Agri-Pulse Open Mic Interview

This week's Open Mic guest is Courtney Knupp, CEO of the United Soybean Board. After spending time previously within the soybean industry, the USDA and the White House, Knupp finds herself working with farmers to manage the soybean checkoff. Knupp says farmers can accomplish more together and says the farmer leaders have delivered an excellent return on investment in the form of developing new uses for their product as well as helping to achieve sustainability and productivity goals.

This week's Open Mic guest is Eric Dell, President and CEO of the American Bakers Association. The baking industry represents over 800,000 jobs and $43 billion dollars in wages in the U.S. Dell says their members are facing economic headwinds including tariffs, high fuel costs, and uncertain government regulations. Dell says the industry is responding to shifting consumer demands toward whole and nutrient-rich foods, advocating for consumer choice and trying to navigate a patchwork of state regulations.

This week's Open Mic guest is Jeff Cecil, newly appointed President of Syngenta Crop Protection North America. Cecil's career began on a family farm in Kentucky and spans over 30 years with Syngenta and its legacy companies. As the cyclical downturn in commodity production extends across the industry, he says innovation is the company's key to helping farmers achieve their production and sustainability goals. Cecil says the domestic regulatory burden for companies to register new products inhibits access for U.S. producers to technologies to protect their crops and the environment.

This week's Open Mic guest is Devin Mogler, President and CEO of the National Oilseed Processors Association. Current demand for renewable diesel as well as state and federal regulations calling for increased production have processing plants operating at capacity. Mogler says processors, including some energy companies, have invested over $7 billion dollars in new plants to meet current and expected demand. Soybeans dominate the industry, but he says additional crops with higher oil content are showing excellent potential.

This week's Open Mic guest is President and CEO of Western Growers Dave Puglia. Specialty crop producers are weighed down by high prices for crop inputs and labor, as well as an astronomical regulatory burden, underscoring the need for a broader national discussion about U.S. food production. Puglia says Canada and Mexico are important trading partners, but outlines changes needed to the USMCA trade accord. He also discusses specialty crop provisions in the pending farm bill and shares how his members are adopting robotics and other advanced technologies.

This week's Open Mic guest is Kasey Cronquist, President of the North American Blueberry Council. The blueberry industry has a vision of blueberries as the world's favorite fruit that is consumed beyond breakfast. While it's a lofty goal, there is plenty of evidence that consumer demand for the healthy and tasty fruit is growing rapidly both domestically and globally. Even better blueberries are on the way, thanks to more research and breeding. He says trade is key to satisfying growing consumer demand and adding value.

This week’s Open Mic guest is Julie Anna Potts, president and CEO of the Meat Institute. The meat industry is enjoying strong consumer demand both in the U.S. and abroad, though Potts says some segments are faring better than others. A smaller cattle inventory is squeezing beef packers and processors as producers contend with drought and high input costs. Potts praises USDA’s efforts to combat New World screwworm and says she hopes the USMCA trade agreement will be renewed. She’s optimistic about the prospects for a new farm bill but believes agricultural labor reform will be left to the next Congress.

This week's Open Mic guest is Michael Dykes, president and CEO of the International Dairy Foods Association. Dykes comments on the significant role Canada and Mexico play in the success of the U.S. dairy industry and his hopes for renewing the USMCA trade agreement. He also shares concerns about EU regulations impacting U.S. exports. On the domestic front, he discusses the tremendous growth of dairy demand and how the dietary guidelines and MAHA movement are catching up to the health benefits of dairy in the diet.

This week's Open Mic guest is Chris Abbott, CEO of Pivot Bio. Innovation in the form of gene edited microbes may be a solution to helping farmers reduce fertilizer costs. Abbott says farmers are showing renewed interest in the soil biome as a means to improve plant health and harvest nutrients from the atmosphere. He also discusses how new innovations in agriculture need to be economically sustainable and enable greater productivity.

This week's Open Mic guest is Emily Skor, CEO of Growth Energy. With record fuel prices, Skor says E15 is already saving consumers sizable amounts of money and those savings could be greater if Congress allows sales of higher ethanol blends all year. The group's Biofuels Summit in mid-September will bring her members to Washington to lobby for E15 legislation. Skor says they're keeping track of the Trump administration's decision on small refinery exemptions to earlier announced renewable fuel obligations, as well as trade negotiations with Canada - the largest export market for U.S. ethanol.