US-built HFI balers find niche in Europe.

Following settlement of the dispute with New Holland, Massey Ferguson can now sell the HFI big baler outside the US

Massey Ferguson signaled its return to the European forage equipment market by exhibiting Hesston round balers and New Idea balers and mowers in MF's own color scheme at the 1996 European Grassland Demonstration in England. For next year's European grass silage season, MF is selling Hesston 540 and 555T variable chamber round balers and New Idea 4844 fixed chamber balers in MF colors, together with New Idea 5400-series mowers and 5200-series mower-conditioners that are built at Coldwater, OH.

MF previously had a marketing agreement to sell the forage equipment of Dutch-based manufacturer Greenland until the two parties failed to reach renewal terms two years ago. Thus, the extensive range of Greenland's roll balers, big square balers and mowers was lost to Massey Ferguson dealers.

Further evaluation of the MF-offerings of forage equipment will be carried out this year in heavy-yielding north European grass crops, but the balers' lack of silage-baling capability and the crimping roller on the mower-conditioners is unlikely to find favor in some markets, particularly Great Britain. MF and its fellow AGCO partners are conscious of the need for machines developed specifically to meet European requirements and conditions.

Massey Ferguson's plan to sell Hesston big square balers built by the AGCO-Case joint venture, Hay & Forage Implements (HFI) in Kansas, ran into trouble when New Holland secured a court injunction preventing MF from any marketing or sales activity for the machines in the UK. When Fiat bought New Holland a few years ago, part of the deal was that Fiat had to sell its North American Hesston division. HFI was jointly purchased by AGCO and Case.

New Holland subsequently introduced a range of European-built, Hesston-badged balers of similar specification to the "original" machine. The company said the agreement to sell the Kansas-based business prevented HFI balers from being sold outside North America.

The dispute was settled when AGCO agreed to pay New Holland a license fee for certain patents. As a result, Massey Ferguson has started selling its MF185MB and MF190LB models in the UK again. Massey is thought to have lost up to 50 sales in the interim, however.

MF had won sales of the Hesston big square balers following a European launch at the 1995 Agritechnica exhibition in Germany and had started shipping balers to dealers for this season. During the dispute, MF had to withdraw the HFI machines and offer customers an alternative baler, the German-built Mengele, in Mengele's usual powder blue color as it was hoped to be only a temporary measure and because they had to be supplied too quickly to incorporate the MF color scheme and logo. These machines are now being replaced by HFI-built machines.

European sales of big balers are on the increase as more farmers hand over their grass and maize silage-making operations to custom operators. MF is going after a slice of the market. With the success of AGCO (Massey Ferguson) in winning agreement to freely sell HFI balers in the UK, will Case seek a similar accommodation?