The size of the global seed market and the volume of seed trading have rapidly increased in the 21st century where the total market size by 2012 was approximately 45 billion USD, of which 79% were field crops, 17% were vegetables and 4% were forage and turf. While the volume of the trade and the market as a whole expanded, the share of the market also changed as the top 9 largest seed companies controlled 62% of the market in 2012 as opposed to just 17% in 1996. As for the regional status of the market size, North America and Asia-Pacific regions had 69% of the total market worth in 2014. The changes in the seed market led to various adjustments in the seed trading regulations where the protective behaviors of major players affected the entire market.
Asia Seed Co., Ltd. is a vegetable seed company founded in 1992 and is thriving each year in exporting new hybrid vegetable seeds to clients around the world. As a second mover to the saturated market that is dominated by a few companies with large shares, the company has set up four major strategies to compete in the global market. First and the most important strategy is to increase investment in R&D portion and strengthen it. In most types of businesses, investing in R&D is the key to success. Especially in the vegetable seed industry, the competitiveness of a company is decided by the variety of its seeds that result from the R&D department. The second strategy is the localization and incorporation of the company. Globally, vegetable crops vary while the domestic Korean varieties are not even known in other countries. To overcome this problem, it is important to open branches and subsidiaries to enter the market with local types of varieties that will appeal to customers and farmers. In relationship to R&D investment, Asia Seed Co., Ltd. has already set up a breeding system in India and keep expanding to other nations as well. The third strategy is to develop new materials for both the niche market and new possibilities. The last strategy is to have manpower training system that is required in all other industries. In order to assess the performance of our hybrid seeds, trained managers will need to travel and visit plots to acquire the results of trial and offer instructions when they are not satisfactory. Moreover, it is essential for collecting genetic materials from around the globe in order to develop better hybrids for the future of the company.
Seed exporting, while difficult, can be a charming and lucrative business. With enthusiasm in dealing with challenges and opportunities, I will contribute more ideas and know-hows on how the company deals with those choices and possibilities.

• Kyoung Ou Ryu(Asia Seed Co. Ltd.) Corresponding Author