The Global Agricultural Testing market is posed to grow at a CAGR of 5.8% during 2015-2020 to reach a market value of $ 5875.27 million by 2020. Agricultural testing can be defined as the testing of various samples involving water, soil, seed etc. in order to determine quality and contaminant content.
Agricultural testing helps in analyzing the appropriate input requirements and resources to be supplemented for the optimal plant growth. Along with determining the contamination level, testing helps in determining composition, and other characteristics such as the acidity or pH level of the given sample. A soil test can be helpful in defining the fertility level and need for trace elements etc. of a given soil type. Agricultural testing can act as a boon for the commercialized agriculture sector and farming community globally.
Agricultural testing market is a high growth sector as it is becoming highly popular in developed and commercialized regions. Regulations and legalizations pertaining to environmental safety and agricultural productivity has been the major driving factor for the market growth of this sophisticated segment. Sample testing has become increasingly popular in commercialized agriculture countries in order to maintain the export growth of agricultural commodities. Time consumption in preparing an extensive sample for testing along with cost associated with the operation are the major setbacks for the industry growth. However, increasing demand from agricultural dominated developing nations like India, China and Brazil and further technological advancements are expected to provide future growth opportunity for the industry.
The segmentation of the industry is done according to the sample type applicable for testing, application and as per geography. By sample, the market is segmented into soil, water, seed, bio-solids, manures and others. Soil testing forms the majority of market share followed by water testing. By application, the market is explained on the basis of contaminants and quality assurance. The contaminants market is expected to grow at 6.1% CAGR as it covers testing for chemical residues, pathogens, toxins etc.
By region, the global agricultural testing market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, South America and Africa. The market demand is dominated by North America followed by Europe. Given the high growth, industrialized agriculture sector, US forms the largest market for agricultural testing both regionally and globally which is then followed by Canada. Due to increased awareness about the benefits of testing, India and China are going to emerge as highest growing countries in Asia-Pacific. The market growth in South America will be driven by Brazil and Argentina.
The global market place for agricultural testing is highly fragmented due to involvement of many small, local testing facilities and laboratories in different regions. The major global players are trying to improve competitiveness of the market by investing in research and development activities pertaining new and improved agricultural testing methods and technologies. The key players in the market are- Eurofins Scientific, R J Hill Laboratories Ltd., Agilent Technologies, Inc. , SCS Global Services , Bureau Veritas S.A. and ALS Limited etc. Product line expansion and expansion of global presence are the major long term strategies followed by companies here.