6 Apr 2024

Happy Valley Plants Created 75K Agave Clones with PPM™

Anjali Singh, MS

As a content and community manager, I leverage my expertise in plant biotechnology, passion for tissue culture, and writing skills to create compelling articles, simplifying intricate scientific concepts, and address your inquiries. As a dedicated science communicator, I strive to spark curiosity and foster a love for science in my audience.

Table of Contents

About

Arizona Wholesale Growers (AWG) is a passionate B2B plant company dedicated to providing innovative and drought-tolerant varieties to landscape architects, designers, contractors, and retail nurseries across the southwest USA.

They have been in the business for an incredible 42 years, and have a team of 140 members across all their locations.

Through their second online retail brand, HappyValleyPlants.com, AWG ships their Arizona-grown wonders (especially unique Agave and Cactus species) directly to customers worldwide. The company is already serving around 20 countries, and there are many more on the list.

Both brands are running under the leadership of:

• Shawn Cox (General Manager): He provides comprehensive leadership, overseeing all aspects of resource management, production, ordering, personnel, and future expansion.
• Tony Sereno (Innovation Manager): Tony leads the day-to-day operations of the 6,000-square-foot Innovation Lab, managing a team of seven and directing all lab propagation activities.
• Paul Behnen (Brand & Creative Director): Spearheads the marketing and communications strategy and production, from concept to execution.

Challenge:

In 2021, Shawn launched the Innovation Lab with the ambitious goal of revolutionizing plant propagation and hybridization for both brands.

Early success with Agave 'Blue Glow' fueled an ambitious new adventure: cloning the elusive Agave titanota v. 'Snaggletooth,' a plant as rare as a white tiger in the jungle. However, disaster struck when all 30 purchased plants arrived contaminated.

An additional challenge in their setup was inconsistent results due to the gelling agent they were using in their experiments. While it was affordable, the product jeopardized the success of their new plant lines.

Seeking a Solution

The team embarked on a search for a more reliable contamination prevention solution and gelling agent that could immediately solve its contamination problems and consistently support its innovative endeavors. They discovered our products.

Results (The PCT Impact)

After careful research and evaluation, the team partnered with Plant Cell Technology (PCT) and adopted PCT's PPM™ and gelling agent products, which are known for their high quality and reliability.

“We wanted to increase the quality and efficiency of our production and process and PCT products have a strong positive reputation”—Shawn Cox, General Manager, Arizona Wholesale Growers.

Scientifically Measured Outcomes:

The switch to PCT products yielded positive and measurable results:

• Increased Production

With PCT’s guidance, Tony took strategic action. He implemented a diluted PPM™ solution during sterilization, allowing the plants to be "initiated" cleanly in the gel, the first crucial step.

Using PPM™ Tony saved and revived the previously contaminated snaggletooth agave plants, enabling him to cultivate a new top-selling plant line with increased production.

• Improved Efficiency

The larger quantities and cost-effectiveness of PCT products allowed Happy Valley Plants to optimize its budget, lowering their cost per plant and streamline its processes.

"The larger quantities offered by PCT helped us reduce our overall costs without compromising on quality,"—shares Tony Sereno

• Enhanced Quality: PCT's gelling agent ensured consistent and reliable results, leading to superior plant health and higher success rates in their propagation efforts.

Future Goals

Happy Valley Plants is on its mission to introduce traditional Southwest plants to a global audience. The company eagerly anticipates exciting opportunities while also acknowledging the significant challenges it must overcome to reach its milestones.

“Our new agave hybrids will be more cold AND heat tolerant and have visual variations yet to be seen. We are creating clones that the world is asking for”—shares Shawn.

Shawn is now planning to expand their facility and production from 200,000 new plants in 2023 to 400,000 new plants in 2024—meeting the global demand. They plan to implement PPM™ from the early stages of tissue culture for increased productivity and efficiency in their lab.

Driven by a deep commitment to innovation and sustainable practices, Happy Valley Plants is poised to make a lasting impact on agave plant enthusiasts and the horticultural landscape. Their dedication to cultivating a greener future, one vibrant plant at a time, promises a happier and more flourishing environment for generations to come.

Final Marketing Perspective On PCT and PPM™

Since we have such a positive feeling overall for PCT, we would be happy to make referrals, endorsements, collaborations, etc. In fact, we are evolving our retail brand positioning using the PCT logo as our “Seal of Approval” on our products. It could be the extra bit of cache like “Intel Inside. - concludes Paul Behnen