William Ridley, Ph.D. https://ace.illinois.edu/directory/wridley

William Ridley, Ph.D. on Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=Qjox4QIAAAAJ&hl=en

Today’s episode is timely and thought provoking in my opinion. The farm economy is struggling again this year, and while there’s no one cause for all of that struggle, exports certainly play a role. A major role. 

I’m very pleased to welcome Dr. Bill Ridley onto the show. Bill is an international economist studying global markets and trade policy at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.  His research explores pressing market and policy issues relating to international agricultural trade, economic integration, trade disputes, and the implications of globalization for the environment and natural resource use.

I wanted to bring Bill on the show to ask about the implications of tariffs and trade disputes for the farm economy, his perspective on the current trade relationship with China, his work on the virtual water trade which is an interesting concept measuring how much domestic water gets used to export food out of the country, and his thoughts on the path forward from here. If you’re hoping for a rosey picture of how this all plays out, I’ll warn you now - you may be disappointed. But it’s certainly an important topic to be thinking deeply about how this impacts your business for all of us in agriculture. 

Follow Chris on X: https://x.com/reggaj

Follow Chris on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bluefoxfarm

Listen to Chris' podcast "Not Only Farmers": https://open.spotify.com/show/12YRGbk9IYMh4gbR0pTkEh?si=d14c005214ab418d

Chris Jagger on episode 129 of the "Farmer to Farmer" Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBplMcnNdO4

Chris Jagger and his wife Melanie Kuegler have been running Blue Fox Farm in southern Oregon since 2004. They started with 1 acre of mixed vegetable production, scaled to 45 acres, and now have scaled back to around 7 acres in vegetables. 

Besides farming, Chris has dipped his toes into many other realms of agriculture- consulting for other farms, running an ag supply business, starting a soil-based ag conference, and now looking at new ways to build the regional supply chain in the Pacific Northwest. The main goal in all of these endeavors is building community and feeding people.

I’ve known Chris from Twitter for years now, and he has some bold and innovative ideas about the industry, but his perspective is still also very grounded in the practicality of running a farm business. We discuss finding the right scale as a first generation farmer, the decision to sell retail vs wholesale, what it takes to build regional food systems, what technology is needed on smaller scale farms, and more. 

Sentera: https://sentera.com/

Chandler Coop: https://www.chandlercoop.com/

Today’s episode is another installment in our Tech-Enabled Advisor series. The idea here is to better understand agtech through the lens of the BUYER and USER of that technology rather than just the entrepreneurs or investors behind it. I’ve received some super positive feedback about the return of this series. By talking to the buyers rather than the sellers of the tech, we got an unfiltered introduction to the technology and more importantly got to see HOW its used and the VALUE that it provides.

To do this, I partner with a company and together we invite one of their customers onto the show. The catch is that they’re not allowed to script these individuals or dictate what to say or edit it after it is recorded - it has to be real and unfiltered.

So today’s episode featuring Nick Einck of Chandler Coop is produced in partnership with Sentera.

Sentera is a leading provider of remote imagery solutions. Their industry-leading cameras are compatible with most major drone platforms and enable farmers and crop scouts to efficiently capture high-resolution data. Their capabilities and FieldAgent software tools help farmers and agronomists assess plant-level health, identify stressors, and take action. Also their customized herbicide prescription, SMARTSCRIPT™ Weeds, can be delivered to sprayers with individual nozzle control.

So drones equipped with Sentera technology fly over fields at high speeds and generate high-resolution images. The images are processed using proprietary deep learning algorithms to identify the exact location of specific weeds and generate a weed map. This map becomes a targeted prescription for how much product a farmer needs to load into their sprayer, saving money and minimizing waste. This past May, John Deere announced they were acquiring Sentera.

So I’m very excited to partner with them for this episode, which is a fantastic deep dive into how innovative technology like this combined with something like See-and-Spray really changes the game.

Some background on Nick before we dive in: Nick Einck is the Director of Agronomy at Chandler Co-op, a farmer-owned cooperative serving more than 900 customers and providing agronomic services across over 100,000 acres in southwest Minnesota. He began his career at Chandler as an intern and seed manager before spending nearly a decade with Monsanto and Bayer, gaining deep expertise in agronomy, product development, and grower engagement across the Midwest. Nick returned to Chandler in October 2024, bringing both retail and industry experience to help advance the co-op’s agronomic strategy. Today, he leads a multi-location agronomy team focused on leveraging tech-enabled tools—like SmartScript™—to help growers make faster, more informed decisions and drive greater return from every acre.

Ambrook: https://ambrook.com/

Offrange: https://ambrook.com/offrange

"Not Boring" Founder's Letter: https://www.notboring.co/p/america-the-beautiful

Mackenzie Burnett: On Agriculture and American Progress on Rhishi Pethe's "Software is Feeding the World"

Today’s episode features a pretty intriguing startup, Ambrook. I say intriguing not just because they recently announced a $26.1M series A round in this tough environment to raise capital. But they are focused on what I would consider a not very flashy part of the industry, accounting software. Not a new concept. On the surface, it doesn’t sound like one of those moonshot problems startups like to spin a narrative around like mitigating climate change or feeding the billions. But those of us who have spent time on farms or ranches know there are still plenty of opportunities for improvement in this area. And in just over 18 months of commercialization Ambrook already claims to have over 2,500 operations using their software.

Another interesting part of their business is as they were building their financial management tool, they also launched their own media venture called Ambrook Research. They have since rebranded it to Off Range, but it boasts more than 150,000 newsletter subscribers to read stories about agriculture and food.

But will all this lead to better outcomes for producers, a successful business for Ambrook and a more resilient agriculture in the future? That’s what I wanted to know from Ambrook co-founder and CEO Mackenzie Burnett. Before starting this financial management software company, Mackenzie’s prior experience was working in community nonprofits, water asset management, and open source software infrastructure. She holds an M.A. in international policy and climate security from Stanford University.

Vance Crowe: https://www.vancecrowe.com/

Legacy Interviews: https://www.legacyinterviews.com/

Vance Crowe on X: https://x.com/VanceCrowe

Vance Crowe is a communications strategist that has worked for corporations and international organizations around the world. Crowe has spoken before more than 250,000 people, answering questions about some of the most sophisticated and controversial technologies in the modern age. He has worked for organizations as varied as the World Bank, Monsanto, the U.S. Peace Corps and even as a deckhand on an ecotourism ship. Today he is the founder of Legacy Interviews, a service that privately records the life stories of individuals and couples so that future generations can know their family history. The Vance Crowe Podcast hosts guests from around the world with artists, psychologists, economists, farmers, ambassadors and heads of state.

Vance and I discuss his views on reinvention, artificial intelligence, how to develop healthy habits with technology in general, and bitcoin and why he believes it will de-monetize farmland as just one of the implications of more widespread adoption of that technology. If you’ve ever thought “I don’t think I understand bitcoin and frankly it feels to late to ask” this is probably going to be a good episode for you, because I ask some fundamental questions. I’m not saying you’ll fully understand it today, but Vance also offers some pretty practical advice for those who want to go deeper. 

This episode was produced in partnership With AgVend: https://www.agvend.com/

MFA, Inc: https://mfa-inc.com/

FoA 269: [Tech-Enabled Advisor Series] Cooperatives Embrace Digital Tools with KC Graner of Central Farm Service

I'm bringing back the Tech-Enabled Advisor Series to better understand agtech through the lens of the BUYER of that technology rather than just the entrepreneurs or investors. By talking to the buyers rather than the sellers of the tech, we got an unfiltered introduction to the technology and more importantly got to see how its used and the VALUE that it provides users.

To do this, I partner with a company and together we invite one of their customers onto the show. The catch is that they’re not allowed to script these individuals or dictate what to say or edit it after it is recorded - it has to be real and unfiltered.

So today’s episode featuring Jason Weirich of MFA was produced in partnership with AgVend. Since launching their first platform in 2020, AgVend’s technology is used by more than 35% of the North American ag retail market. Today you’ll hear how one of those retailers, MFA, launched a digital platform called MFA Connect with AgVend.

Jason Weirich is the executive vice president of operations at MFA, which has around 45,000 member owners. They are one of the largest ag retailers in the country, consistently in the top 10 of the CropLife 100. Jason oversees the retail operations located throughout Missouri and surrounding states including Southern IA, Eastern KS, Northeast AR and Northwest Oklahoma. He also oversees the wholesale operations which span the entire midwest from the rocky mountains to Ohio. Prior to joining MFA 15 years ago, Jason was the state extension weed specialist with the University of Missouri. He joined the cooperative as the director of agronomy and says he walked a lot of fields for nine years before eventually moving into his current role.

Our conversation today touches on the the relevance of the cooperative model, how he’s making difficult decisions in this tough farm economy, why they implemented MFA Connect and the results they are seeing from this digital platform and customer portal, the role of the ag retailer in the changing farmer demographic, and how he goes about implementing change in a big industry and a large organization.

About AgVend:

AgVend is the leading provider of digital enablement solutions that transform the way agribusinesses operate their organizations and engage with their customers. AgVend’s white-labeled system of action streamlines workflows from field to office, enabling frontline teams to offer more efficient and differentiated customer interactions. Since launching their first platform in 2020, AgVend’s technology is used by more than 35% of the North American ag retail market.

Clayton Farms: https://claytonfarms.com/

Clayton Mooney on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/claytonmooney/

FoA 53: Millennials Solving World Problems Through Agricultural Technology with MiKayla Sullivan of Kinosol

Clayton Mooney is the co-founder and chief farmer at Clayton Farms based in Ames, Iowa. They build direct-to-consumer indoor farms and claim to serve the world's freshest salads. They were also part of Y Combinator in the winter of 2019. Clayton is fearlessly building his vision for a farm that grows local, healthy, accessible food and provides a real connection with customers in the community through a quick service restaurant. 

That’s right, it’s a restaurant with a drive through that grows hydroponic produce inside of it. Clayton will provide a lot more details in this episode, and I think it will be abundantly clear why his story is so interesting, relevant and inspiring for anyone thinking about the future of agriculture. 

But just for some brief background, Clayton grew up on a farm in Iowa and played professional poker before returning to his home state and starting Kinosol. In fact, his now wife Mikayla was one of his co-founders at Kinosol was on this show WAY back on episode 53 in May of 2017.

I’ll drop you into the conversation here where Clayton is giving more of his background and describing the early days of what was first called Nebulum, but was eventually re-branded into Clayton Farms. 

Thank you all for sticking with me through this break, and especially for those of you who reached out!

I'm going to keep the FoA Feedback invitation open for the foreseeable future. If you'd like to book a call you can do so here: https://www.calendly.com/hammerich/foa.

I would love your feedback about the show: what should I start/stop/continue?

Email: [email protected]

Schedule a quick call: https://www.calendly.com/hammerich/foa

Or DM me on LinkedIn or X (Twitter)

Otherwise, see you in July!

Subscribe to Agriscience Explained:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5qvFYYLq1dZM1KUiN6nz6H?si=6a6dd6193eea47a1

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/agriscience-explained/id1789150766

Web: https://www.corteva.com/our-impact/innovation/agriscience-explained.html

Over the past eight years, I have learned so much from this podcast and it’s opened up a lot of cool opportunities. Some of those opportunities have been to help others launch their own shows. In fact a big part of my consulting work is helping commodity groups and companies reach agricultural audiences through digital communication like podcasts. 

What you’re about to hear is an episode from one of those projects. Earlier this year, I helped Corteva Agriscience launch a new show called Agriscience Explained. Each episode includes voices from a scientist and a farmer to understand how innovations are developed and where they fit into a modern farm business. 

I’ve really enjoyed working with Corteva on this, and we’ve already posted 10 episodes with an 11th coming this week on topics ranging from seed to nematodes to cover crops to gene editing to reduced stature corn. It really is a cool format to explore the various aspects of agriscience. 

So here’s episode one, if you like it, make sure you find their show and subscribe for more.