The Story of Serigstad – Forage Harvester and Today's Products

For nearly 160 years, Serigstad Agri has been a key player in the agricultural industry, established as a provider of agricultural machinery in 1864. Since then, this Jæren-based agricultural company has developed and advanced the development of agricultural products that are used by farmers throughout Norway to this day.

The Great Transformation As Norwegian agriculture and farm operations shifted from self-sufficient farmers to larger enterprises suited to the market economy, Andreas Serigstad began devising machines to make farm operations more efficient. This era is referred to by later historians as the Great Transformation in Norwegian agriculture and economy, occurring in the late 19th century. It led to greater independence and increased production, while also making the work easier for individual farmers.

Farmer's son Andreas Serigstad took an early interest in the production of tools in the mid-19th century. Initially, the tools were made using a homemade drilling machine and lathe on the farm. Andreas's journeyman's test involved making a chopping machine for cutting straw. In 1868, he took over the farm operations from his parents, dedicating all his free time to producing agricultural tools in the farm's smithy. The production of this type of chopping machines steadily increased until about 1000 machines were produced by 1914 due to high demand.

Production of a range of new products and the revolutionary forage harvester After 1914, a range of practical agricultural tools were launched that eased the everyday life of farmers in Norway. These were products such as a turnip chopper and a land pump. The turnip chopper was used for chopping turnips. The land pumps were used to handle manure in the best possible way, and a range of other durable agricultural products were also developed. Serigstad, for example, produced products such as peat fertilizer harrows, Cambridge rollers, and straw chopping machines.

Serigstad is especially known for its forage harvester adapted to Norwegian conditions. The first forage harvester was developed with inspiration from models from Sweden, the USA, and England, where two prototypes were developed in the 1960s. Serigstad immediately started production of three different models of the sought-after forage harvester. From 1968, the new machinery factory produced, among other things, the left-mounted forage harvesters not found with other manufacturers at the time. This led to Serigstad establishing itself early as an important supplier of agricultural equipment in Norway.

Production of practical acid equipment From early on, it was necessary to add silage additive to the grass for the feed conservation to work well enough. This resulted in the production of what is termed LTI acid equipment. This equipment allowed for a can of silage additive to be mounted on the forage harvester with a stand. It is still so today, while other acid equipment for presses and choppers is called SmartFlow, and is fully automatic with wireless control from the tractor cabin.

Nowadays, most of the agricultural equipment used by Norwegian farmers is automated. Serigstad still produces a large number of forage harvesters and automated agricultural machines, which are supplied to the agricultural industry in both Norway and abroad, to ease the heavy daily work of the Norwegian farmer.