Wade Barnes steps down as Farmers Edge CEO

He co-founded the company in 2005

By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com

Wade Barnes, co-founder of Farmers Edge, is stepping down as the company’s CEO.

Barnes, who co-founded the company in 2005 with Curtis MacKinnon, will remain on the board of directors and continue to be involved with the business.

“It has been an honour and a privilege to lead this great company as CEO,” he said in a March 25 statement. “My journey with Farmers Edge has been a truly rewarding one. I’m incredibly proud to have worked with such talented, creative, and innovative team members over the years who have helped build Farmers Edge into what it is today. I am confident that the company will continue to grow, achieve important new milestones in its development, and deliver on my vision.”

Barnes’s resignation as CEO came the same day Farmers Edge released its 2021 fourth quarter financial results.

The company recorded a net loss of $19.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2021 and a net loss of $66.4 million for the year ending Dec. 31.

Farmers Edge did, however, also record 1.5 million digital agronomy acres signed in the first quarter of this year.

Also on March 25, the company announced a $75 million loan from Fairfax Financial Holdings.

It’s unclear if Barnes’s decision is tied to the financial results and loan announcement.

Some analysts, however, believe the situations are linked.

“It was a disappointing quarter with the numbers coming in well below our conservative expectations that reflected our downgrade of the (company’s) stock,” Richard Tse, a financial analyst with National Bank, told The Globe and Mail. “In light of the poor execution since coming to market, it’s not surprising that Wade is stepping down as CEO.”

Farms.com has contacted Farmers Edge for further comment.