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Dr. Scott Leibsle graduated from the University of Wisconsin but now serves as Idaho’s State Veterinarian with the Idaho Department of Agriculture. Dr. Leibsle talks about how each state deals with different issues based on their location and the animals raised in those locations. In Idaho, his office is forever on the watch for Brucellosis from neighboring Yellowstone Park. He clarifies how the avian bird flu raised the alarm in 2024 and shares how a shortage of large animal veterinarians is a worry now and for the future.

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What do you get when you mix a buffalo and a cow? It sounds like the beginning of a laffy taffy joke, but for Megan and Trevor Stark, this is their reality. 

If it sounds hard, it absolutely is! Something of this nature requires a meticulous process to do it right. They talk about how narrow the margin of error is raising these "non-traditional" animals and how it has taken years to find resources to help them raise their herd successfully. 

As a bonus, they have a suggestion for the best cow dog ever.

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Kennedy Youngren's life has an interesting connection to food. She is a licensed dietitian who is married to a dairy farmer. As a high school athlete looking at college prospects, she had to learn what her eating disorder was doing to her body. In this podcast, she offers important insights on taking care of our bodies, whether we farm all day, play sports, or work behind a desk. She also talks about better sleeping habits and ways to deal with children who are picky eaters.

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They say we live in an information era, but you can't wear or eat information. Those who manufacture goods and products are dependent on those who mine and produce the elements that give us those products. Mike Veile,  Site Operational Excellence Lead with Bayer Crop Science, shares how mining in Soda Springs, Idaho, is playing a vital role in producing phosphorus for many common products we use each day. Mike also explains the mine's environmental priorities, commitment to the community, and its role in helping farmers grow food into the future.

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When people hear about agriculture in the news headlines, a new trend is to find a podcast to break it down and give new insights and commentary. This is where Discover Ag Podcast hosts Tara Vander Dussen (known as the New Mexico Milk Maid, 5th-generation dairy farmer) and Natalie Kovarik (4th-generation cattle rancher from Nebraska) come into play. They talk about what it is like to be a woman in agriculture today while producing a top-ranked podcast that follows the weekly development of agriculture in the media.

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Tater Tots have been a staple around dinner tables, school cafeterias, and restaurants for many decades, but who thought to invent this finger food? It may surprise you how it came to be and what primitive process was used in the beginning to form these tasty snacks. Les Grigg, Co-founder of the F Nephi & Golden Grigg Legacy Foundation, tells us the story of how tater tots came to be, how large the industry is today, and how they are using a tater tot festival to bolster the fight against child abuse (protecting our tots).

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In Bob Hoff's family, teenagers didn't just get a driver's license. They also got a pilot's license because they never knew when to run out the back door, jump in a plane, take off from a grass runway and look for a lost cow. As Bob explains, every family has their passion, and for the Hoff family, it is farming and aviation. 

Bob shares stories from his first barrel roll with his Dad to helping develop a museum in his local community to teach about the beauty and history of soaring the skies.

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Jessie Jarvis had a time when she considered pursuing an occupation outside of agriculture. Born and raised as a rancher’s daughter in Southern Idaho, she tells how her love for agriculture and desire to raise children in agriculture changed her mind.

With the support of her husband Justin, Jessie uses her experience in communications and media to build bridges for the next generation of agriculturists, whether they work in the dirt, with cows, in a lab, or on a computer. She explains how times are changing and that we must work to show the next generation that there is a place for them in agriculture.

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Almost half of the land in the western United States is owned by the Federal Government. Compare that to only 4 percent of land east of the Mississippi. Obviously, there is a story to tell on this topic.

Dirt Road Discussions visited with an online panel consisting of Amanda Kaster, Director of the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation; Keith Hamilton, a fourth-generation rancher and farmer from Wyoming; and Ben Menges, a fifth-generation farmer from Arizona. 

With host Cam Hammond and Ott Clark, the panel takes us through an honest conversation about the pros, cons, victories, frustrations, benefits, and limitations of living near and working on these federal lands. If you don’t know what federal lands are, no worries. They will explain that, too.

Thank you to multiple western state Farm Bureau Federations who made this possible.

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Imagine a succulent plant with sharp spines that can grow up to 6 feet tall and 10 feet wide. When it flowers, it can grow up to 8 feet tall, and its inflorescence can reach 25–30 feet tall. Sharla and Leo Ortega grow agave, a plant used for tequila and many other products. They talk about navigating the challenges of raising this "behemoth" crop.