Engineer and Farmer Keith Wendte

"Where I grew up, we have real narrow roads, and if you’re going to have wider than 60 foot and 80-foot equipment, they’re going to have to change the infrastructure, not only just because of width but also because of the loads on the roads and and bridges and things like that. I think autonomous vehicles will come into their own.”

Keith Wendte

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators Podcast, brought to you by NewLeaf Symbiotics, Frank Lessiter talks with farmer, data guru and long-time CNH engineer Keith Wendte.

During his tenure (the company was known as International Harvester when he started), Wendte worked to design implements for no-till farming and had designed a spring-based down-pressure adjustment system before electronics innovations beat his system to the market. Wendte is retired from the implement design industry, but still works actively at the family farm near Effingham, Ill. He’s bullish on wheat prices this year, and encourages the use of wheat as a cover crop.

In this week’s podcast, Gruver and Wendte talk about the roots in the family farm, his work at CNH, alternatives to ever-increasing tractor size, and more.