American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers

What American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers does

ASABE (American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers) is a nonprofit professional society founded in 1907 and headquartered in St. Joseph, Michigan, serving the agricultural and biological engineering profession globally. The society operates as a member-supported organization delivering an integrated ecosystem of professional services: it develops and maintains national, international, and Canadian technical standards for agricultural, food, and biological systems engineering; publishes five peer-reviewed journals (Journal of the ASABE, Applied Engineering in Agriculture, Journal of Natural Resources and Agricultural Ecosystems, Journal of Agricultural Safety and Health, Transactions of the ASABE) and operates the Technical Library digital repository; runs the Annual International Meeting as its flagship in-person conference; administers the long-running AE50 Awards program and the Davidson Prize for agricultural innovation; and hosts the International Quarter-Scale Tractor Student Design Competition for university teams.

The society generates revenue through four primary streams: recurring annual membership dues, event and conference registration fees, sales of publications and standards documents, and branded merchandise through the ASABE Shop. Its core customer segments are practicing agricultural and biological engineers (primary), academic institutions and students (primary), and agricultural equipment manufacturers participating in standards and awards (secondary). The organization serves members through a multi-channel engagement model including the asabe.org website, Resource Magazine, The Lead with ASABE podcast, social media (Twitter/X, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube), email newsletters, webinars, and in-person events.

ASABE has no parent company, no equity funding, and operates independently under member-elected governance. Strategic initiatives including the Alliance for Modernizing African Agrifood Systems (AMAA) and the Circular Bioeconomy Systems Institute (CBSI) signal deliberate geographic and vertical expansion beyond traditional US-centric agricultural engineering. The organization employs 11-50 staff and is GDPR and CCPA compliant, indicating baseline data privacy maturity for a US-based organization serving an international membership.

Name

American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers

Legal name

American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers

Website

https://asabe.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1907

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ASABE is a 117-year-old nonprofit professional society headquartered in St. Joseph, Michigan, serving agricultural and biological engineers globally through membership dues, peer-reviewed journals, technical standards development, awards programs, and an annual international conference.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Engineering Society Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPAJACAB

Standards Development & Publishing (SDOs, Technical Standards)

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Publishing (Books, News, Magazines)/Professional & Legal Publishing (Standards, Compliance, Reference)

Keywords

• Agricultural engineering
• Biological engineering
• Technical standards development
• Professional society membership
• Peer-reviewed publications

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint Joseph

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees providing access to member benefits including publications, career resources, technical committees, sections and districts, and member roster access.
2. Events and Conferences: Registration fees for the Annual International Meeting and other conferences, workshops, and webinars hosted by ASABE.
3. Publications and Standards: Sales of technical publications, journals, standards documents, and special collections through the Technical Library and order system.
4. ASABE Shop Merchandise: Sale of branded merchandise including apparel, accessories, stickers, and recognition items through the ASABE online store.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

ASABE is a nonprofit professional society that advances engineering applicable to agricultural, food, and biological systems through membership services, peer-reviewed journals, technical standards development, conferences, awards, and career resources. It provides individual and institutional members access to the Technical Library, five peer-reviewed journals, the Annual International Meeting, and recognition programs such as the AE50 Awards and Grade of Fellow. The society also operates student competitions and the ASABE Career Center.

Product overview

ASABE (American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers) is a professional society rather than a product company. It offers an ecosystem of membership services, publications, awards, events, and educational programs for agricultural and biological engineering professionals. Key offerings include the AE50 Awards program recognizing innovative agricultural products, peer-reviewed journals (Journal of the ASABE, Applied Engineering in Agriculture, Journal of Natural Resources and Agricultural Ecosystems, Journal of Agricultural Safety and Health, Transactions of the ASABE), the Technical Library for research access, the Annual International Meeting for professional development, the International Quarter-Scale Tractor Student Design Competition for STEM education, Standards Development for technical guidelines, the Career Center for professional employment, Resource Magazine for industry news, and the ASABE Shop for branded merchandise. The society also manages strategic initiatives like AMAA and CBSI. All offerings are non-commercial membership services supporting the advancement of engineering applicable to agricultural, food, and biological systems.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Circular Bioeconomy Systems Institute (CBSI): Strategic initiative leading the circular transformation with expertise across systems
• Alliance for Modernizing African Agrifood Systems (AMAA)

Products and services

• ASABE Technical Library Digital repository providing access to ASABE's peer-reviewed journals, national and international technical standards, special collections, and technical publications for agricultural and biological engineering research.
• ASABE Peer-Reviewed Journals Suite of five peer-reviewed journals covering agricultural engineering, applied engineering in agriculture, natural resources and agricultural ecosystems, agricultural safety and health, and ASABE transactions for researchers and practitioners.
• Resource Magazine Monthly member magazine covering news, trends, and developments in agricultural and biological engineering, including advertising opportunities and consultant guides.
• Annual International Meeting Annual flagship conference bringing together agricultural and biological engineering professionals for technical sessions, presentations, networking, and exhibitions; scheduled for Indianapolis in 2026.
• ASABE Career Center Online job board and career resources for agricultural and biological engineering professionals, providing job postings and career development tools.
• ASABE Standards Development Committee-based consensus development of national, international, and Canadian technical standards for agricultural, food, and biological systems engineering practices, plus Standards Development Awards.
• ASABE Shop Online merchandise store selling ASABE-branded apparel, accessories, stickers, and recognition items.

Quantifiable outcome

• Annual International Quarter-Scale Tractor Design Competition engaging students from multiple universities

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS): International society for horticultural science publishing Acta Horticulturae and other peer-reviewed work, hosting symposia, and engaging a global research community. Comparable to ASABE as a parallel applied agricultural science society with journals, conferences, and standards-adjacent technical work, though focused on horticulture rather than engineering.
• Agricultural & Applied Economics Association (AAEA): U.S. professional association publishing the American Journal of Agricultural Economics and hosting the annual AAEA meetings. Comparable to ASABE as a parallel agricultural professional society with journals, conferences, and a member-supported nonprofit model, but focused on agricultural economics rather than engineering.
• American Association for Agricultural Education (AAAE): U.S. professional society for agricultural educators and extension specialists that publishes the Journal of Agricultural Education and hosts an annual conference. Comparable to ASABE as an adjacent agricultural professional society with overlapping university stakeholders and student engagement, but focused on education rather than engineering practice.

Broad incumbents

• American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE): U.S. engineering professional society with peer-reviewed journals, conferences, continuing education, and standards/technical reports. Comparable to ASABE in operating model and scale tier, though focused on chemical rather than agricultural and biological engineering.
• American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE): Long-standing U.S. engineering professional society with peer-reviewed journals, standards development, conferences, and member-driven governance. Closely analogous organizational model to ASABE — nonprofit society with dues, publications, standards, and an annual meeting — but serving civil rather than agricultural engineering.
• American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME): Large U.S. engineering professional society that publishes peer-reviewed journals, develops technical standards (e.g., B&PVC), and hosts major conferences. Directly comparable to ASABE as a fellow discipline-specific engineering society with the same membership/standards/publications revenue model, though broader in scope (mechanical rather than agricultural engineering).
• Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE): The largest technical professional organization in the world, operating with the same nonprofit, member-supported, standards-publishing, journal-publishing, conference-hosting model as ASABE. Comparable as a structural analog for revenue mix and governance, though IEEE operates at vastly greater scale across electrical/computer engineering rather than agricultural engineering.

Direct peers

• American Society of Agronomy (ASA) / Crop Science Society of America (CSSA) / Soil Science Society of America (SSSA): Tri-society agronomic professional organization publishing peer-reviewed journals (Agronomy Journal, Crop Science, Soil Science Society of America Journal), hosting the annual ASA-CSSA-SSSA Meetings, and engaging agricultural scientists and students. Directly comparable to ASABE as the most adjacent agricultural science society with overlapping members, students, and conference attendees.
• International Commission of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering (CIGR): International umbrella organization for agricultural and biosystems engineering that hosts world congresses and coordinates national societies (including ASABE) on global standards and research collaboration. Directly comparable as ASABE's primary international peer, addressing the same profession but at the global rather than U.S. national level.

Regional players

• European Society of Agricultural Engineers (EurAgEng): European counterpart professional society for agricultural engineering that publishes conference proceedings, hosts the biennial AgEng conference, and coordinates European research networks. Comparable to ASABE as a peer national/regional society in the same discipline, but with a primarily European member and standards footprint.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ASABEorg
• YouTubeyoutube.com/AgBioEngineering
• Facebookfacebook.com/ASABE1907
• Instagraminstagram.com/asabeorg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/american-society-of-agricultural-and-biological-engineers

Compliance2 records

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 American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers