We are conducting a rights offering pursuant to which we are distributing to holders of our common stock, convertible notes and accompanying warrants, at no charge, non-transferable subscription rights to purchase shares of our common stock. You will receive 0.0937646 subscription rights for each share of common stock (or shares that are deemed to be owned, assuming conversion of your convertible note and/or exercise of your accompanying warrants, as applicable) held of record as of 5:00 p.m., New York time on January 21, 2016. We are distributing subscription rights exercisable for up to 1,923,077 shares of our common stock, together with an oversubscription right to purchase up to an additional 576,923 shares.

The total number of subscription rights issued to each stockholder will be rounded down to the nearest whole number. Each whole subscription right will entitle you to purchase one share of our common stock at a subscription price equal to $4.15 per share, which we refer to as the basic subscription privilege. Stockholders as of the record date will also have oversubscription rights as described herein.

The subscription rights may be exercised at any time during the subscription period, which will commence January 25, 2016. The subscription rights will expire if they are not exercised by 5:00 p.m., New York time, on February 22, 2016, unless we extend the rights offering period. We reserve the right to extend the rights offering period at our sole discretion. You should carefully consider whether to exercise your subscription rights before the expiration of the rights offering period. All exercises of subscription rights are irrevocable. Our board of directors is making no recommendation regarding your exercise of the subscription rights. The subscription rights may not be sold, transferred or assigned to anyone else and will not be listed for trading on any stock exchange or market.

We reserve the right to cancel the rights offering at any time for any reason. If we cancel this offering, all subscription payments received by the subscription agent, who is our transfer agent, will be returned, without interest or penalty, as soon as practicable.

The shares of common stock are being offered directly by us without the services of an underwriter or selling agent.

Our common stock is traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol "SANW."  On January 19, 2016, the last reported sale price of our common stock on the Nasdaq Capital Market was $4.16 per share. The closing sale price of our common stock on December 4, 2015 was $4.58 per share. As of January 19, 2016, the aggregate market value of our outstanding common stock held by non-affiliates, or the public float, was approximately $48,778,745 based upon 10,650,381 shares of our outstanding stock held by non-affiliates at the per share price of $4.58. Pursuant to General Instruction I.B.6 of Form S-3, in no event will we sell our common stock in a public primary offering with a value exceeding more than one-third of our public float in any 12-month period so long as our public float remains below $75,000,000. We have not offered any securities pursuant to General Instruction I.B.6. of Form S-3 during the prior 12 calendar month period that ends on and includes the date of this prospectus. As of January 19, 2016, one-third of our public float is equal to approximately $16,300,000.

The exercise of your subscription rights for shares of our common stock involves risks. You should carefully consider all of the information set forth in this prospectus, including the risk factors beginning on page 17 of this prospectus as well as the risk factors and other information in any documents we incorporate by reference into this prospectus before exercising your subscription rights. See "Incorporation by Reference."

Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or passed upon the adequacy or accuracy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

The date of this prospectus is January 22, 2016

You should rely only on the information contained in or incorporated by reference in this prospectus. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with information different from that contained in or incorporated by reference in this prospectus. We are offering to sell, and seeking offers to buy, the securities described in this prospectus only in jurisdictions where offers and sales are permitted. The information contained in this prospectus is accurate only as of the date of this prospectus, regardless of the time of delivery of this prospectus or of any sale of shares. You should not assume that the information appearing in this prospectus or any applicable prospectus supplement or amendment to this prospectus or the documents incorporated by reference herein or therein is accurate as of any date other than their respective dates. Our business, financial condition, results of operation and prospects may have changed since those dates.

Table of Contents

As permitted by the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the "Commission," the registration statement, of which this prospectus forms a part, includes additional information not contained in this prospectus. You may read the registration statement and the other reports we file with the Commission at the Commission's website or at the Commission's offices described below under the heading "Where You Can Find More Information."

Unless the context requires otherwise or unless otherwise noted, all references to "S&W Seed" or "S&W" are to S&W Seed Company, a Nevada corporation, and all references to "we," "us" or "our" are to S&W Seed Company and our subsidiaries.

Trademarks, service marks or trade names of any other companies appearing in this prospectus are the property of their respective owners. Use or display by us of trademarks, service marks or trade names owned by others is not intended to and does not imply a relationship between us, and/or endorsement or sponsorship by, the owners of the trademarks, service marks or trade names.

Our functional and reporting currency is the U.S. Dollar. Foreign currency denominated revenues and expenses are translated using average rates of exchange during the reporting period. Foreign currency denominated monetary assets and liabilities are translated at the rate of exchange in effect at the balance sheet date.

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ABOUT THIS PROSPECTUS

You should rely only on the information contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus or in any prospectus supplement we may authorize to be delivered to you, including any free writing prospectus that we use in connection with this offering. None of us, our subscription agent, Transfer Online, Inc., or our information agent, which is also Transfer Online, Inc., has authorized anyone to provide you with additional or different information from that contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus. We are not making an offer of securities in any state or other jurisdiction where it is not permitted. You should not assume that the information contained in this prospectus is accurate as of any date subsequent to the date set forth on the front cover of this document or that any information we have incorporated herein by reference is correct on any date subsequent to the date of the prospectus incorporated by reference, regardless of the time of delivery of this prospectus or any exercise of rights. Further, you should not consider any information in this prospectus to be investment, legal or tax advice. We encourage you to consult your own counsel, accountant and other advisors for legal, tax, business, financial and related advice regarding an investment in our securities. For further information, please see the section of this prospectus entitled "Where You Can Find More Information."

This prospectus contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, as well as assumptions that, if they never materialize or prove incorrect, could cause our results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. The statements contained in this prospectus that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"). All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements, including but not limited to any projections of revenue, margins, expenses, tax provisions, earnings, cash flows and other financial items; any statements of the plans, strategies and objectives of management for future operations; any statements regarding our ability to raise capital in the future; any statements concerning expected development, performance or market acceptance relating to our products or services or our ability to expand our grower or customer bases; any statements regarding future economic conditions or performance; any statements of expectation or belief; any statements regarding our ability to retain key employees; and any statements of assumptions underlying any of the foregoing. These forward-looking statements are often identified by the use of words such as, but not limited to, "anticipate," "believe," "can," "continue," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "will," "plan," "project," "seek," "should," "target," "will," "would," and similar expressions or variations intended to identify forward-looking statements. We have based these forward-looking statements on our current expectations about future events. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other important factors that could cause actual results and the timing of certain events to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward- looking statements. Risks, uncertainties and assumptions include the following:

• whether we are successful in securing sufficient acreage to support the growth of our alfalfa seed business,
• the continued ability of our distributors and suppliers to have access to sufficient liquidity to fund their operations;
• trends and other factors affecting our financial condition or results of operations from period to period;

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• the impact of crop disease, severe weather conditions, such as flooding, or natural disasters, such as earthquakes, on crop quality and yields and on our ability to contract production, procure or export our products;
• the impact of pricing of other crops that may be influence what crops our growers elect to plant;
• our plans for expansion of our business (including through acquisitions) and our ability to successfully integrate acquisitions into our operations;
• whether we are successful in aligning expense levels to revenue changes;
• whether we are successful in monetizing our stevia business;
• the cost and other implications of pending or future legislation or court decisions and pending or future accounting pronouncements; and
• other risks that are described herein including but not limited to the items discussed in "Risk Factors" below, and that are otherwise described or updated from time to time in our filings with the Commission.

You are urged to carefully review the disclosures made concerning risks and uncertainties that may affect our business or operating results, which include, among others, those listed in "Risk Factors" on page 17 of this prospectus.

Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results, level of activity, performance or achievements. Many factors discussed in this prospectus, some of which are beyond our control, will be important in determining our future performance. Consequently, actual results may differ materially from those that might be anticipated from the forward-looking statements. In light of these and other uncertainties, you should not regard the inclusion of a forward-looking statement in this prospectus as a representation by us that our plans and objectives will be achieved, and you should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements included herein are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. Furthermore, such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this prospectus. We undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

We are distributing at no charge to holders of our common stock, convertible notes and accompanying warrants non-transferable subscription rights to purchase shares of our common stock. We are including the holders of convertible notes and warrants in the rights offering on an as-converted and as exercised basis, along with the holders of our common stock, pursuant to the terms of the convertible notes and warrants as issued in December 2014. You will receive 0.0937646 subscription rights for each share of common stock you owned (or are deemed to own, assuming coversion of your convertible note and/or exercise of your accompanying warrants, as applicable) as of 5:00 p.m., New York time on January 21, 2016, the record date. The subscription rights per share ratio has been calculated based on the number of shares outstanding, plus the shares issuable upon conversion of the convertible notes and upon exercise of the accompanying warrants as of the record date, which totals an aggregate of 20,509,625 shares. The subscription rights entitle the holders (including holders of our common stock, convertible notes and accompanying warrants) to purchase up to 1,923,077 shares. However, we also have provided an oversubscription privilege that could result in the purchase of an aggregate of 2,500,000 shares in this rights offering, subject to a cutback equal to the number of shares sold pursuant to the participation rights described below. The subscription rights will be evidenced by subscription rights certificates.

The total number of subscription rights issued to each stockholder will be rounded down to the nearest whole number. Each whole subscription right will entitle you to purchase one share of our common stock at a subscription price equal to $4.15 per share. Because the total number of subscription rights issued to each stockholder will be rounded down to the nearest whole number, we may not issue the full number of shares authorized for issuance in connection with this rights offering. Any excess subscription payments received by the subscription agent will be returned, without interest or penalty, as soon as practicable.

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What is the subscription privilege?

For each whole right that you own, you will have a subscription privilege to buy from us one share of our common stock at the subscription price. You may exercise your subscription privilege for some or all of your subscription rights, or you may choose not to exercise any subscription rights.

For example, if you owned 10,000 shares of our common stock as of 5:00 p.m., New York time, on the record date, you would receive subscription rights representing the right to purchase 937.646 shares of common stock (rounded down to 937 shares) for $4.15 per share.

If you exercise your subscription rights in full, at the same time, you may also exercise your oversubscription privilege, as described below. See "What is the oversubscription privilege?"

In connection with the purchase and sale of the convertible notes and warrants, we granted those purchasers, whom we refer to in this prospectus as the convertible note purchasers, the right to purchase pro rata up to 30% of certain future offerings until December 2016. This rights offering would trigger that 30% participation right. However, we plan to seek an amendment to Section 4.12(a) of the December 2014 Securities Purchase Agreement that exempts this rights offering from this 30% participation right. At the time of consummation of the rights offering, the convertible note purchasers will be given the opportunity to purchase via a "takedown" from our existing shelf registration statement on Form S-3 a number of shares equivalent to the number they would otherwise purchase under the participation right as consideration for entering into the amendment. For ease of reference, as used in this prospectus, we sometimes refer to the separate offering of up to 576,923 shares of our common stock being sold to our convertible note purchasers in consideration for amendment of the December 2014 Securities Purchase Agreement as the "participation right," even though those shares will be sold pursuant to a takedown from our existing shelf registration statement rather than pursuant to this prospectus. The process is described below in "How does the 30% participation right of our December 2014 convertible note purchasers impact the rights offering?" In addition, the holders of convertible notes and warrants are rights offering participants and are eligible to participate in this rights offering on a pro rata basis, on a deemed converted and exercised basis, with the holders of our common stock as of the record date, subject to their contractual beneficial ownership limitations. These different rights are separate rights that may be exercised independently of each other, if at all.

• On the date of termination of the rights offering, we will place into escrow the subscribed for shares in the "offered pool" (up to 1,923,077 shares on an as converted basis to stockholders, noteholders and warrant holders).
• After the close of business on the date of termination of the rights offering, we will send to the convertible note purchasers an amendment to the December 2014 Securities Purchase Agreement along with notice of their subscription right to their pro rata portion of 30% of the amount of shares placed into escrow. Assuming the maximum number of shares is subscribed for, the 30% amount is 576,923 shares. The convertible note purchasers will have three business days in which to determine if they will participate, and until the close of the fourth business day to make payment for the shares subscribed for at the same price as the rights offering, which we will consummate as a "takedown" from our existing shelf registration statement.

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• After the close of business on that fourth business day, we will tally the amounts subscribed for as a result of the steps outlined in the two preceding bullet points, and the difference between 2,500,000 shares and that amount is the "oversubscription amount." The subscription agent will have the amount of oversubscription that each stockholder has indicated it would like to "purchase." The subscription agent will allocate the oversubscription amount accordingly (i.e., if the total amount of oversubscription is less than the oversubscription amount, the oversubscription requests will be allocated in full; however, if the amount of oversubscription requests exceeds the oversubscription amount, the subscription agent will allocate the pool pro rata).

If all of our stockholders do not exercise all of the subscription rights issued to them in this rights offering and if the convertible note purchasers do not purchase all the shares available in the shelf takedown, then each holder who has exercised subscription rights in full will have the opportunity to purchase additional shares of our common stock at the subscription price of $4.15 per share under the oversubscription right, up to the oversubscription amount. By extending oversubscription rights to our stockholders, we are providing those holders who have exercised all of their subscription rights with an opportunity to purchase shares that are not purchased by other stockholders in this rights offering and by the convertible note purchasers pursuant to their participation right. The exact number of shares that will be available for the oversubscription pool will be determined by subtracting from 2,500,000 the number of shares subscribed for pursuant to the basic subscription privilege and the shares sold pursuant to the convertible note purchasers' participation right. All subscription funds, including any funds for oversubscription shares, will be held in escrow pending final determination of the oversubscription allocation.

If sufficient shares of common stock are available, we will seek to honor your oversubscription request in full. If, however, there are not enough shares available to fully satisfy all oversubscription right requests, we will allocate the available shares of common stock pro rata among those stockholders exercising their oversubscription privilege in proportion to the product (rounded down so that the subscription price multiplied by the aggregate number of shares does not exceed the aggregate offering amount) obtained by multiplying the number of shares such stockholder subscribed for under the oversubscription privilege by a fraction the numerator of which is the number of unsubscribed shares and the denominator of which is the total number of shares sought to be subscribed for under the oversubscription privilege by all holders participating in such oversubscription. The subscription agent will return any excess payments by mail without interest or deduction as soon as reasonably practical after the expiration date.

We are conducting the rights offering in order to raise additional capital and to improve and strengthen our financial position. We intend to use the net proceeds from the rights offering for debt service for the convertible notes and general corporate purposes.

In authorizing the rights offering, our board of directors considered and evaluated a number of factors, including: 

• our current capital resources and our future need for additional liquidity and capital;
• our determination that paying off the debt incurred in connection with the DuPont Pioneer acquisition as early as possible is in the best interests of our company and our stockholders;
• the size and timing of the rights offering;
• the potential dilution to our current stockholders if they choose not to participate in the offering;

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• alternatives available for raising capital, including equity raises;
• the potential impact of the rights offering on the public float for our common stock; and
• the fact that existing stockholders would have the opportunity to participate on a pro rata basis to purchase additional shares of common stock.

One of our directors, Alexander C. Matina, is Vice President of Investments of the general partner of MFP Partners, L.P., one of our major stockholders, which purchased shares from us in a private placement in November 2015 at the subscription price. Mr. Matina, recused himself from the determination by the board of directors to proceed with the rights offering.

Our board of directors considered a number of factors in determining the price for the rights offering, including:

• the price per share at which one of our major stockholders, MFP Partners, L.P., purchased shares in a private placement in November 2015;
• "pass through" savings as a result of conducting the rights offering with no investment banking support;
• the price at which our stockholders might be willing to participate in the rights offering;
• historical and current trading prices for our common stock, including on a volume weighted average share price basis over certain periods; and
• the desire to provide an opportunity to our stockholders to participate in the rights offering on a pro rata basis. 

One of our directors, Alexander C. Matina, is Vice President of Investments of the general partner of MFP Partners, L.P. Mr. Matina recused himself from the determination by the board of directors to proceed with the rights offering.

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Am I required to exercise the rights I receive in the rights offering?

No. You may exercise any number of your subscription rights, or you may choose not to exercise any subscription rights. However, if you choose not to fully exercise your subscription privilege and other stockholders fully exercise their subscription privilege, the percentage of our common stock owned by other stockholders will increase, the relative percentage of our common stock that you own will decrease, and your voting and other rights will be diluted.

Our board of directors is making no recommendations regarding your exercise of the subscription rights. Stockholders who exercise subscription rights risk investment loss on new money invested. We cannot assure you that the trading price for our common stock will be above the subscription price at the time of exercise or at the expiration of the rights offering period or that anyone purchasing shares at the subscription price will be able to sell those shares in the future at the same price or a higher price. You are urged to make your own decision whether or not to exercise your subscription rights based on your own assessment of our business and the rights offering. See "Risk Factors" in this prospectus and in the documents incorporated by reference into this prospectus.

All stockholders of record on January 21, 2016, the record date, approved by our board of directors for this rights offering, are entitled to receive rights and purchase shares in this rights offering. In addition, the holders of our outstanding convertible notes and warrants issued with respect to our December 2014 convertible note offering are eligible to participate pro rata with our stockholders, based on the deemed conversion of the outstanding convertible notes and deemed exercise of the outstanding warrants on the day preceding the record date. As used in this prospectus in connection with the rights offering, unless the context otherwise provides, the terms "stockholders," "you" and " "your" include the holders of our convertible notes and accompanying warrants.

Our directors and executive officers who own shares of common stock, as well as other significant stockholders, are permitted, but not required, to participate in the rights offering on the same terms and conditions applicable to all stockholders. Certain of our directors, executive officers and significant stockholders may participate in the rights offering. In fact, subject to the terms and conditions of the rights offering, MFP, Partners, L.P., one of our stockholders, has expressed its intention to purchase its pro rata share of subscription rights and any available unsubscribed shares until it owns, in the aggregate, up to a maximum of 19.9% of our issued and outstanding common stock. One of our directors, Alexander C. Matina, is Vice President of Investments of the general partner of MFP Partners, L.P.

The subscription rights may be exercised at any time during the subscription period, which commences on January 25, 2016, through the expiration date for the rights offering, which is 5:00 p.m., New York time, on February 22, 2016. If you elect to exercise any subscription rights, the subscription agent must actually receive all required documents and payments from you at or prior to the expiration date. Although we have the option of extending the expiration date of the subscription period at our sole discretion, we currently do not intend to do so.

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May I transfer my subscription rights?

No, the rights are exercisable only by stockholders of record on the record date, and you may not sell, transfer or assign your subscription rights to anyone else.

Yes. Subject to your ability to exercise the oversubscription privilege, you may only purchase the number of whole shares of common stock purchasable upon exercise of the basic subscription privilege included in the subscription rights distributed to you in the rights offering. Accordingly, the number of shares of common stock that you may purchase in the rights offering is limited by the number of our shares of common stock you held on the record date. Although stockholders that fully and properly exercise their basic subscription privilege have the right to exercise the oversubscription privilege, there can be no assurances of the number of shares that a holder will be able to acquire through the exercise of the oversubscription privilege. We reserve the right to reject any or all subscriptions not properly submitted or the acceptance of which would, in the opinion of our counsel, be unlawful.

No.

Yes. The completion of the rights offering is subject to the conditions described under "The Rights Offering - Amendment, Withdrawal and Termination."

Yes. We reserve the right to cancel the rights offering at any time for any reason. If the rights offering is cancelled, all subscription payments received by the subscription agent will be returned, without interest or penalty, as soon as practicable to those persons who subscribed for shares in the rights offering.

If you wish to participate in the rights offering, you must properly complete the enclosed subscription rights certificate and deliver it, along with the full subscription price, to the subscription agent before 5:00 p.m., New York time, on February 22, 2016. If you use the mail, we recommend that you use insured, registered mail, return receipt requested.

If you send a payment that is insufficient to purchase the number of shares you requested, or if the number of shares you requested is not specified in the forms, the payment received will be applied to exercise your subscription rights to the fullest extent possible based on the amount of the payment received. If the payment exceeds the subscription price for the full exercise of your subscription rights, then the excess will be returned to you as soon as practicable. You will not receive interest on any payments refunded to you under the rights offering.

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What should I do if I want to participate in the rights offering, but my shares are held in the name of my broker, dealer, custodian bank or other nominee?

If you hold your shares of common stock in "street name" through a broker, dealer, custodian bank or other nominee, you will not receive an actual subscription rights certificate. Instead, as described in this prospectus, you must instruct your broker, dealer, custodian bank or other nominee whether or not to exercise rights on your behalf. We will ask your broker, dealer, custodian bank or other nominee to notify you of the rights offering.

If you wish to participate in the rights offering, you should complete and return to your nominee the form entitled "Beneficial Owner Election Form." You should receive this form from your nominee with the other rights offering materials. If your shares are held in the name of a broker, dealer or other nominee, then you should send your subscription payment to that nominee as well pursuant to their instructions. You must act timely to ensure that your broker, dealer, custodian bank or other nominee acts for you and that all required forms and payments are actually received by the subscription agent prior to the expiration of the rights offering period.

Yes. The subscription agent will hold all funds it receives in a segregated bank account until completion of the rights offering. If the rights offering is not completed, the subscription agent will return, without interest or penalty, as soon as practicable, all subscription payments. If you own shares in "street name," it may take longer for you to receive payment because the payments will be returned through your nominee.

Yes. You must timely pay the full subscription price for the full number of shares of common stock you wish to acquire under the subscription privilege by wire, bank draft drawn on a U.S. bank, U.S. postal money order or personal check that clears before the expiration date of the rights offering.

No. You will not be subject to any stockholder agreement that restricts your ability to sell or transfer any new shares of common stock acquired by you in the rights offering. However, under federal securities laws, affiliates of our company will be subject to restrictions on their ability to transfer shares of our common stock by virtue of their status as "affiliates" of our company. An "affiliate" is generally defined as a person that directly, or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, controls or is controlled by, or is under common control with, our company,

No. All exercises of subscription rights are irrevocable by the stockholders, even if you later learn information about us that you consider unfavorable. You should not exercise your subscription rights unless you are certain that you wish to purchase the shares of common stock offered pursuant to this rights offering. However, we may cancel, extend or otherwise amend the rights offering at any time prior to the expiration date.

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Does exercising my subscription rights involve risk?

Yes. The exercise of your subscription rights involves risks. Exercising your subscription rights involves the purchase of additional shares of our common stock and should be considered as carefully as you would consider other equity investments. Among other things, you should carefully consider the risks described under the heading "Risk Factors" in this prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference into this prospectus.

We are not charging any fees or sales commissions to issue subscription rights to you or to issue shares to you if you exercise your subscription rights. If you exercise your subscription rights through a broker or other record holder of your shares, you are responsible for paying any fees that person may charge.

The subscription agent will not mail and instead will hold subscription rights certificates for stockholders having addresses outside the United States or who have an army post office or foreign post office address. In order to exercise subscription rights, our foreign stockholders and stockholders with an army post office or foreign post office address must notify the subscription agent and timely follow other procedures described in the section of this prospectus entitled "The Rights Offering - Foreign and Other Stockholders."

All shares that you purchase in the rights offering will be issued in book-entry, or uncertificated, form. When issued, the shares will be registered in the name of the subscription rights holder of record. As soon as practicable after the expiration of the rights offering, the subscription agent will arrange for the issuance of the shares of common stock purchased pursuant to the subscription privilege. Subject to state securities laws and regulations, we have the discretion to delay distribution of any shares you may have elected to purchase by exercise of your subscription rights in order to comply with state securities laws.

The receipt and exercise of your subscription rights are generally not expected to be taxable under U.S. federal income tax laws; see "Certain Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Consequences."  Your individual tax situation may differ, and we cannot assure that there are no tax consequences. You should seek specific tax advice from your own tax advisor in light of your own tax situation, including as to the applicability and effect of any other tax laws.

You are not required to exercise your subscription rights or otherwise take any action in response to this rights offering. If you do not exercise your subscription privilege, and the rights offering is completed, the number of shares of our common stock you own will not change but, due to the fact that shares will be purchased by other stockholders in the rights offering, your percentage ownership of our total outstanding common stock will decrease.

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How many shares of common stock will be outstanding after the rights offering?

As of January 19, 2016, there were 14,687,984 shares of our common stock outstanding and 25,000 shares of common stock held in treasury. We will issue up to a maximum of 2,500,000 shares of common stock in the rights offering. Based on the number of shares issued and outstanding as of January 19, 2016, if we issue all 2,500,000 shares of common stock available in this rights offering, we would have 17,187,984 shares of common stock issued and outstanding following the completion of the rights offering, excluding shares held in treasury. The actual number of shares of common stock that will be outstanding following the rights offering will depend on the extent to which the rights offering is subscribed by our stockholders. Assuming the number of shares issued and outstanding, excluding treasury shares, on January 19, 2016, the dilution from the rights offering would be 14.5%.

If we issue all 2,500,000 shares of common stock available in this rights offering, the up to 576,923 shares of our common stock being sold to our December 2014 note purchasers as consideration for amendment of the 2014 Securities Purchase Agreement and the oversubscription rights, we will receive gross proceeds of $10,375,000. The net proceeds to us, after deducting estimated offering expenses, will be approximately $10,202,000. However, depending on the extent to which the rights offering is actually subscribed, including exercise of oversubscription rights, net proceeds may be less than this amount. We estimate that the expenses of the rights offering will be approximately $173,000. We intend to use the net proceeds for repayment of the convertible note indebtedness and general corporate purposes. See "Use of Proceeds."

If you have more questions about the rights offering process or need additional copies of the rights offering documents, please contact our information agent, Transfer Online, Inc., at (877) 901-6475.

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PROSPECTUS SUMMARY

You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with information different from the information contained in this prospectus. The common stock is not being offered in any jurisdiction where offers and sales are not permitted. The information contained in this prospectus is accurate only as of the date of this prospectus, regardless of when this prospectus is delivered or when any sale of our securities occurs.

Founded in 1980 and headquartered in the Central Valley of California, we believe we are the leading producer and distributor of alfalfa seed in the world. Our production capabilities span both hemispheres in the world's key alfalfa seed production regions, with operations in the San Joaquin and Imperial Valleys of California, other Western states, South Australia and Canada. We sell our seed varieties in more than 30 countries across the globe primarily through a network of distributors. Historically, we have been recognized as the leading producer of non-dormant alfalfa seed varieties, which varieties have been bred for warm climates and high-yields, including varieties that can thrive in poor, saline soils. Our December 2014 acquisition of certain alfalfa research and production facility and conventional (non-GMO) alfalfa germplasm assets of DuPont Pioneer, a wholly-owned subsidiary of E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, has made us a leading producer of dormant, high yield alfalfa seed varieties, which are the varieties suitable for cold weather conditions. As a result of the above activity, our alfalfa seed business now encompasses the production, breeding and sale of non-dormant and dormant conventional varieties and the potential for future production and sale of GMO (genetically modified organism) varieties. In addition to alfalfa seed production and sales, which is our core business, we also conduct an ongoing stevia breeding program.

Following our initial public offering in fiscal 2010, we expanded certain pre-existing business initiatives and added new ones, including:

• diversifying our production geographically by expanding from solely producing seed in the San Joaquin Valley of California to initially adding production capability in the Imperial Valley of California, then expanding into Australia (primarily South Australia) and, most recently, adding production in other western states and Canada;
• expanding from solely offering non-dormant varieties to now having a full range of both dormant and non-dormant varieties;
• teaming with FGI and Monsanto to develop GMO alfalfa seeds, using our germplasm and Monsanto's genetically modified traits;
• expanding the depth and breadth of our research and development capabilities in order to develop new varieties of both dormant and non-dormant alfalfa seed with traits sought after by our existing and future customers;
• expanding our distribution channels and customer base, initially through the acquisition of the customer list of our key international customer in the Middle East in July 2011, and thereafter, through certain strategic acquisitions;
• expanding our sales geographically both through the expansion of our product offerings to have product needed in regions we historically did not cover and through an expansion of our sales and marketing efforts generally; and
• implementing a stevia breeding program to develop new stevia varieties that incorporate the most desirable characteristics of this all-natural, zero calorie sweetener.

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We have accomplished these expansion initiatives through a combination of organic growth and strategic acquisitions, foremost among them:

• the acquisition of Imperial Valley Seeds, Inc. ("IVS") in October 2012, which enabled us to expand production of non-GMO seed into California's Imperial Valley, thereby ensuring a non-GMO contaminated source of seed due to the prohibition on GMO crops in the Imperial Valley, as well as enabling us to diversify our production areas and distribution channels;
• the acquisition of a portfolio of dormant germplasm in August 2012 to launch our entry into the dormant market;
• the acquisition of the dominant local producer of non-dormant alfalfa seed in South Australia, Seed Genetics International Pty Ltd ("SGI") in April 2013, which greatly expanded our production capabilities and geographic diversity; and
• the acquisition of the alfalfa production and research facility assets and conventional (non-GMO) alfalfa germplasm from DuPont Pioneer in December 2014, thereby substantially expanding upon our initial entrance into the dormant alfalfa seed market that began in 2012 and enabling us to greatly expand our production and research and product development capabilities.

We believe our 2013 combination with SGI created the world's largest non-dormant alfalfa seed company and gave us the competitive advantages of year-round production in that market. With the completion of the acquisition of dormant alfalfa seed assets from DuPont Pioneer in December 2014, we believe we have become the largest alfalfa seed company worldwide (by volume), with industry-leading research and development, as well as production and distribution capabilities in both hemispheres and the ability to supply proprietary dormant and non-dormant alfalfa seed. Our operations span the world's alfalfa seed production regions, with operations in the San Joaquin and Imperial Valleys of California, five additional Western states, Australia and three provinces in Canada.

We also own and operate seed-cleaning and processing facilities in Five Points, California and Nampa, Idaho. Our Nampa Facility, which we acquired in the DuPont Pioneer acquisition, sits on approximately 80 acres and includes conditioning, treating, bagging and warehouse facilities that had been used by DuPont Pioneer for its alfalfa seed processing needs.

From 1980 until 2009, our business was operated as a general partnership. We bought out the former partners beginning in June 2008, incorporated in October 2009 in Delaware and completed the buyout of the general partners in May 2010. We reincorporated in Nevada in December 2011. SGI, which is our wholly owned subsidiary, was incorporated as a limited proprietary corporation in South Australia in 1993, as Harkness Group, changed its name to Seed Genetics Australia Pty Ltd in 2002, and in 2011 changed its name to Seed Genetics International Pty Ltd.

Our principal business office is located at 7108 North Fresno Avenue, Suite 380, Fresno, CA 93720, and our telephone is number (559) 884-2535. SGI's principal office space is located in Unley, South Australia. Our website address is www.swseedco.com. Information contained on our website or any other website does not constitute part of this prospectus.

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The Rights Offering

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RISK FACTORS

The market price of our common stock is subject to wide fluctuations in response to numerous factors, including factors that have little or nothing to do with us or our performance, and these fluctuations could materially reduce our stock price. These factors include, among other things, the fact that our stock is relatively thinly traded, and as a result trades of small numbers of our shares can have a significant impact on the trading price of our stock, business conditions in our markets and the general state of the securities markets and the market for other agricultural stocks, changes in capital markets that affect the perceived availability of capital to companies in our industry, governmental legislation or regulation and general economic and market conditions, such as recessions and downturns in the United States or global economy. In addition, the stock market historically has experienced significant price and volume fluctuations, as happened in late August 2015 and at various other times in recent years. These fluctuations are often unrelated to the operating performance of particular companies. These broad market fluctuations may cause declines in the market price of our common stock, which may make it difficult for you to resell shares of our common stock owned by you at times or at prices that you find attractive.

Up to a maximum of 2,500,000 shares are issuable in the rights offering, including the 30% participation right of our convertible note purchasers from our December 2014 offering referenced above, which shares are issuable in a distinct offering. Accordingly, if you do not exercise your subscription privilege in full, your interest in us will be significantly diluted. In addition, if the subscription price is less than the fair value of our common stock, you would experience immediate dilution of the value of your shares relative to what your value would have been had our common stock been issued at fair value. This dilution could be substantial.

Our board of directors considered a number of factors in determining the price for the rights offering, including:

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• the price per share at which MFP Partners, L.P., a significant stockholder, purchased shares in a private placement in November 2015;
• the price at which our stockholders might be willing to participate in the rights offering;
• historical and current trading prices for our common stock, including on a volume weighted average share price basis over certain periods; and
• the desire to provide an opportunity to our stockholders to participate in the rights offering on a pro rata basis. 

The subscription price is not necessarily related to our book value, results of operations, cash flows, financial condition or net worth or any other established criteria of value and may or may not be considered the fair value of our common stock at the time the rights offering was approved by our board of directors or during the rights offering period. We cannot assure you that the trading price of our common stock will not decline during or after the rights offering. We also cannot assure you that you will be able to sell shares purchased in this rights offering at a price equal to or greater than the subscription price. We do not intend to change the subscription price in response to changes in the trading price of our common stock prior to the closing of the rights offering.

One of our directors, Alexander C. Matina, is Vice President of Investments of the general partner of MFP Partners, L.P., the purchaser in our November 2015 private placement. Mr. Matina recused himself from the determination of the board to proceed with the private placement and the rights offering.

Our board of directors is not making any recommendations regarding your exercise of the subscription rights. In addition, we did not receive a fairness opinion from a financial advisor in determining the subscription price or the terms of the offering. Stockholders who exercise subscription rights risk investment loss on new money invested. We cannot assure you that the trading price for our common stock will be above the subscription price at the time of exercise or at the expiration of the rights offering period or that anyone purchasing shares at the subscription price will be able to sell those shares in the future at the same price or a higher price. You are urged to make your own decision whether or not to exercise your subscription rights based on your own assessment of our business and the rights offering.

The announcement of the rights offering and its terms, including the subscription price, together with the number of shares of common stock we could issue if this rights offering is completed, may result in an immediate decrease in the trading price of our common stock. This decrease may continue after the completion of the rights offering. If that occurs, your purchase of shares of our common stock in the rights offering may be at a price greater than the prevailing trading price. Further, if the holders of the shares received upon exercise of the subscription rights choose to sell some or all of their shares, the resulting sales could also depress the trading price of our common stock.

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Because you may not revoke or change your exercise of the subscription rights, you could be committed to buying shares above the prevailing trading price at the time the rights offering is completed.

Once you exercise your subscription rights, you may not revoke or change the exercise. The trading price of our common stock may decline before the subscription rights expire. If you exercise your subscription rights, and, afterwards, the trading price of our common stock decreases below the $4.15 per share subscription price, you will have committed to buying shares of our common stock at a price above the prevailing trading price and could have an immediate unrealized loss. Our common stock is traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol "SANW." On January 19, 2016, the last reported sale price of our common stock on the Nasdaq Capital Market was $4.16 per share. There can be no assurances that the trading price of our common stock will equal or exceed the subscription price at the time of exercise or at the expiration of the subscription rights offering period.

If you exercise subscription rights, you may not be able to resell the common stock purchased by exercising your subscription rights until you, or your broker, custodian bank or other nominee, if applicable, have received those shares. Moreover, you will have no rights as a stockholder of the shares you purchased in the rights offering until we issue the shares to you. Although we will endeavor to issue the shares as soon as practicable after completion of the rights offering, including after all necessary calculations have been completed, there may be a delay between the expiration date of the rights offering and the time that the shares are issued. 

We intend to use the net proceeds for repayment of convertible indebtedness and general corporate purposes. However, we may allocate the proceeds among these purposes as we determine is appropriate. In addition, economic and financial market conditions may require us to allocate portions of the net proceeds for other purposes. Accordingly, you will be relying on the judgment of our management with regard to the use of proceeds from the rights offering, and you will not have the opportunity, as part of your investment decision, to assess whether the proceeds are being used in a manner that you consider appropriate.

Stockholders that desire to purchase shares in the rights offering must act promptly to ensure that all required forms and payments are actually received by the subscription agent prior to the expiration date of the rights offering. If you are a beneficial owner of shares, you must act timely to ensure that your broker, dealer, custodian bank or other nominee acts for you and that all required forms and payments are actually received by the subscription agent prior to the expiration of the rights offering period. We are not responsible if your broker, dealer, custodian bank or nominee fails to ensure that all required forms and payments are actually received by the subscription agent prior to the expiration of the rights offering period. If you fail to complete and sign the required subscription forms, send an incorrect payment amount or otherwise fail to follow the subscription procedures that apply to your exercise in the rights offering prior to the expiration of the rights offering period, the subscription agent may, depending on the circumstances, reject your subscription or accept it only to the extent of the payment received. Neither we nor the subscription agent undertakes to contact you concerning, or attempt to correct, an incomplete or incorrect subscription form. We have the sole discretion to determine whether the exercise of your subscription rights properly and timely follows the subscription procedures.

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If you make payment of the subscription price by uncertified personal check, your check may not clear in sufficient time to enable you to purchase shares in the rights offering.

Any uncertified personal check used to pay the subscription price in the rights offering must clear prior to the expiration date of the rights offering, and the clearing process may require five or more business days. As a result, if you choose to use an uncertified personal check to pay the subscription price, it may not clear prior to the expiration date, in which event you would not be eligible to exercise your subscription rights. You may eliminate this risk by paying the subscription price by wire or bank draft drawn on a U.S. bank or a U.S. postal money order.

You may not sell, transfer or assign your subscription rights to anyone else. Because the subscription rights are non-transferable, there is no market or other means for you to directly realize any value associated with the subscription rights. You must exercise the subscription rights and acquire additional shares of our common stock to realize any value that may be embedded in the subscription rights.

You should seek specific tax advice from your own tax advisor in light of your own tax situation. If the distribution in the rights offering as a result of the various participating rights is deemed not proportional by the Internal Revenue Service, then you could be deemed to have received a taxable dividend if we have undistributed current or accumulated earnings and profits. See "Certain Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Consequences."

A variety of factors, notably a severe downturn in the domestic dairy industry, could have a negative effect on sales of alfalfa hay, and as a result, the demand for our alfalfa seed in the domestic market. At times, including fiscal 2014, the demand for our seed has also declined in the Middle East as the result of common, uncertified seed flooding the market at lower prices than those at which we were willing to sell our certified seed. In fiscal 2015, many of these factors started to correct themselves, but these circumstances could continue or reoccur, and our earnings could be negatively impacted. In addition, demand for our products could decline because of other supply and quality issues or for any other reason, including products of competitors that might be considered superior by end users. A decline in demand for our products could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

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Our earnings may also be sensitive to fluctuations in market prices.

Market prices for our alfalfa seed can be impacted by factors such as the quality of the seed and the available supply, including whether lower quality, uncertified seed is available. Growing conditions, particularly weather conditions such as windstorms, floods, droughts and freezes, as well as diseases and pests and the adventitious presence of GMO, are primary factors influencing the quality and quantity of the seed and, therefore, the market price at which we can sell our seed to our customers. A decrease in the prices received for our products could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Future increase in costs such as the costs of growing seed through growers or by us internally, could cause our margins and earnings to decline unless we are able to pass along the increased price of production to our customers. We may not be able to increase the price of our seed sufficiently to maintain our margins and earnings in the future.

Our seed production, both in the U.S. and Australia, substantially relies on unaffiliated growers to grow our proprietary seed and to sell it to us at negotiated prices each year. Growers have a choice of what crops to plant. If a particular crop is paying a materially higher price than has been paid in the past, growers may decide to not grow alfalfa seed in favor of receiving a higher return from an alternative crop planted on the same acreage. If our growers decline to a significant degree to plant the acreage on which we rely, and if we cannot find other growers to plant the lost acreage, our inventory of seed could be insufficient to satisfy the needs of our customers, and our business, results of operations and financial condition could materially decline. In addition, our customers could look to other suppliers for their seed if we cannot satisfy their requirements, and we may not be able to regain them as customers once our inventory levels have returned to normal.

Alfalfa seed, our primary product, is vulnerable to adverse weather conditions, including windstorms, floods, drought and temperature extremes, which are common but difficult to predict. In addition, alfalfa seed is vulnerable to crop disease and to pests, which may vary in severity and effect, depending on the stage of production at the time of infection or infestation, the type of treatment applied and climatic conditions. Unfavorable growing conditions can reduce both crop size and quality. However, these factors can nevertheless directly impact us by decreasing the quality and yields of our seed and reducing our inventory and the supply of seed we sell to our customers. These factors can increase costs, decrease revenue and lead to additional charges to earnings, which may have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We expect that the majority of our revenues will continue to be generated from our alfalfa seed business. Our alfalfa seed business is highly seasonal, with the highest concentration of sales occurring during the third and fourth fiscal quarters. The seasonal nature of our operations results in significant fluctuations in our working capital during the growing and selling cycles. We have experienced, and expect to continue to experience, significant variability in net sales, operating cash flows and net income on a quarterly basis.

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We have had a material concentration of revenue from a small group of customers that fluctuates, and the loss of any of these customers in any quarter could have a material adverse effect on our revenue.

On a historical basis, we have experienced a material concentration of revenue from a small group of customers. This concentration fluctuates from quarter to quarter, depending on our customer's specific requirements, which are themselves cyclical. However, in any particular quarter, we generally have a small group of customers that accounts for a substantial portion of that quarter's revenue. Most of these customers are not contractually obligated to purchase seed from us. The loss of one or more of these customers on a quarterly basis, when taken year over year, could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial position, results of operations and operating cash flows. We could also suffer a material adverse effect from any losses arising from a major customer's disputes regarding shipments, product quality or related matters, or from our inability to collect accounts receivable from any major customer. There are no assurances that we will be able to maintain our current customer relationships or that they will continue to purchase our seed in the current projected quantities. Any failure to do so may materially adversely impact our business.

We rely upon a small group of customers for a large percentage of our net revenue. Overall, two customers accounted for 49% of our fiscal 2015 revenue. We expect that a small number of customers will continue to account for a substantial portion of our net revenue for the foreseeable future.

The loss of, or a significant adverse change in, our relationship with these customers, or any other major customer, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial position, results of operations and operating cash flows. The loss of, or a reduction in orders from, any significant customers, losses arising from customers' disputes regarding shipments, product quality, or related matters, or our inability to collect accounts receivable from any major customer could have a material adverse effect on us. There is no assurance that we will be able to maintain the relationships with our major customers or that they will continue to purchase our seed in the quantities that we expect and rely upon. If we cannot do so, our results of operations could suffer.

As of the completion of the fall 2015 harvest, we are no longer growing any of the alfalfa seed that we sell, and therefore, we are entirely dependent upon our network of growers. While we have some supply contracts with our growers of two or three years, many of our grower contracts cover only one year, which makes us particularly vulnerable to factors beyond our control. Events such as a shift in pricing caused by an increase in the value of commodity crops other than seed crops, increase in land prices, unexpected competition or reduced water availability could disrupt our supply chain. Any of these disruptions could limit the supply of seed that we obtain in any given year, adversely affecting supply and thereby lowering revenue. Such disruption could also damage our customer relationships and loyalty to us if we cannot supply the quantity of seed expected by them. In particular, we have had some of our California growers decide to not grow alfalfa seed due to drought conditions. This situation could reoccur and could negatively impact our revenue if we do not otherwise have sufficient seed inventory available for sale.

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SGI relies on a pool of approximately 150 Australian growers to produce its proprietary seeds. Each grower arrangement is typically made for a term of seven to ten harvests. Although SGI's grower pool is diversified, it is not without risks. Adverse agronomic or climatic factors could lead to grower exodus and negatively impact SGI's revenue if SGI does not otherwise have sufficient seed inventory available for sale.

Adequate quantities and correct timing of the application of water are vital for most agriculture to thrive. Whether particular farms are experiencing water shortages depends, in large part, on their location. However, continuing drought conditions can threaten all farmland other than those properties with their own water sources. Although alfalfa seed is not a water- intensive crop, the availability or the cost of water is a factor in the planting of the alfalfa hay grown from our seed, and we have experienced a decline in the willingness of some California farmers to grow alfalfa seed as a result of the ongoing severe California drought conditions. Moreover, if the dairy farmers and others who purchase our alfalfa seed to grow hay cannot get an adequate supply of water, or if the cost of water makes it uneconomical for the farmers to grow alfalfa, we may not be able to sell our seed, which could have an adverse impact on our results of operations. We cannot predict if water shortages will impact our business in the future, but if alfalfa hay growers are impacted by water shortages, our business could also materially decline.

The alfalfa seed market is highly competitive, and our products face competition from a number of small seed companies, as well as large agricultural and biotechnology companies. We compete primarily on the basis of consistency of product quality and traits, product availability, customer service and price. Many of our competitors are, or are affiliated with, large diversified companies that have substantially greater marketing and financial resources than we have. These resources give our competitors greater operating flexibility that, in certain cases, may permit them to respond better or more quickly to changes in the industry or to introduce new products more quickly and with greater marketing support. Increased competition could result in lower profit margins, substantial pricing pressure, reduced market share and lower operating cash flows. Price competition, together with other forms of competition, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial position, results of operations and operating cash flows.

We sell our seed primarily to dealers and distributors who, in turn, sell primarily to hay and dairy farmers who grow hay for dairy cattle and other livestock. Due to the nature of the alfalfa seed industry, we normally produce seed according to our production plan before we sell and deliver seed to distributors and dealers. Our dealers and distributors generally make purchasing decisions for our products based on market prices, economic and weather conditions and other factors that we and our dealers and distributors may not be able to anticipate accurately in advance. If we fail to accurately estimate the volume and types of products sought by the end users and otherwise adequately manage production amounts, we may produce more seed than our dealers and distributors want, resulting in excess inventory levels. On the other hand, if we underestimate demand, which has happened in the past, we may not be able to satisfy our dealers and distributors' demand for alfalfa seed, and thus damage our customer relations and end-user loyalty. Our failure to estimate end users' future needs and to match our production to the demand of our customers may adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

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Our third-party distributors may not effectively distribute our products.

We depend in part on third-party distributors and strategic relationships for the marketing and selling of our products. We depend on these distributors' efforts to market our products, yet we are unable to control their efforts completely. In addition, we are unable to ensure that our distributors comply with all applicable laws regarding the sale of our products, including the United States Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended, 15 U.S.C. 78dd-1, et seq. If our distributors fail to effectively market and sell our products, and in full compliance with applicable laws, our operating results and business may suffer.

Although payment terms for our seed sales generally are 90 to120 days, we regularly extend credit to our largest international customer, Sorouh Agricultural Company, and to other international customers. Sales of our alfalfa seed varieties to Sorouh and to other international customers represented a material portion of our revenue in fiscal 2015 and that we will continue to extend credit in connection with those sales. Because these customers are located in foreign countries, collection efforts, were they to become necessary, could be much more difficult and expensive. Moreover, future political and/or economic factors, as well as future unanticipated trade regulations, could negatively impact our ability to timely collect outstanding receivables from these important customers. The extension of credit to our international customers exposes us to the risk that our seed will be delivered but that we may not receive all or a portion of the payment therefor. If these customers are unable or unwilling to fully pay for the seed they purchase on credit, our results of operations and financial condition could be materially negatively impacted. Moreover, our internal forecasts on which we make business decisions throughout the year could be severely compromised, which could, in turn, mean that we spend capital for operations, investment or otherwise that we would not have spent had we been aware that the customer would not honor its credit extension obligation.

We currently operate mainly in the alfalfa seed business, and we do not expect this to change materially in the foreseeable future. Without business line diversity, we will not be able to spread the risk of our operations. Therefore, our business opportunities, revenue and income could be more immediately and directly affected by disruptions from such things as drought and disease or widespread problems affecting the alfalfa industry, payment disruptions and customer rejection of our varieties of alfalfa seed. If there is a disruption as described above, our revenue and income could be reduced, and our business operations might have to be scaled back.

The performance of our new alfalfa seed varieties may not meet our customers' expectations, or we may not be able to introduce and commercialize specific seed varieties. Reorder rates are uncertain due to several factors, many of which are beyond our control. These include changing customer preferences, which could be further complicated by competitive price pressures, our failure to develop new products to meet the evolving demands of the end users, the development of higher-demand products by our competitors and general economic conditions. The process for new products to gain market

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recognition and acceptance is long and has uncertainties. If we fail to introduce and commercialize a new seed variety that meets the demand of the end user, if our competitors develop products that are favored by the end users, or if we are unable to produce our existing products in sufficient quantities, our growth prospects may be materially and adversely affected, and our revenue may decline. In addition, sales of our new products could replace sales of some of our current similar products, offsetting the benefit of even a successful product introduction.

GMO crops currently are prohibited in most of the international markets in which our proprietary seed is currently sold, and there are regions in the United States, including the Pacific Northwest, where even small quantities of GMO material inadvertently interspersed with conventional seed make the seed undesirable, which causes customers to look elsewhere for their alfalfa seed requirements. The greater the use of GMO seed in California and other alfalfa seed growing regions, the greater the risk that the adventitious presence of GMO material in our seed production will occur due to pollination from hay fields or other seed fields. We regularly test for the adventitious presence of GMO in our conventional seed, and we have seen a slight increase in the percentage of GMO material over the past several years. Our seed containing GMO material can only be sold domestically or in other jurisdictions that permit the importation of GMO alfalfa. If we are unable to isolate our conventional (non-GMO) seed from inadvertently being contaminated by GMO seed, we may find it more difficult to sell that seed in our key markets, which could materially adversely impact our revenue over time.

There are a number of challenges to market acceptance of stevia as a natural, non-caloric sweetener. Stevia has its own unique flavor, which can affect the taste of some foods and beverages. A common complaint about stevia is that some of its extracts and derivatives have a bitter aftertaste, and its taste does not uniformly correspond to all regional taste preferences or combine well with some food flavors. Other factors that could impact market acceptance include the price structure compared to other sugar substitutes and availability. If the high-intensity, non-caloric sweetener market declines or if stevia fails to achieve substantially greater market acceptance than it currently enjoys, we might not ever be able to profit from our continued research and development activities relating to stevia or any commercial applications that we derive therefrom. Even if products conform to applicable safety and quality standards, sales could be adversely affected if consumers in target markets lose confidence in the safety, efficacy and quality of stevia. Adverse publicity about stevia or stevia-based products may discourage consumers from buying products that contain stevia. Any of these developments could adversely impact the future amount of dry leaf stevia, processed stevia leaves or extract we are able to sell, which could adversely impact our results of operations.

We must acquire sufficient alfalfa seed to meet the demands of our customers. An alfalfa seed shortage could result in loss of sales and damage to our reputation. Because we no longer grow any of our seed ourselves, our proprietary seed is only available from our contract growers. Therefore, if our growers become unable or unwilling to produce the required commercial quantities of alfalfa seed on a timely basis and at commercially reasonable prices, we will likely be unable to meet customer demand. The failure to satisfy our customers not only could adversely impact our financial results but could irreparably harm our reputation.

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The loss of key employees or the failure to attract qualified personnel could have a material adverse effect on our ability to run our business.

The loss of any of our current executives, key employees or key advisors, or the failure to attract, integrate, motivate and retain additional key employees, could have a material adverse effect on our business. Although we have employment agreements with our Chief Executive Officer, our Chief Financial Officer and our Chief Operating Officer, as well as certain other employees, any employee could leave our employ at any time if he chose to do so. We do not carry "key person" insurance on the lives of any of our management team. As we develop additional capabilities, we may require more skilled personnel who must be highly skilled and have a sound understanding of our industry, business or processing requirements. Recruiting skilled personnel is highly competitive. There can be no assurance that we will continue to attract and retain the personnel needed for our business. The failure to attract or retain qualified personnel could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We expect our operations to grow rapidly in the near future, both as we expand our historical alfalfa seed business both domestically and internationally through internal grown and synergistic acquisitions and increase our growers' production. We currently face these challenges in connection with the integration of the business operations we acquired from DuPont Pioneer, which expanded our operations into five states and three Canadian provinces. These efforts will require the addition of employees, expansion of facilities and greater oversight, perhaps in diverse locations. If we are unable to manage our growth effectively, we may not be able to take advantage of market opportunities, execute on our business strategies or respond to competitive pressures, and we may have difficulties maintaining and updating the internal procedures and the controls necessary to meet the planned expansion of our overall business.

Our management will also be required to maintain and expand our relationships with customers, suppliers and third parties as well as attract new customers and suppliers. We expect that our sales and marketing costs will increase as we grow our product lines and as we increase our sales efforts in new and existing markets. Our current and planned operations, personnel, systems and internal procedures and controls may not be adequate to support our future growth.

As part of our growth strategy, we may acquire additional businesses, product lines or other assets. We may not be able to locate or make suitable acquisitions on acceptable terms, and future acquisitions may not be effectively and profitably integrated into our business. Our failure to successfully complete the integration of the businesses we acquire could have an adverse effect on our prospects, business activities, cash flow, financial condition, results of operations and stock price. Integration challenges may include the following:

• assimilating the acquired operations products and personnel with our existing operations, products and personnel;
• estimating the capital, personnel and equipment required for the acquired businesses based on the historical experience of management with the businesses they are familiar with;
• minimizing potential adverse effects on existing business relationships with other suppliers and customers;

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• developing and marketing the new products and services;
• entering markets in which we have limited or no prior experience; and
• coordinating our efforts throughout various distant localities and time zones.

If management's attention is diverted from the management of our existing businesses as a result of its efforts in evaluating and negotiating new acquisitions and strategic transactions, the prospects, business activities, cash flow, financial condition and results of operations of our existing businesses may suffer. We also may incur unanticipated costs in connection with pursuing acquisitions and strategic transactions.

Only five milling facilities are regularly used by SGI's grower pool to clean and process SGI seed. Should one or more of these facilities become unusable, there could be a significant effect on SGI's ability to get its Australian seed to market in a timely manner or at all. SGI's growers use Tatiara Seeds Pty Ltd ("Tatiara") to process approximately 70% of seed grown for SGI. The owner of Tatiara has begun to sell his own common seed and is now a competitor of SGI. This competing seed business creates a potential conflict of interest for Tatiara in the care and handling of SGI's products.

Because SGI has relatively little net working capital, it is substantially dependent upon its credit arrangement with NAB to purchase its seed inventory. SGI has breached debt covenants relating to this credit arrangement in the past, and if future breaches of this credit arrangement or other reasons cause this credit arrangement to become unavailable to SGI, SGI may become reliant on us to finance its operations or for financial guarantees. We currently are a guarantor on SGI's NAB credit facility. SGI's financial dependency upon us could have a negative adverse effect upon our financial condition.

SGI relies on a pool of approximately 150 Australian contract growers to produce its proprietary seeds. In this system, growers contract with SGI to grow SGI's seed for terms of seven to ten years in the case of alfalfa and two to three years for white clover. SGI uses a staggered payment system with the growers of its alfalfa and white clover; the payment amounts are based upon an estimated budget price, or EBP, for compliant seed. EBP is a forecast of the final price that SGI believes will be achieved taking into account prevailing and predicted market conditions at the time the estimate is made. Following the grower's delivery of uncleaned seed to a milling facility, SGI typically pays 40% of the EBP to the grower based on pre- cleaning weight. Following this initial payment and prior to the final payment, SGI will make a series of scheduled progress payments and, if applicable, a bonus payment for "first grade" alfalfa seed. The final price payable to each grower (and therefore the total price) is dependent upon and subject to adjustment based upon the clean weight of the seed grown, on the average price at which SGI sells the pooled seed and other costs incurred by SGI. Accordingly, the total price paid by SGI to its growers may be more or less than EBP. This arrangement exposes SGI's business to unique risks, including, the potential for current growers to make collective demands that are unfavorable to SGI and the potential for our competitors to offer more favorable terms for seed production, including fixed (instead of variable) payment terms.

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SGI's reliance upon an estimated purchase price to growers could result in changes in estimates in our consolidated financial statements.

SGI does not fix the final price for seed payable to its growers until the completion of a given year's sales cycle, pursuant to the standard contract production agreement. We record an estimated unit price and accordingly inventory, cost of goods sold and gross profits are based upon management's best estimate of the final purchase price to our SGI growers. To the extent the estimated purchase price varies from the final purchase price for seed, the adjustment to actual could materially impact the results in the period when the difference between estimates and actuals are identified. If the actual purchase price is in excess of our estimated purchase price, this would negatively impact our financial results including a reduction in gross profits and net income.

SGI is substantially dependent upon the PBR Act for the protection of its proprietary varieties. Currently, SGI's SuperSiriver, SuperSequel, SuperAurora, SuperHaifa, SuperLadino, SuperHuia, SuperSonic, SuperStar, SuperSiriver II and SuperNova varieties are protected under the PBR Act. If any competitors of SGI independently develop new seeds that customers or end users determine are better than SGI's existing varieties, such developments could adversely affect SGI's competitive position.

We may find it necessary or advisable to raise additional capital in the future, whether to enhance our working capital, fund acquisitions (including the acquisition under the second asset purchase agreement with Du Pont Pioneer) or for other reasons. If we are required or desire to raise additional capital in the future, such additional financing may not be available on favorable terms, or available at all, may be dilutive to our existing stockholders if in the form of equity financing, or contain restrictions on the operation of our business if in the form of debt financing. If we fail to obtain additional capital as and when required, such failure could have a material impact on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Historically, sales to our distributors who sell our proprietary alfalfa seed varieties outside the U.S. have constituted a substantial portion of our annual revenue. We anticipate that sales into international markets will continue to represent a meaningful portion of our total sales and that continued growth and profitability will require further international expansion, particularly in the Middle East and Africa. Our financial results could be affected by changes in trade, monetary and fiscal policies, laws and regulations, or other activities of U.S. and non- U.S. governments, agencies and similar organizations. These conditions include but are not limited to changes in a country's or region's economic or political conditions, trade regulations affecting production, pricing and marketing of products, local labor conditions and regulations, reduced protection of intellectual property rights in some countries, changes in the regulatory or legal environment, burdensome taxes and tariffs and other trade barriers. International risks and uncertainties, including changing social and economic conditions as well as terrorism, political hostilities and war, could lead to reduced distribution of our products into international markets and reduced profitability associated with such sales.

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We are subject to risks associated with doing business globally.

Our operations, both inside and outside the United States, are subject to risks inherent in conducting business globally and under the laws, regulations and customs of various jurisdictions and geographies. Although we sell seed to various regions of the world, a large percentage of our sales outside the United States in fiscal year 2015, including those of SGI, were principally to customers in the Middle East, North Africa and Mexico. Accordingly, developments in those parts of the world generally have a more significant effect on our operations than developments in other places. Our operations outside the United States are subject to special risks and restrictions, including: fluctuations in currency values and foreign-currency exchange rates; exchange control regulations; changes in local political or economic conditions; governmental pricing directives; import and trade restrictions; import or export licensing requirements and trade policy; restrictions on the ability to repatriate funds; and other potentially detrimental domestic and foreign governmental practices or policies affecting U.S. companies doing business abroad, including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and the trade sanctions laws and regulations administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control. Acts of terror or war may impair our ability to operate in particular countries or regions, and may impede the flow of goods and services between countries. Customers in weakened economies may be unable to purchase our products, or it could become more expensive for them to purchase imported products in their local currency, or sell their commodity at prevailing international prices, and we may be unable to collect receivables from such customers. Further, changes in exchange rates may affect our net income, the book value of our assets outside the United States, and our stockholders' equity. Failure to comply with the laws and regulations that affect our global operations could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

We are subject to the United States Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which generally prohibits United States companies, including their suppliers, distributors and other commercial partners, from engaging in bribery or other prohibited payments to foreign officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business. Corruption, extortion, bribery, pay-offs, theft and other fraudulent practices occur from time-to-time in the countries in which we distribute products. We have adopted formal policies and procedures designed to facilitate compliance with these laws. If our employees or other agents, including our distributors or suppliers, are found to have engaged in such practices, we could suffer severe penalties and other consequences that may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

As an agricultural company, we are subject to evolving environmental laws and regulations by federal and state governments. Federal laws and regulations include the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, the Federal Seed Act, and potentially regulations of the FDA. In addition, the State of California regulates our application of agricultural chemicals in connection with seed harvest.

Our Australian operations are also subject to a number of environmental laws, regulations and policies, including in particular the Environment Protection Act 1993 (SA), the Agricultural and Veterinary Products (Control of Use) Act 2002 (SA), the Genetically Modified Crops Management Act 2004 (SA), the Dangerous Substances Act 1979 (SA), the Controlled Substances Act 1984 (SA) and related regulations and policies. These laws regulate matters including air quality, water quality and the use and disposal of agricultural chemicals.

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Our failure to comply with these laws and related regulations could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations. Moreover, it is possible that future developments, such as increasingly strict environmental laws and enforcement policies thereunder, and further restrictions on the use of agricultural chemicals, could result in increased compliance costs which, in turn, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

Defective seed could result in insurance claims and negative publicity. Although we carry general liability insurance to cover defective seed claims, such coverage may become unavailable or be inadequate. Even if coverage is offered, it may be at a price and on terms not acceptable to us. If claims exceed coverage limits, or if insurance is not available to us, the occurrence of significant claims could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We may be subject to legal proceedings and claims from time to time relating to our seed or dried stevia leaf quality. The defense of these proceedings and claims can be both costly and time consuming and may significantly divert efforts and resources of our management personnel. An adverse determination in any such proceeding could subject us to significant liability and damage our market reputation and prevent us from achieving increased sales and market share. Protracted litigation could also result in our customers or potential customers deferring or limiting their purchase of our products.

The capital and credit markets have experienced increased volatility and disruption over the past several years, making it more difficult for companies to access those markets. Although we believe that our operating cash flows, recent access to the capital market and our lines of credit will permit us to meet our financing needs for the foreseeable future, continued or increased volatility and disruption in the capital and credit markets may impair our liquidity or increase our costs of borrowing, if we need to access the credit market. Our business could also be negatively impacted if our growers or customers experience disruptions resulting from tighter capital and credit markets or a continued slowdown in the general economy.

Our ability to compete effectively is dependent upon the proprietary nature of the seeds, seedlings, processes, technologies and materials owned by or used by us or our growers. If any competitors independently develop new traits, seeds, seedlings, processes or technologies that customers or end users determine are better than our existing products, such developments could adversely affect our competitive position. In addition to patent protection for some of our alfalfa seed varieties that we acquired from DuPont Pioneer, we guard our proprietary property by exercising a high degree of control over the alfalfa seed supply chain from our S&W varieties, as well as over our stevia material. In Australia, SGI has secured protection under the PBR Act for its most popular varieties. However, even with these measures in place, it would be possible for persons with access to our seed or plants grown from our seed to reproduce and market our proprietary seed varieties, which could significantly harm our

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business and our reputation. Litigation may be necessary to protect our proprietary property and determine the validity and scope of the proprietary rights of competitors. Intellectual property litigation could result in substantial costs and diversion of our management and other resources. If we are unable to successfully protect our intellectual property rights, our competitors could market products that compete with our proprietary products without obtaining a license from us.

Our distribution agreement with DuPont Pioneer limits our ability to otherwise sell the specific varieties of dormant alfalfa seed we supply to DuPont Pioneer in the sales territory covered by DuPont Pioneer. The DuPont Pioneer sales territory includes the United States, Europe and many other of the principal dormant alfalfa seed markets. In these markets, our ability to sell the specified varieties through distribution channels other than DuPont Pioneer is limited to certain blended, private label and variety not stated forms and cannot exceed a specified percentage of DuPont Pioneer's demand. As result of these limitations, sales to DuPont Pioneer represent and for the foreseeable future will continue to represent the vast majority of all of our sales of dormant alfalfa seed. Any decline in DuPont Pioneer's demand for our dormant alfalfa seed products will have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

Under our distribution agreement with DuPont Pioneer, DuPont Pioneer has made minimum purchase commitments for our dormant alfalfa seed products that extend through September 30, 2024. However, there are circumstances under which DuPont Pioneer's is permitted to purchase seed from other sources and reduce its purchase commitments to us, including:

• Production Shortfalls. If in any year we fail to produce an adequate supply of alfalfa seed to meet DuPont Pioneer's demand and we are unable to source alternative supply, DuPont Pioneer may purchase seed from third parties to meet the shortfall in our production.
• New Products. If a third party offers for license a new product (a new transgenic and/or native trait for dormant alfalfa seed) that offers a superior value pricing opportunity compared to varieties we offer and DuPont Pioneer wishes to sell the new product, then we would have a one-year period to obtain rights to produce and sell the new product to DuPont Pioneer. If we fail to obtain rights to the new product within the one-year period or otherwise do not offer the new product on substantially the same terms as offered by a third party, then DuPont Pioneer would be free to purchase the new product from the third party, and DuPont Pioneer's minimum purchase commitment to us would be reduced by the amount of the new product purchased.
• GMO-Traited Varieties. Unless and until we complete the transactions contemplated under our second asset purchase agreement with DuPont Pioneer, DuPont Pioneer may purchase certain GMO-traited varieties of alfalfa seed from third parties. See "Risk Factors-If we do not complete the acquisition under our second asset purchase agreement, DuPont Pioneer may pursue alternative production arrangements for its GMO-traited varieties and reduce purchases from us."

Any reduction in DuPont Pioneer's purchase commitment to us will have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

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We are committed to sell dormant alfalfa seed to DuPont Pioneer at initial fixed prices with fixed subsequent maximum price increases per year. Increases in our costs of production at rates higher than our contractual ability to increase prices would erode our profit margins and have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

Under our distribution agreement with DuPont Pioneer, we are committed to sell dormant alfalfa seed at initial fixed prices for the 2015 and 2016 sales years. In subsequent sales years, we can increase our prices up to a fixed percentage per year by variety. Although DuPont Pioneer has agreed to discuss in good faith an increase in the fixed maximum percentage price increase cap for any sales year in which an increase in grower compensation costs due to changes in market conditions cause our total production costs to increase at a percentage exceeding the amount of the cap, we cannot be certain that any such discussions will result in additional pricing flexibility for us. If our grower compensation costs or other productions costs increase at a rate greater than the fixed maximum percentage increase per year, our profit margins would erode, and we could potentially be required to sell product at a loss. Any such change in our cost structure would have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

We are currently producing certain GMO-traited varieties for DuPont Pioneer under our production agreement with DuPont Pioneer. The production agreement expires on December 31, 2017 or upon the earlier closing of our acquisition of certain GMO germplasm and related assets from DuPont Pioneer pursuant to a second asset purchase agreement. However, we may never enter into the second asset purchase agreement or close the acquisition of DuPont Pioneer's GMO germplasm and related assets. If DuPont Pioneer and we do not obtain certain third-party consents and agreements on or before November 30, 2017 (or certain other conditions above are not satisfied), then the obligations of the parties to enter into the second asset purchase agreement will terminate, and we will have no right or obligation to acquire the GMO germplasm and related assets. In that case, our production agreement with DuPont Pioneer (relating to GMO-traited varieties) would terminate on December 31, 2017, DuPont Pioneer would be free to pursue alternative production arrangements for the GMO-traited varieties, and DuPont Pioneer's minimum purchase commitments to us under the distribution agreement would be materially reduced.

The distribution agreement and the production agreement impose numerous obligations on us relating to, among other things, product and service quality and compliance with laws and third party obligations. Both the distribution agreement and the production agreement permit DuPont Pioneer to terminate the agreement if we materially breach the agreement and fail to cure the breach within a 60-day notice period, or in the case of certain bankruptcy or insolvency events. DuPont Pioneer can also immediately terminate the production agreement if we breach certain agreements or policies with third parties related to the production of GMO-traited varieties. If DuPont Pioneer terminates either the distribution agreement or the production agreement, DuPont Pioneer could reduce or eliminate altogether its purchase of alfalfa seed from us, and we could be left with inventory of seed that it would be difficult or impossible for us to dispose of on commercially reasonable terms. In addition, we could be exposed to significant claims for damages to DuPont Pioneer if the termination of an agreement results from our material breach of the agreement.

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If we do not meet seed planting and production commitments to DuPont Pioneer, we could incur significant financial penalties.

Under our distribution agreement with DuPont Pioneer, if we fail to plant sufficient acreage (based on historical yields), together with any carryover inventory, to meet 110% of DuPont Pioneer's demand, and we actually fail to meet DuPont Pioneer's demand, then we are obligated to pay DuPont Pioneer a cash penalty based on the amount of the shortfall. A similar penalty provision applies only with respect to 2017 under our production agreement with DuPont Pioneer, if we fail to plant or cause to be planted a specified number of planting acres. We contract all of our production of dormant alfalfa seed with third-party growers. If, in any year, we are unable to obtain sufficient grower commitments to meet DuPont Pioneer's demand, we could be obligated to pay significant financial penalties to DuPont Pioneer.

Our common stock is listed on the Nasdaq Capital Market. The overall market and the price of our common stock can fluctuate greatly. The trading price of our common stock may be significantly affected by various factors, including but not limited to:

• economic status and trends in the dairy industry, which underlies domestic demand for our alfalfa seed;
• market conditions for alfalfa seed in the Middle East and Africa, where a substantial amount of our seed historically has been purchased by end users;
• quarterly fluctuations in our operating results;
• our ability to meet the earnings estimates and other performance expectations of investors or financial analysts;
• fluctuations in the stock prices of our peer companies or in stock markets in general; and
• general economic or political conditions.

Our alfalfa seed business, our primary source of revenue, is highly seasonal because it is tied to the growing and harvesting seasons. If sales in particular quarters are lower than expected, our operating results for these quarters could cause our share price to decline.

Our future expense estimates are based, in large part, on estimates of future revenue, which is difficult to predict. We expect to continue to make significant expenditures in order to expand production, sales, marketing and administrative systems and processes. We may be unable to, or may elect not to, adjust spending quickly enough to offset any unexpected revenue shortfall. If our increased expenses are not accompanied by increased revenue in the same quarter, our quarterly operating results would be harmed.

In one or more future quarters, our results of operations may fall below the expectations of investors or analysts, and the trading price of our securities may decline as a consequence. We believe that quarter-to-quarter comparisons of our operating results will not be a good indication of our future performance and should not be relied upon to predict the future performance of our stock price.

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In the past, companies that have experienced volatility in the market price of their stock have often been subject to securities class action litigation. We may be the target of this type of litigation in the future. Securities litigation against us could result in substantial costs and divert our management's attention from other business concerns, which could seriously harm our business.

Our board of directors is authorized by our articles of incorporation to establish classes or series of preferred stock and fix the designation, powers, preferences and rights of the shares of each such class or series without any further vote or action by our stockholders. Any shares of preferred stock so issued could have priority over our common stock with respect to dividend or liquidation rights. Although we have no plans to issue any shares of preferred stock or to adopt any new series, preferences or other classification of preferred stock, any such action by our board of directors or issuance of preferred stock by us could dilute your investment in our securities or subordinate your holdings to the higher priority rights of the holders of shares of preferred stock issued in the future.

We routinely release guidance in our quarterly earnings releases, our quarterly earnings conference calls and in other forums we consider appropriate. Such guidance regarding our future performance represents our management's estimates as of the date of release or other communication. This guidance, which includes forward-looking statements, is based on projections prepared by our management. These projections are not prepared with a view toward compliance with published guidelines of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, and neither our registered public accountants nor any other independent expert or outside party compiles or examines the projections, and accordingly, no such person expresses any opinion or any other form of assurance with respect thereto.

Projections are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while presented with numerical specificity, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond our control and are based upon specific assumptions with respect to future business decisions, some of which will change. If we issue guidance, we will generally state possible outcomes as high and low ranges or approximations that are intended to provide a sensitivity analysis as variables are changed but are not intended to represent that actual results could not fall outside of the suggested ranges or approximations. The principal reason that we would release guidance would be to provide a basis for our management to discuss our business outlook with analysts and investors. We do not accept any responsibility for any projections or reports published by any such persons.

Guidance is necessarily speculative in nature, and it can be expected that some or all of the assumptions of the guidance furnished by us will not materialize or will vary significantly from actual results. Accordingly, our guidance, when given, is only an estimate of what management believes is realizable as of the date of release or other communication. Actual results will vary from our guidance, and the variations may be material. In light of the foregoing, investors are urged not to rely upon, or otherwise consider, our guidance in making an investment decision about our securities.

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We do not anticipate declaring any cash dividends on our common stock.

We have never declared or paid cash dividends on our common stock and do not plan to pay any cash dividends in the near future. Our current policy is to retain all funds and any earnings for use in the operation and expansion of our business. If we do not pay cash dividends, our stock may be less valuable to investors because a return on their investment will only occur if our stock price appreciates.

Our articles of incorporation and bylaws contain provisions that would make it more difficult for a third party to acquire control of us, including a provision that our board of directors may issue preferred stock without stockholder approval. In addition, certain anti-takeover provisions of Nevada law, if and when applicable, could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire control of us, even if such change in control would be beneficial to our stockholders.

On December 31, 2014, we issued an aggregate of $27,000,000 in principal amount of 8% Senior Secured Convertible notes and common stock purchase warrants for the purchase of up to 2,699,999 shares of our common stock. The following are identified risks that are specifically associated with the issuance of these securities.

As a result of the price protection provisions of the 2014 warrants, the exercise price decreased from the initial price of $5.00 to $4.63 as a result of the ratchet price protection provision contained therein, which was triggered by our stock price on September 30, 2015. It decreased to $4.59 as a result of the weighted average price anti-dilution provision that was triggered by the November 2015 private placement. The weighted average adjustment will be triggered again, adjusting the exercise price to $4.53 as a result of this rights offering and the sale of up to 576,923 shares of our common stock being offered to our convertible note purchasers as consideration for amendment of the 2014 Securities Purchase Agreement, assuming an aggregate of 2,500,000 shares is sold in both offerings. Subsequent issuances through December 2017 at prices below the then-current exercise price of the 2014 warrants, other than exempt issuances as defined in the 2014 warrants, will result in a further diminishment in the amount of gross proceeds to us in the event the warrants are exercised as a result of this weighted average price anti-dilution provision.

In the event the holders of the convertible notes and 2014 warrants elect to exercise their conversion and/or exercise rights pursuant to these securities, an aggregate of 3,121,642 shares of our common stock could be issued upon conversion of the convertible notes, based on the remaining $14,453,202 in principal amount of the convertible notes outstanding as of January 19, 2016, and 2,699,999 shares of our common stock could be issued upon exercise of the 2014 warrants. Based on the number of shares outstanding as of January 19, 2016, if such holders exercise their rights pursuant to these securities, these additional issuances upon conversion and exercise would represent approximately 28% of the shares outstanding after these issuances, without taking into account the rights offering or other issuances of shares other than the conversions and exercise of the warrants.

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While the principal amount of the convertible notes will continue to decline monthly, which will result in fewer shares issuable upon conversion each month, the holders of these securities will have the right to acquire a significant number of additional shares upon conversion and/or exercise for the foreseeable future.

In addition, although we have no intention of doing so, to the extent we issue shares to make payments in kind under the convertible notes, the ownership percentages of the investors would increase incrementally. As a result, our current stockholders as a group would own a substantially smaller interest in us and may have less influence on our management and policies than they now have. To the extent they choose to do so, the holders of these securities may accumulate even more shares if they participate in the rights offering on an as converted basis, on a deemed exercise basis and/or exercise their 30% participation rights.

Our obligations to the holders of the convertible notes are secured by a lien on all of our assets pursuant to a security agreement, which was entered into with respect to the issuance of the convertible notes. This lien is subordinate only to the lien of certain permitted senior creditors, including KeyBank, which has a first priority blanket lien on our assets. If we default under the terms of the convertible notes or under the terms of any permitted senior indebtedness (which is an event of default under the convertible notes), the holders of the convertible notes or the senior creditors may exercise various remedies against us, including acceleration of the entire remaining principal amount of the convertible notes and the senior indebtedness and all accrued and unpaid interest thereon, and remedies against our collateral. An acceleration of the convertible notes or the senior indebtedness or an exercise of remedies against our assets as collateral could have a material adverse effect on our ability to conduct our business or could force us to invoke legal measures to protect our business, including, but not limited to, filing for protection under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

We estimate that the net proceeds to us from the sale of our common stock offered in the rights offering, including full exercise of oversubscription privileges, after deducting estimated offering expenses, will be approximately $10,202,000, if the rights offering is fully subscribed. However, depending on the extent to which the rights offering is actually subscribed, net proceeds may be less than this amount. We estimate that the expenses of the rights offering, including matters related to the Investment Agreement, will be approximately $173,000.

In December 2014, we issued an aggregate of $27,000,000 of 8% senior secured convertible notes originally due on November 30, 2017, the net proceeds of which were used to fund the acquisition of the DuPont Pioneer assets we purchased concurrently with the closing of the convertible note financing. As of January 19, 2016, the principal amount of convertible notes was approximately $14,500,000. Under the terms of the convertible notes, we make monthly redemption payments and will continue to do so through June 2017, except to the extent we accelerate redemption payments, which will shorten the term of the convertible notes to the extent so accelerated.

To the extent we do not use the net proceeds to make redemption payments, the proceeds will be used for debt service for our convertible notes and general corporate purposes.

Until we use the net proceeds, we may invest them temporarily in liquid short-term securities.

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PRICE RANGE OF OUR COMMON STOCK

Prior to May 4, 2010, there was no public market for our company's securities. From May 4, 2010 through June 11, 2010, our common stock traded on the NASDAQ Capital Market as part of a unit under the ticker symbol "SANWU." Each unit consisted of two shares of common stock, one Class A warrant and one Class B warrant. On June 14, 2010, the unit separated, and the components began trading as separate securities under the ticker symbols "SANW," "SANWA" and "SANWZ," for the common stock, Class A warrants and Class B warrants, respectively. The Class A warrants were redeemed in April 2013, and the Class B warrants expired in accordance with their terms in May 2015.

The following table sets forth the range of high and low sales prices per share of Common Stock as reported on NASDAQ for the periods indicated.