Openfield

What Openfield does

Openfield is a UK farmer-owned cooperative that operates as Britain's only national grain marketing and arable inputs cooperative, headquartered in Colsterworth, Lincolnshire. Its core function is to aggregate, store, and market grain on behalf of farmer-members and to supply them with seed and fertiliser as bundled arable inputs. Members commit grain to the cooperative and automatically become shareholders, aligning the ownership and supplier base of the business.

The product portfolio spans four core offerings (Seed, Fertiliser, Grain, Storage) plus the Small Seed sub-brand for UK Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) and Countryside Stewardship schemes, with grain marketing executed through four instrument types: Pool (PC) for collective pooled marketing, Producers Direct (PD) for one-to-one customised contracts that can be fixed or unfixed, Tracker (PD) for LIFFE futures-based price averaging across a chosen window, and Movement for commodity-specific monthly contracts. Delivery runs through the Openfield Insight portal and mobile application, which provides order management, loading schedules, truck tracking, price alerts, account history, and the weekly OpenView market report; transactions are processed via SagePay.

The revenue model is built on a small recurring £1 non-refundable membership share layered on top of transaction-based fees tied to member grain throughput, fertiliser and seed sales, storage usage, and an optional Intercompany Insurance product priced at £1/tonne. Pricing for grain marketing is transaction-based and undisclosed publicly, while farmers also benefit from bundled services including sales credit insurance, Crop Fund advance payments, and member-discount partnerships with Oxbury (agricultural finance) and Sandy. Customer concentration is structurally distributed across UK arable farmer-members (SMBs), but revenue is therefore exposed to UK arable acreage, weather, and commodity-price cycles rather than enterprise customer churn. The firm employs 251–500 staff and has no reported external funding, no public listing, and no disclosed subsidiaries.

Name

Openfield

Legal name

Openfield Group Limited

Website

https://openfield.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Openfield is a UK farmer-owned cooperative and the country's only national grain marketing and arable inputs co-op, supplying seed, fertiliser, grain marketing, and storage services to its farmer-members, supported by the Openfield Insight digital portal.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Cooperative Services

NAICS

Oilseed and Grain Farming (1111)

SIC

Wholesale-Farm Product Raw Materials (5150), Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

Grain Merchandising & Origination Facilities (AFAOAAAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Private Commercial Grain Warehouses (Merchant-Owned) (AFAOACAB)

Keywords

• Grain marketing cooperative
• Arable inputs supply
• Agricultural fertiliser distribution
• Crop seed supply
• Farm grain storage services

Headquarters

HQ city

Colsterworth

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Grain Marketing: Openfield markets grain on behalf of its farmer members. When farmers commit grain to the cooperative, they become shareholders. The company uses its size and experience to secure the best deals for members through various products including pools, direct contracts, and trackers.
2. Arable Inputs (Seed & Fertiliser): Supply of agricultural inputs including seed and fertiliser to farmer members as part of the cooperative's bundled offering.
3. Storage Services: Grain storage facilities and services for members to store produce until optimal marketing conditions.
4. Membership Share: £1 non-refundable share in Openfield Group Limited required for membership. Early payment deductions apply.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Openfield is Britain's only national grain marketing and arable inputs cooperative. It markets grain on behalf of its farmer members via collective pools, direct contracts, futures-based trackers, and movement contracts. The cooperative supplies agricultural seed (including a dedicated Small Seed offering for stewardship schemes) and fertiliser, and provides grain storage facilities. Members access services through the Openfield Insight online portal and mobile app, and the business is supported by £1 membership shares that turn grain-committing farmers into shareholders.

Product overview

Openfield is Britain's only national grain marketing and arable inputs cooperative, offering a comprehensive portfolio of agricultural products and services. The core offerings include Seed, Fertiliser, Grain, and Storage products, complemented by specialized sub-brands like Small Seed (for SFI and Countryside Stewardship schemes). The product portfolio is supported by the Openfield Insight digital platform (portal and mobile app) and includes grain marketing products such as Pool (PC) for collective marketing, Producers Direct (PD) for customized one-to-one marketing, Tracker (PD) for futures-based price averaging, and Movement contracts. OpenView provides weekly market intelligence, while the Grain Marketing Guides offer strategic planning resources.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Seed Supply Agricultural seed products and supply services for arable farming members of the cooperative, including seed selection guidance delivered through the cooperative network. Target customers are UK arable farmers.
• Small Seed Specialised small seed products for UK stewardship schemes including SFI (Sustainable Farming Incentive), Countryside Stewardship, cover crops, companion crops, forage, game cover, and grass seed. Accessible via a dedicated website (seed.openfield.co.uk) searchable by scheme codes and actions. For UK farmers participating in environmental land management schemes.
• Fertiliser Supply Agricultural fertiliser supply to cooperative members, supported by a fertiliser selector tool that helps identify suitable products for specific farm needs. For UK arable farm businesses.
• Grain Marketing Services Collective grain marketing for farmer members, encompassing Pool (PC) contracts where the trading team markets pooled tonnage, Producers Direct (PD) one-to-one customised marketing partnerships that can be priced or unpriced, Tracker (PD) futures-based price averaging for wheat and oilseed rape using LIFFE, and Movement contracts for all commodities in a given month. Provides price risk management for UK arable farmers.
• Grain Storage Services Crop storage facilities and services, including central storage options that allow farmer members to hold grain and sell when market conditions are favourable, helping avoid seasonal market lows. For UK arable farming businesses.
• Openfield Insight Digital Platform Online customer portal and mobile application providing cooperative members with grain sales management, fertiliser purchases, seed purchases, loading schedules, collection and delivery alerts, truck tracking, account history, OpenView weekly market updates, customisable screens, and price alert functionality. Includes SagePay payment integration. For UK arable farmer members.
• Cooperative Membership Formal membership in Openfield Group Limited via a £1 non-refundable share, automatically granted to farmers who commit grain to the cooperative. Provides access to grain marketing, seed and fertiliser supply, storage services, advance payments at competitive rates, sales credit insurance, weekly market commentary, and member benefits including access to Openfield Insight, Oxbury agricultural finance, and Sandy partner services. Requires shareholder commitment by 31st March for pool participation. For UK arable farm businesses.

Quantifiable outcome

• Pool products operate across multiple time periods (Harvest, Autumn, Spring, Annual, Late Marketed) providing flexibility for different farming calendars
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• OxburyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOpenfield has a partnership with Oxbury, a bank specializing in agricultural finance. The partnership provides financial services benefits to Openfield members, likely offering favorable lending or credit facilities for farmer members.
• SandyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOpenfield has a partnership with Sandy (likely Sandy Agriculture or related business). Mentioned under the Benefits section alongside Oxbury, suggesting it provides additional services or discounts to Openfield members.
• Consumers and ProcessorscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOpenfield builds on long-term relationships with consumers and processors to access markets. The cooperative leverages these relationships to secure better prices for farmer members through collective marketing.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Frontier Agriculture: UK joint venture between Cargill and Associated British Foods providing crop inputs, grain marketing, and storage to British farmers. Most direct competitor to Openfield in UK arable inputs and grain origination, with overlapping product portfolio and farmer customer base.
• Mole Valley Farmers: UK farmer-owned cooperative supplying feed, fertiliser, seed, and agricultural services to British livestock and arable members. Closest cooperative model peer to Openfield, with comparable member-shareholder structure and bundled input offering.
• Wynnstay Group: Welsh-headquartered agricultural supplies group serving UK arable and livestock farmers with feed, seed, fertiliser, and grain marketing. Comparable in product mix and UK regional focus, though grain marketing is a smaller share of Wynnstay's revenue.
• United Oilseeds: UK farmer-owned cooperative focused on oilseed rape marketing and seed supply. Direct comparator to Openfield's grain marketing model but specialised in OSR rather than multi-commodity grain pools.

Broad incumbents

• Cargill: Global agricultural commodity trader and processor with significant UK grain origination through its Frontier joint venture. Competes with Openfield for processor contracts and farmer tonnage but operates at a vastly larger scale across multiple commodity chains.
• ADM: Global agribusiness with UK grain origination and oilseed crushing operations. Competes indirectly with Openfield for farmer tonnage and downstream food/feed customers but is not UK-cooperative structured.
• Bunge: Major global grain originator and oilseed processor with European operations. Indirect competitor to Openfield in UK and European grain supply chains, particularly for oilseed rape and wheat.

Emerging players

• Agrii (formerly UAP): UK agronomy services and crop input distributor providing seed, fertiliser, and crop protection advice. Overlaps with Openfield's seed and fertiliser offerings but lacks the national grain marketing pool/contracts capability.

Others

• Oxbury Bank: UK agricultural specialist bank that is itself a partner of Openfield. Comparable as a UK agricultural financial services provider serving the same farmer member base, though operates in an adjacent service category rather than grain marketing.

Regional players

• GrainCorp: Australian grain handling and marketing business with national storage and origination network. Functionally comparable to Openfield in grain pool marketing, storage, and farmer-direct origination, but operates exclusively in Australia.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/openfieldtm

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Openfield