LincolnStocks]

MICHAEL N. NORDSTROM

Mr. Nordstrom was elected to our board in October 2009. Since 1982, he has been a practicing lawyer, currently with offices in Corcoran, California, where he specializes in water and agricultural law. He serves as general and special counsel to a number of water agencies in the San Joaquin Valley. Since 1999, Mr. Nordstrom has also been a real estate broker specializing in agricultural real estate. He grew up on a small family farm and now operates one. Mr. Nordstrom serves on the boards of both TTP and TTR. Mr. Nordstrom earned a B.S. in Agricultural Management from California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California, 1979 and his J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law in 1982.

some more info:
http://www.manta.com/c/mm4dn9y/michael-n-nordstrom-attorney
http://people.forbes.com/profile/michael-n-nordstrom/145053
http://www.simoncompany.net/clients.html

[LincolnStocks]

MICHAEL M. FLEMING

Mr. Fleming was elected to our board in October 2009. Mr. Fleming has been an attorney with Lane Powell PC in Seattle, Washington, specializing in real estate, dispute resolution, securities and environmental matters, since February 2000. He has also been the president and owner of Kidcentre, Inc., a company in the business of providing child care services in Seattle, since July 1988. Since April 1985, he has also been the president and owner of Fleming Investment Co., an investment company. Since 1997, he has served as a director (including serving as interim chairman of the board from June 2008 to June 2009) of Jones Soda Co., a developer, marketer, producer and distributor of premium beverages, located in Seattle. Mr. Fleming holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from University of Washington and a law degree from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law.

some more info:
http://people.forbes.com/profile/michael-m-fleming/46567

[LincolnStocks]

MICHAEL CULHANE

Mr. Culhane was elected to our board in December 2009. In 2002, he founded Oakwood Global Finance LLP, London, England, a financial services company specializing in valuing, trading and managing investments in financial assets that are exposed to real estate and consumer risk. He has served as the managing partner of Oakwood since inception and has held the position of chief executive officer since 2003. Mr. Culhane has extensive board experience, currently sitting on the board of seven-non-U.S. companies and one U.S. company, none of which is publicly traded in the U.S. He holds a BSc (Econ) from the London School of Economics.

Some extra info:
http://people.forbes.com/profile/michael-c-culhane/145055

[LincolnStocks]

DANIEL Z. KARSTEN

Mr. Karsten was appointed to the position of Vice President of Operations in February 2010, maintaining overall responsibility for the company’s manufacturing operations. Responsibilities include operations, engineering and design and start-up of the company’s manufacturing facilities.
Mr. Karsten has been a part our team since August 2008 and served as Plant Manager for our Five Points facility. From March 2005, Mr. Karsten was Production Manager and Safety Officer for Colusa County Canning, a canning and industrial bulk tomato processing company located in Williams, California, where his responsibilities included operations, maintenance, and compliance of facility safety and environmental requirements.

[LincolnStocks]

MATTHEW K. SZOT

Mr. Szot has served as our Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer since March 2010. Mr. Szot brings a wealth of knowledge in developing and implementing financial and operational process improvements, technical accounting and finance, SEC reporting and compliance. Since February 2007, Mr. Szot has served as the Chief Financial Officer for Cardiff Partners, LLC, a strategic consulting company that provides executive financial services to various publicly traded and privately held companies. Prior thereto, from 2003 to December 2006, Mr. Szot served as Chief Financial Officer and Secretary of Rip Curl, Inc., a market leader in wetsuit and action sports apparel products. Mr. Szot oversaw all aspects of finance, accounting, legal, real estate and information technology. He also spearheaded a multi-store retail expansion and was instrumental in the re-engineering of processes throughout the organization. From 1996 to 2003, Mr. Szot was a Certified Public Accountant with KPMG in the San Diego and Chicago offices and served as an Audit Manager for various publicly traded companies. Mr. Szot graduated with High Honors from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana with a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Economics/Accountancy. Mr. Szot is a Certified Public Accountant in the State of California.

Not sure if this is the same Matthew K Szot:
http://www.tracked.com/person/matthew-szot/

But he owns shares of MMEX as an insider. He bought 15,000 shares.

[LincolnStocks]

MARK S. GREWAL

Mr. Grewal was appointed our President, Chief Executive Officer and a director in October 2009. Beginning in February 2009 until October 2009, he provided advisory services to S&W Seed Company, our predecessor general partnership. He also has served as the Chief Executive Officer, President and Farm Manager of Triangle T Partners, LLC since August 2009 and has held the same positions with Triangle T Ranch, Inc. since February 2009, both located in Chowchilla, California. Since January 2010, he also has held the title of President of our subsidiary, Seed Holding, LLC. From January 2006 until he joined TTR, Mr. Grewal was the principal of Grewal Consulting, in Lemoore, California, where he addressed water, land, drainage and fertilizing, herbicide and insecticide management issues. From 1999 to February 2005, Mr. Grewal served as the Vice President of Ranching/Director of JG Boswell, Co., in Corcoran, California, a very large grower of agricultural crops. Mr. Grewal is Chairman of the Board of California Ammonia Co. and privately held TTP; he is the Chairman of the Plant Science Advisory Council of California State University and a member of the Leadership Committee of California State University, Fresno. Mr. Grewal earned a B.S. in Agronomy from California State University, Fresno, and an M.A. in Leadership from Saint Mary’s College, Moraga, California.

[LincolnStocks]

GROVER T. WICKERSHAM

I saw this on the SANW website:

Mr. Wickersham, Chairman of the Board. Mr. Wickersham is a private investor, as well as co-owner of Triangle T Ranch, a 13,000 acre water rich farm that has been in his family for four generations. Triangle T Ranch is a major grower of alfalfa seed for the company, and a valued longtime customer. Grover also serves as the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Purisima, a mutual fund and, although he is no longer employed as an attorney, is of counsel to Wickersham & Murphy, P.C., the successor to a law firm he founded in 1986. Mr. Wickersham holds an A.B. from the University of California at Berkeley, an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School and a J.D. from University of California, Hastings College of the Law.

Then I saw this on the internet:

http://wickershamlawfirm.com/Firm%20Info/Lawyers/183745.aspx

So his background is a lawyer?

Could be helpful....

[LincolnStocks]

this may be a gold mine.....anyone else in this business?

[flemsnopes]

Anyone know what a "cashless exercise rignt" might be? Does it sound like something RETAIL SHAREHOLDERS should be worried about?

On May 7, 2010, the Company issued common stock purchase warrants to Cardiff Partners, LLC (“Cardiff Partners”) pursuant to its prior agreement under which Cardiff Partners provided certain consulting services in connection with the Company’s IPO. The warrants grant Cardiff Partners the right to purchase up to 25,000 shares of the Company’s Common Stock at an exercise price of $4.00 per share, vest upon issuance and are subject to a cashless exercise right. The warrants expire on May 7, 2015. The issuance of these warrants were treated as equity offering costs and recorded to additional paid in capital accordingly.

[flemsnopes]

Know your corporate officers! Matthew K. Szot is associated with David Allen Walters and Keith Moore, both of whom have been principals at corporations which suffered massive dilution over time as "related party" debt was paid with immediately convertible common stock - according to their own SEC filings. While Matthew Szot appears to be a newcomer to the "investment firms" run by these two individuals, I would advise any prospective investor to study their stable of "businesses" very closely. (Especially, note the charts and historical closing quotes of associated companies)

http://www.monarchbayassociates.com/executive_team.html

http://www.cardiffpartners.com/management.htm

http://www.swseedco.com/bios.htm#szot

http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=6762

http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=9690

http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=1030

http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=81

Matthew K. Szot

Mr. Szot has served as our Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer since March 2010. Mr. Szot brings a wealth of knowledge in developing and implementing financial and operational process improvements, technical accounting and finance, SEC reporting and compliance. Since February 2007, Mr. Szot has served as the Chief Financial Officer for Cardiff Partners, LLC, a strategic consulting company that provides executive financial services to various publicly traded and privately held companies. Prior thereto, from 2003 to December 2006, Mr. Szot served as Chief Financial Officer and Secretary of Rip Curl, Inc., a market leader in wetsuit and action sports apparel products. Mr. Szot oversaw all aspects of finance, accounting, legal, real estate and information technology. He also spearheaded a multi-store retail expansion and was instrumental in the re-engineering of processes throughout the organization. From 1996 to 2003, Mr. Szot was a Certified Public Accountant with KPMG in the San Diego and Chicago offices and served as an Audit Manager for various publicly traded companies. Mr. Szot also serves as Chief Financial Officer of Management Energy, Inc. (since January 2009) and Trans-Pacific Aerospace Company, Inc. (since June 2009). Mr. Szot graduated with High Honors from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana with a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Economics/Accountancy. Mr. Szot is a Certified Public Accountant in the State of California.

[db7]

has warrants sanww and sanwz

[db7]

http://seekingalpha.com/article/219528-s-amp-w-seed-company-discussion-regarding-stevia-sourcing-agreement-signed-with-purecircle-conference-call-transcript?source=yahoo


S&W Seed Company Discussion Regarding Stevia Sourcing Agreement Signed With PureCircle Conference Call Transcript
August 09, 2010 | about: SANW Font Size: PrintEmail sponsored by:
Presentation Q&A Participants Search Executives

Dodi Handy – IR & Public Relations for S&W Seed Company; CEO - Elite Financial Communications Group

Grover Wickersham – Chairman – S&W Seed Company

Analysts

Ron Tracy – Paulson Investment Company

Ian Gilson - Zacks Investment Research

Keith Gil – Paulson Investment Company

Jim Wasserman – Sacramento Bee

S&W Seed Company (SANW) Discussion Regarding Stevia Sourcing Agreement Signed With PureCircle Conference Call August 02, 2010 4:15 pm ET

Operator

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for standing by and welcome to the S&W Seed Company conference call. During today's presentation, all parties will be in a listen-only mode. Following the presentation, the conference will be opened for questions. If you have a question, please press the star followed by the one on your touchtone phone. Please press star, zero for operator assistance at any time. For participants using speaker equipment, it may be necessary to pick up your handset before making your selection. This conference is being recorded today, August 2nd, 2010.

I would now like to turn the conference over to our host, Dodi Handy. Please go ahead.

Dodi Handy

Hello, ladies and gentlemen, and thank you very much for joining us this afternoon. The purpose of today’s call is to discuss S&W Seed Company’s recently announced stevia sourcing agreement with PureCircle Limited. In view of the fact that S&W’s Chairman has been running point on this stevia opportunity, he has kindly agreed to share his time today to help us all better understand why this is an exciting opportunity for the Company.

As Alicia, our operator, noted, my name is Dodi Handy. I am President and CEO of Elite Financial Communications Group. My firm has the privilege of managing strategic corporate communications for S&W.

Once I cover the Safe Harbor Statement, I’m going to be joined by Mr. Grover Wickersham, Chairman of S&W Seed; and then Grover and I will engage in an informal discussion related to the Company and the stevia opportunity. Then, after we cover several key points, we will have Alicia again provide you with instructions on how to queue into the question and answer period. Now, during the Q&A, I would ask that you restrict your questions to the discussion on stevia. When the Company announces its year-end results, we will be hosting a call with the entire management team, who will be on hand to cover a much broader spectrum of the Company’s operating activities at that time. But, for today, if you would, let’s just stick to stevia.

First, however, allow me to remind you that on this afternoon’s call, we may make 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.” 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 actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors and other risks identified in the Company’s prospectus, which is dated May 3rd, 2010, and other filings made by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

So, with that said, I’d now like to welcome S&W Chairman, Grover Wickersham, to our call. Hi, Grover. Thanks so much for agreeing to talk with us today.

Grover Wickersham

Oh, hi, Dodi. Thanks a lot for hosting the call and thanks to everybody else who’s taken the time to listen in.

Dodi Handy

Well, Grover, let’s talk about stevia. What is it and why did S&W elect to undertake a plan to bring commercial-scale production of this plant to the United States?

Grover Wickersham

Okay. Well, just a little background first. S&W Seed’s been around for over 30 years. It’s a profitable alfalfa seed company and it historically has been a major wheat processor for the Middle East—and is based in California and the Central Valley. We have been working with the general partners of S&W and trying to transform it from a small seed company into an industry player, using it as a platform, and we knew we needed to build upon our existing base. So, a few years ago, we began investigating potential new crops that are grown elsewhere around the world that could also be grown in California—and that’s just part of our overall plan, which is to try to put additional products—agricultural products—through our Five Points facility.

Then, in December of 2008, the FDA approved the use of stevia for use as an ingredient in food and beverage products. It had been around for, well, 200 or 300 years, but until 2008, it was not GRAS—which stands for Generally Recognized As Safe—and so, it had to get that designation before it could be generally marketed. On the cusp of the Obama administration taking over, the FDA approved the use of stevia for use as an ingredient in food and beverage products. And the primary component of stevia that’s used today—you know, this is kind of a developing area; there are other components that are being considered—but the primary component is Reb A, and that’s extracted from the stevia leaf, and it’s an all-natural, zero-calorie sweetener—it’s up to about 300 times sweeter than sugar. It is similar in intensity to aspartame and Splenda, with the difference being that instead of being a chemical product, it’s actually a natural product.

So, manufacturers started introducing stevia in the States as a tabletop sugar substitute. It’s also in a broad range of food and beverages, and there’s been a very substantial amount of growth. In 2007, the entire production of stevia products was about $10 million. Mintel reported that it grew to be a $100 million industry in 2009, and they’re now forecasting that it’ll be $2 billion by the end of 2011 and beginning of 2012 timeframe.

Stevia leaf is currently grown almost exclusively in the developing world. We’ve recognized, based on studies that were done by one of our consultants when he was on the faculty at UC Davis 30 years ago, that stevia could be successfully grown in California. We coupled that with the fact that the largest consumption of stevia is the US food and beverage manufacturing industry. So, we wanted to participate in this market. We thought stevia was going to potentially take off because American consumers like all-natural products as opposed to something like aspartame that’s petrochemical-based. In looking at the industry, nobody had really engaged in the large-scale farming of stevia. So, we have chosen to come in literally at the bottom of the food chain because we see an opportunity to produce the raw material. It falls neatly into S&W’s area of expertise, which is growing agricultural products.

Dodi Handy

For clarity, Grover, stevia is not currently being grown in the United States?

Grover Wickersham

Well, I mean, on a small scale, it’s been around for a while. Dr. Clint Shock at the University of California, who is one of our key advisors, was writing papers on it regarding growing in California more than 30 years ago—but it’s not been cultivated on a meaningful commercial scale. And most of the production is in the developing—I mean, I’d say 99% of the production is in the developing world. GLG, the biggest competitor of PureCircle, stated in their prospectus that they had over 200,000 farmers in China that were growing stevia. And that’s pretty much where—I mean, the statistics vary, but 70 to 80% of stevia is grown in China. And again, it’s done by very, very small farming operations with individual farmers.

The stevia plant is also grown—it originated in Paraguay— in Paraguay, Thailand, Indonesia and Kenya. I can’t say for a fact because we haven’t monitored it, but we believe that there are probably larger organizations in those countries that are looking at growing it on a larger scale—but to the best of our knowledge, it is, by California standards, grown on a very small scale.

Dodi Handy

Okay. Let’s talk about PureCircle and your new relationship with them.

Grover Wickersham

Okay. What would you like to know?

Dodi Handy

Well, first, tell us who PureCircle is and why you have elected to partner with them.

Grover Wickersham

PureCircle is really the Rolls-Royce or the Mercedes of the stevia industry, in our view. I mean, they’ve really pioneered it. They’re the world’s leading producer and the leading marketer of high-purity stevia products and they’ve become the stevia supplier of choice for leading global food and beverage manufacturers. They also have a vertically integrated supply chain, and they’re also doing some very innovative work with Michigan State University to improve stevia. They’ve also created the Global Stevia Institute and—so I think it’s safe to say everyone agrees that they’re in a leadership position.

They are a public company—they trade on the London Stock Exchange under the symbol PURE—P-U-R-E. I checked on the capitalization this morning—it’s about a half billion dollar. Their earnings in 2009 were about $11 million on $60 million in sales. They are a significant company and they’re very well backed. Olam is one of their largest shareholders. Olam is similar to Archer Daniels Midland of Asia, if you will. It’s traded on the Singapore Stock Exchange and has $120 million invested in PureCircle.

So, PureCircle is a real quality company with very high-quality backing. And we approached them with the idea that there was strategic value to producing stevia in the United States and that California was the place to produce it. They were in the process of reaching that conclusion themselves, so the timing was excellent and we’re real happy to be teaming with them.

Dodi Handy

Can you share with us some food and beverage products that PureCircle is currently supplying the stevia-Reb A to – some companies that we may recognize?

Grover Wickersham

PureCircle has about 150 new products being launched globally in 2010 alone, and their stevia is already in a lot of products. One of the good things about stevia is you can use it to naturally sweeten a lot of different products — it can be used as a tabletop sweetener, and in yogurts, beverages, that sort of thing. But unlike other competitive sweeteners, there are not the same problems with heat so you can put it into baked goods.

As far as the actual products, there’s zero-calorie SoBe Lifewater, which is kind of like a vitamin water, and there’s Tropicana 50—or it’s Tropicana 50/50 or Tropicana 50—which is—again, it’s all-natural. Odwalla has got some products with stevia in it. I mean, it’s a way that you can get calorie reduction but still stay natural, so—.

Dodi Handy

Okay. What stevia supply sources does PureCircle currently rely on, and do you envision that S&W could become a major supply source for them in the years ahead?

Grover Wickersham

Yes, we want to be. PureCircle has direct relationships with people all over the world. I think they came out with a press release today that talked about S&W, but also talked about Paraguay and Kenya. They’re in China, Thailand, Paraguay, Kenya, Indonesia, and I believe they have direct sourcing agreements with companies in the developing world. However, I believe we’re the only one in the United States and we’re hoping we can keep it that way.

As for stevia leaf consumption, I think they’re also buying a significant amount of stevia leaf on the market in China through middlemen. And so, that gives us a lot of comfort; if we can become a large-scale producer, as planned, we would then be able to supply PureCircle with all the stevia they require.

Dodi Handy

Okay. So, let’s talk a little bit about the actual mechanics of the relationship. I mean, what is actually going to happen? S&W is going to grow the stevia leaf, dry and process it, and then deliver it to PureCircle? And then they turn around and sell it to their customers—these food and beverage manufacturers?

Grover Wickersham

Yes, that’s correct. It’s very similar to the model that we use in our alfalfa business – or our wheat, or any other agricultural product that we elect to market. We find the finest varieties that we can, we develop them internally, in lots of cases, whatever the product. And then we have a grower base of 15 different farms and we contract with those farms to grow products for us. And we process the product and then sell it back into the marketplace. In this case, we would be selling to PureCircle.

Dodi Handy

Okay. Can you share any details relating to the actual revenue that is expected to result from this five-year agreement? Because you noted in the release that you expect to deliver up to—I believe it was 1,000 metric tons of dried stevia leaf to PureCircle in just the first two years. So, can you quantify that in terms of the actual revenue?

Grover Wickersham

As you might imagine, there’s a lot of commercial sensitivity and competitive sensitivity on that information and we’re applying for a confidentiality request on some of the terms of the contract. It’s important to note that the pound figures that we reported in the release, and the ton figures that we used are minimums. There is no contractual limitation on how much we produce. We see this as a growing market. If we can commercially produce stevia on the volume basis that we think we can, then we will ramp up as quickly as possible.

I think we’re able to do that because right now we’re running trial programs with one of our big growers and we’re identifying the best varieties. When we get to the point where we can go out to our other growers on a large scale – they have a lot of real estate that’s available for farming – so we should be able to ramp up quickly. But it’s really premature for us to give any guidance as to the amount of actual pounds that we expect to be producing.

Dodi Handy

Okay. Now, I know that when you were roadshowing for your initial public offering this past spring, there was some discussion regarding entering the stevia business, but it was further out than now, wasn’t it?

Grover Wickersham

Yes. Actually, it’s a point of a lot of personal satisfaction for me because, you know, on the roadshow there’s usually someone in the audience who specializes in being a Doubting Thomas. So, one of the comments I constantly received regarding stevia was that it seemed to be more a pie in the sky opportunity. My response to that was always, yes, it’s a big pie in the sky. And there was a lot of comments about, you know, if you grow it, will they come? And so, it’s very gratifying to me that, this early in the game, we actually have the largest industry player in the world, and the most respected, that is putting advance orders in for the stevia leaf that we are growing.

So, I think that in terms of being ahead of schedule, we’ve always felt that it’s better to underpromise and exceed your promises—or underpredict. I’m very gratified that we’re able to announce this major contract as early as we are.

Dodi Handy

Okay, Grover. Well, that completes all of my questions.

Why don’t we have Alicia give our call participants the instructions again on how they can ask you some questions of their own? Alicia?

[db7]

PureCircle and S&W Seed Company Partner to Grow Stevia Leaf in California
.
Companies:S&W Seed Company.Related Quotes
Symbol Price Change
SANW 3.20 +0.23


{"s" : "sanw","k" : "a00,a50,b00,b60,c10,g00,h00,l10,p20,t10,v00","o" : "","j" : ""} Press Release Source: S&W Seed Company On Thursday July 29, 2010, 7:45 am EDT
FIVE POINTS, Calif., July 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- S&W Seed Company (Nasdaq:SANW - News) today announced that it has entered into a five-year agreement with PureCircle, Limited, the world's leading producer and marketer of high purity stevia products. The agreement provides for PureCircle to purchase stevia leaf from S&W and its subsidiary, Stevia California, bringing the two companies a step closer towards their mutual goal of growing stevia in the continental United States on a scale necessary to help support growing demand from major North American-based food and beverage manufacturers.

The new contract contains a confidential pricing arrangement and provides strong commercial incentive for S&W to accelerate commercial production of stevia leaf in California, involving significant acreage, with confidence that PureCircle will be a reliable customer. Likewise, PureCircle can expect that S&W, for its part, will focus on providing PureCircle with a reliable domestic US source of stevia leaf. More specifically, S&W anticipates supplying PureCircle with a minimum of 1000 metric tons (2.2 million pounds) of stevia leaf over the first two years of the agreement.

The stevia leaf supply contract greatly expands the existing engagement between the two firms under which S&W is currently running trials in California with proprietary PureCircle varieties. The relationship with S&W will provide support for PureCircle's recently announced research and varietal development project, in conjunction with Michigan State University, focused on the next generation of steviol glycosides beyond Reb A.

Magomet Malsagov, CEO and Managing Director of PureCircle, stated, "The signing of this agreement signals our commitment to keep stevia leaf production as close to our end markets as possible, reducing the energy footprint of the industry and supporting the sustainability of stevia growers. This complements our much more extensive efforts in Paraguay and Kenya."

S&W's board of directors and management team bring decades of related agronomic experience to work for PureCircle in their development of proprietary stevia varieties in North America. Over the last 20 years, S&W has developed world leading varieties of alfalfa seed, as verified by university trials. S&W's contract growers, most of whom have been with the Company for decades, comprise many thousands of acres of farmland in the Central Valley of California. The variety of locations, climates and soils available through this diverse grower base will provide an excellent "test bed" for optimizing cultivation techniques for the region. In addition, as techniques and superior varieties are confirmed, the large acreage available through S&W's grower base should make rapid expansion of stevia possible.

Grover Wickersham, Chairman of S&W Seed, noted, "For 30 years, S&W has worked with California farmers to produce high quality agricultural products. We are very pleased that our efforts to bring commercial scale production of stevia to the U.S. have begun to gain measurable traction, marked by this important sourcing agreement with PureCircle. In addition to contributing what we believe will be meaningful new revenue to our Company in 2011, we are very excited about working with PureCircle to produce the highest quality stevia in a way that will be cost effective for food and beverage manufacturers and beneficial to our California growers."

About PureCircle Limited

PureCircle is pioneering the extraction of natural goodness from plants. Through investment in expertise, innovative technology and facilities around the world, its goal is to improve global health and well-being by providing natural, pure extracts which are ideal for a wide variety of food and beverage applications. These include a zero calorie, natural sweetener as an alternative to sugar. For more information, please visit www.purecircle.com.

About S&W Seed Company

Founded in 1980 and headquartered in the Central Valley of California, S&W Seed Company is a global leader in warm climate, high yield alfalfa seed varieties, including varieties that can thrive in poor, saline soils, as verified over decades of university-sponsored trials. S&W also offers seed cleaning and processing at its 40-acre facility in Five Points, California. In fiscal 2010, the Company launched a business expansion initiative centered on mass producing stevia leaf in the U.S. in response to growing global demand for the all-natural, zero calorie sweetener from 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 Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E 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." 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 risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, and other risks identified in the Company's prospectus, dated May 3, 2010, and other filings made by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission.