Hoosier Ag Today's Eric Pfeiffer took the podcast on the road to the Wabash Heartland Innovation Network's (WHIN) Ag Summit to discuss farmer-led innovation, technology adoption and models for success with Jason Tennehouse and Josh Karshen.

Welcome to Directionally Speaking, a narrative series that highlights the innovators bringing solutions to market through AgriNovus' Velocity accelerator. This week, AgriNovus Senior Director of Innovation Tim Dixon sits down with Naveed Iqbal, CEO of Fallow Ag, to talk fintech, creating a data standard at the farm-level and what it's like to be a startup founder. 

Learn more about Naveed and Fallow Ag at agrinovusindiana.com/velocity

Earlier this year, Etlas launched as a joint venture betrween Corteva and bp with the goal of helping strengthen the biofuels value chain. This week, CEO Nacho Conti shares how the company is working to connect growers, processors and biofuels producers around low-carbon feedstocks while creating new value opportunities across agbisocience and energy. Highlights include:  

• Defining Etlas' mission: Nacho explains how Etlas is positioning itself as a new bioenergy company focused on solving bottlenecks across the biofuels value chain. 
• Why the Corteva-bp partnership matters: He discusses why this was the right moment for a joint venture and what each partner brings to scaling the opportunity faster than either could alone. 
• What is driving biofuels growth: The conversation looks at the market forces increasing demand for biofuels and why the timing is especially important right now. 
• Where the bottlenecks remain: Nacho unpacks the biggest barriers to scaling biofuels production, from feedstock supply and logistics to processing and market alignment. 
• What it means for farmers: He outlines the farm-level value proposition and why stronger, more connected demand could matter for growers over the long term. 
• Aligning the full ecosystem: The episode explores how producers, crushers and processors can benefit from a more coordinated low-carbon feedstock system. 
• Balancing sustainability and economics: Nacho shares his perspective on building an ecosystem that meets sustainability goals while still working in the real economics of agriculture and energy markets. 
• What success looks like next: Looking ahead, he paints a picture of what success could mean for Etlas, its partners and the broader biofuels market over the next three to five years. 

What does the future of water and land restoration look like? Dr. Tyler Koschnick, CEO of SEPRO Scientific, joins us this week to share how the company is evolving through growth, innovation and a sharper scientific focus. The conversation highlights: 

• SEPRO's mission to create long-term solutions for environmental stewardship 
• The market needs emerging around water quality, restoration and infrastructure 
• The company's integrated model of science, diagnostics and field execution 
• The strategic value of recent acquisitions, including Earth Science Laboratories, GreenEYES, Arrieta.ai and Resolve Hydro 
• The growing role of AI and remote sensing in restoration 
• Lessons from rapid growth and leading through transformation 
• The thinking behind the SEPRO Scientific rebrand 
• The customer experience behind a more unified platform 
• Indiana's role in the company's continued momentum 
• Talent, culture and building a differentiated science-led team 
• The untapped opportunities still ahead 
• What the next chapter looks like for SEPRO Scientific 

What does the future of seed innovation look like - and how is Indiana helping shape it? 

On this episode of the Agbioscience Podcast, host Eric Pfeiffer sits down with Craig Anderson, CEO of Ag Alumni Seed, for a conversation on seed development, Purdue-connected research, emerging technologies, and the global opportunities rooted right here in Indiana. 

Episode highlights: 

• Craig’s path to CEO and what drew him to lead Ag Alumni Seed after a long career in the seed industry 
• The Ag Alumni Seed and Purdue connection - and how that relationship supports research, agriculture, and broader industry impact 
• Balancing business and mission as Ag Alumni Seed grows its commercial work while supporting Purdue’s College of Agriculture 
• How customer expectations are changing in popcorn and specialty seed markets 
• The future of seed innovation and which traits will matter most in the years ahead 
• How imaging and 3D plant modeling are accelerating research through the Ag Alumni Seed Phenotyping Facility 
• Where data, automation, and AI can create the biggest real-world gains in seed development 
• Untapped opportunities in seed development and where the industry is only beginning to scratch the surface 
• Indiana’s competitive advantage in supporting innovation that can scale to global markets 
• What’s ahead for Ag Alumni Seed and the partnerships that could shape the next chapter 

August was a wet one! We kick this episode off by recapping Indiana's heavy rains and its impact on the state's agbioscience ecosystem. Highlights include: 

• Velocity's 12 startups, an accelerator update and AgriNovus' Senior Director of Innovation Tim Dixon's required reading list for innovators (plus one band recommendation). Books include: 
• Watch Tim's episode of Agbioscience and his preview of Velocity here: https://youtu.be/loP_NAz6X7I
• Keystone Cooperative joining as a collaborator on Alloy Partners' One Health Studio (check out Ben Lewis, One Health Studio Director at Alloy Ventures', episode of Agbioscience here: https://youtu.be/JQxFCkmEB1E)
• Anu + Hancock Health working together to bring precision nutrition to their healthcare system (check out Scott Massey, CEO of Anu, on Agbioscience here: https://youtu.be/B6eAcp7E4c4)
• Purdue DIAL Ventures' announcement of their four innovation fellows (check out DIAL's Allan Gray on Agbioscience here: https://youtu.be/SO4oHbJBOuo)
• All of this news as proof points for BioHeartland and the region's momentum (check out BioHeartland here: https://inbioheartland.com/)
• AgriNovus' Field Atlas program, its 13 student Ambassadors, where we'll be on campus this fall and how employers can connect to agbioscience talent through this platform and its programs (visit https://myfieldatlas.com/)
• MOST IMPORTANT: we discuss food is health and State Fair food -- yes, in one sentence.

Alayne Johnson, Director of the National Pork Board, joins us this week to explore the priorities shaping pork demand, producer insights and research across the U.S. pork industry. Alayne shares her journey through agriculture, what led her to serve another term on the National Pork Board and how the organization approaches its role in research, promotion and consumer education on behalf of pork producers. 

The conversation also examines the shifts defining the industry today, from changing consumer preferences and global demand opportunities to sustainability, nutrition and the research priorities expected to shape the sector’s next chapter. 

Highlights include: 

• Alayne’s journey through agriculture, what led her to the National Pork Board and why she chose to serve another term. 
• How her appointment to the board came together, what motivated her to serve and what she has learned through the experience. 
• What surprised her most about how decisions are made at the national level and how those decisions connect back to producers. 
• The biggest changes shaping agriculture today and how those shifts are influencing the National Pork Board’s priorities. 
• Where Alayne sees the greatest opportunity to grow pork demand globally and the trends she believes matter most. 
• An overview of the National Pork Board’s current research agenda, including areas such as animal health, human nutrition, environmental sustainability and consumer behavior. 
• What recent consumer research is revealing about how shoppers make decisions and how those insights flow back to producers. 
• Where pork fits into today’s evolving protein conversation as consumers place more value on nutrition, transparency and the story behind their food. 
• Where Alayne sees the next wave of research delivering the greatest return across production, consumer trends and sustainability. 
• What has her most excited about this next term and the future of the pork industry. 

Henry Markarian, Co-Founder and CEO of Integrated Dynamics, joins us this week to explore a technology platform aimed at unlocking new value from existing ethanol infrastructure. Henry shares the founding story behind the company, the problem Integrated Dynamics set out to solve and why its approach to repurposing operating, underused and idle assets could matter in the next phase of the bioeconomy’s growth. 

Highlights include:  

• The origin story behind Integrated Dynamics, the market problem it was built to solve and the opportunity the team saw from the beginning. 
• A practical model built on reusing existing ethanol and industrial infrastructure, and why that approach could be especially compelling from both a speed-to-market and cost perspective. 
• How the technology works, including why high temperature matters and how that affects performance, economics and operational design. 
• Henry dives into whether the Integrated Dynamics model introduces additional capital or operating costs and how those factors fit into commercial viability. 
• Strategic rationale for pursuing cellulosic ethanol, including why ethanol remains an important platform within the evolving bioeconomy. 
• How Integrated Dynamics expects to compete, along with the risks and tailwinds he sees shaping the broader market. 
• Winning AgriNovus’ Velocity in 2025 elevated the company’s visibility and credibility and recognition unlocked in subsequent conversations. 
• How the company’s technology could affect farm economics, ecological outcomes, input costs and potential revenue streams if it succeeds at scale. 
• Economics of deploying the model through Greenfield, Brownfield and idle plant strategies, as well as through licensing or joint ventures. 
• Integrated Dynamics' next phase of growth, including how the team may evolve over the next 12 to 24 months. 

On this episode of Agbioscience Dr. Robert Pepper, President of Huntington University, joins us to explore how their team is building talent for the future of agriculture. Just months into his presidency, Rob shares what drew him to Huntington, how the university is positioning itself inside Indiana’s agbioscience innovation economy and why hands-on, industry-connected learning matters more than ever. 

The conversation also examines Huntington’s growing agriculture programs, from its six bachelor’s degrees and farm lab to its animal science education center and looks ahead to the next chapter of talent development. Along the way, Rob discusses what employers are asking for, how cross-disciplinary learning is shaping student readiness and what success could look like for Huntington over the next decade. 

Episode highlights:  

• Stepping into Huntington University’s presidency in 2025 at a moment of rapid change across the industry 
• What makes Huntington’s mission and momentum compelling 
• The university’s case for playing a meaningful role in Indiana’s innovation ecosystem 
• How Rob sees Huntington contribution to industry and workforce needs 
• The foundation laid by Dr. Sherilyn Emberton, former president, including the launch and development of the ag program – and how he sees it evolving under his leadership 
• How the program has grown – six bachelor’s degrees in ag, a farm lab and an animal science education center 
• What Pepper hears from industry leaders, where employers may be seeking a different kind of graduate and Huntington is positioned to deliver 
• Building critical bridge to cross-collaborative and allied domains like biology, data, engineering and health 
• The value of internships, mentorship, corporate partnerships and other real-world applications that help students gain confidence to enter the industry 
• How strategic partners are shaping Huntington’s program outcomes and how they choose partners that work well for them 
• Rob defines success in talent development and what excites him most about the future 

Heartland BioWorks was formed to help the Midwest advance its position of leadership in the next era of bioscience innovation. By uniting industry, academia, workforce leaders, and public partners, the organization was created to accelerate discovery, grow talent and build a stronger, more connected bioeconomy across the region. We are joined this week by Michelle Dennis, Regional Innovation Officer for Heartland BioWorks, to talk the federal Tech Hub designation, our existing strengths and moving innovation to market faster. 

Highlights include:  

• An overview of the work Michelle’s team is leading to advance the bioeconomy in Indiana 
• Momentum in discussion around onshoring and biomanufacturing in the US – and why that’s critical 
• Gaps identified by stakeholders across the industry that Heartland BioWorks is uniquely positioned to address 
• Bridging the gap between scientific discovery and innovation and commercial scale- up through Heartland BioWorks’ BioLAUNCH 
• Where Michelle sees promising intersections between agbioscience, biotech and advanced manufacturing 
• What Michelle believes makes a strong ecosystem of connecting startups, companies, researchers and investors across domains 
• Workforce skills most needed in this growing bioeconomy and how BioTRAIN is creating a wider funnel for talent in its pipeline 
• Biggest opportunities Michelle sees for industry, academia and public partners to continue working together to build the state’s talent base 
• Emerging trends that excite Michelle and where she believes agbioscience should be paying attention right now 
• What success looks like to Michelle over the next five years 
• What’s ahead that has her most excited for Heartland BioWorks