This week's guest, Hannah Neuenschwander, walks us through her move from Texas to the Midwest, to work for a company called Monsanto. She shares adventures in corn inbreeding, her point-of-view of genetically modified seed and the story of how a tornado seeded her in an incredible community.

Find Hannah at www.TexanMeetsMidwest.com, Twitter: @hannahaggie2014 | IG: Hannahjane2014

Today's guest brews her coffee as Jenny is working on making supper. What began as acquaintances on Twitter has grown to a friendship like no other connected by Skype.

Meg Kummerow shares her expertise in AgTech, as we discuss her background growing up with cattle. While explaining the cattle ranch, Meg has to give Jenny a lesson on the word mustard.

The discussion travels through a recent tweet derived from Food Tank's latest event. Initiated by a speaker, the tweet states technology in food and agriculture is the last frontier.

Listen in to catch their opinions on the tweet as well as setting goals for 2018.

Time stamps:

• 1:50 - Australian Summer Grains Conference vs. US's Commodity Classic
• 3:10 - Last measurable rain was March of 2017
• 5:00 - Meg teaches Jenny a new word
• 6:50 - Making the difficult decision to sell the farm
• 8:40 - Chad Colby introduces Meg to drones
• 10:00 - Meg and Jenny give their opinions on out-of-touch food 'experts'
• 16:37 - Dominos Drone Delivery coming to a farm near you...we hope.
• 17:30 - Rural communications and mental health in Australia and the U.S.

At the end of this show, you'll learn about up and coming changes to Keeping Ag Real.

Thank you for taking the time out of your schedule to listen and subscribe!

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This week's episode is centered around STEM education, beginning with Bayer's Making Science Make Sense program. Listen closely as I make a mild mistake of giving my 8 year old the microphone. He helps explains MSMS as it happened at his school.

Next, I catch up with Casey Allen from Bayer's Corporate Communications team as we chat during the Farm Progress Show. Casey discusses Bayer's collaboration with the National 4H Council in an effort to enhance STEM education. He provides great overview of how the new program, Science Matters, will benefit youth in rural and urban areas.

Jen and Jenny take on California! @Plowwife is back and chatting about our trip to a citrus ranch, processing plant and the California Department of Food and Agriculture. Lots of timestamps so you don't miss a word!!! 2:10 - Little green balls 3:50 - Gless Citrus Ranch 4:39 - Finger Limes, Citrus Caviar, Tequila shooters 6:27 - Farming on public land 8:00 - Citrus processing facility 9:05 - Organic mangoes 11:25 - Jen's distraction takes over for samples 12:37 - Cattle eat grapefruit? 15:40 - Citrus' reputation for food safety 16:45 - Jen begins to lose her mind 17:30 - Measuring sweetness of grapefruit 18:10 - The darn samples again 20:15 - Jen checks out due to Modge Podge 21:35 - The meat of the citrus industry 22:05 - ACP's are bad guys & Citrus greening 24:00 - Brain eating wasps in Jen's nose 25:30 - Jen flashes back to 1984 27:05 - Genetic modification isn't an option 28:10 - Sniffing, inserting larvae, painting the the ACP 29:15 - Jen gets bleeped...twice 30:40 - Backyard Citrus Trees 31:45 - Can oranges become extinct? 33:00 - The challenge of solving backyard citrus 33:45 - Jenny saves the world by releasing wasps 35:15 - The girls talk their big takeaways 37:15 - Jen finally becomes completely paranoid about having a bug up her nose 37:50 - Girls Talk Ag 38:45 - Farm Progress Show & beware of the FRAN golf cart 41:05 - People will be running, screaming and following the FRAN golf cart at FPS

The first Keeping Ag Real podcast recorded from my truck - because it's all about Keeping It Real. Excuse any sound distortions. They pulled up in Wilson, the '66 Ford Mustang and dove right into the Tazewell County 4H & Jr. Fair festivities. Wendell Schumm of the #OntarioAgCast and daughter Jullia took on a 3500 mile road trip to visit U.S. friends, connected by #AgTwitter (agriculture folks on Twitter). During their visit they met our Jersey dairy heifers, sheep and the rooster, Mr. Fred. Mr. Fred was due to be auctioned the next day. In Wendell and Jullia's road trip podcast, they ask about the fate of said rooster. Join my son and I as we answer their question plus waiting for a driver's permit, hunting in Kentucky and the Illinois State Fair.

Have you watched the Food Evolution Movie yet? Tune in to learn why you need to put it in your future, my thoughts and a lesson science can learn from agriculture.

The mental well being of farmers and ranchers is toyed with due to uncertainties like weather and market prices. Suicide rates among U.S. farmers are double that of Veterans.

Four of my favorite Canadian women have dug their heels into the issue. Kim Keller hit the stir button on Twitter resulting in numerous people sharing their stories. Lesley Kelly and her husband Matt bravely put themselves on out there to share their story on Periscope. Sandi Brock and Amy Matthison brought attention to the subject with a funny yet genuine YouTube episode.

These ladies have brought attention to the issue which has hit agribusiness and mainstream media in Canada. So, why aren't we seeing the same results in the U.S.? Join Dan Neenan, a colleague and director of the National Education Center for Agricultural Safety. The discussion is dedicated to piecing together the puzzle and initiating major involvement from organizations in the U.S.

Thanks for listening!

Time stamps:

Part I: Mental Health Confession

3:26: Getting help for my mental well-being after being refused treatment

4:50: Three Takeaways from my experience - reach to the community for help, stop the stigma, reach out, check on each other and show someone you care

Part II: Introducing Kristjan Hebert

8:58: Who is Kristjan Hebert?

10:52: Being the dreamer arm of farming versus the operator

14:43: Utilizing social media to build the farm brand

16:02: Introducing WorkHorseHub.com - matchmaking for agriculture careers

21:47: We need to change mindset over any other risk in agriculture

23:00: The 5% Rule

In this three part series, Brian Hogue, CEO of Arable Media shares the impact of international travel to Guatemala and Liberia. The conversation discusses the utilization of using virtual reality to bring realities of hunger to schools. Additionally, how VR holds potential for connecting the rural and urban divide.

Timestamps:

2:00 - Helping build a medical clinic in Guatemala, Brian's initial eye opening experience

3:00 - Experiencing international poverty

4:15 - Liberia kids playing with a plastic water bottle, happiness comparison to Disneyland.

4:30 - Ah, ha moment of context - when we don't know, what we don't know it can bring us down. No doubt the loss and hunger which exists in 3rd world countries is minimize to the U.S. general public due to lack of understanding and experience.

6:45 - How do we bring exposure to the hunger and circumstances in places like Liberia?

7:20 - Using Virtual Reality to bring stories like Brian's to the U.S.

8:20 - Thinking intentionally about trips to places like Liberia - are you doing it to help or to fill your own heart

9:15 - Using VR in schools as a tool to teach children about hunger, in a financially, feasible way.

10:35 - Brian is bullish on the status of the world; even when we have questionable leaders

11:10 - Feed themselves, create markets that are viable and sustainable

11:54 - Opening the eyes of a 14 year old of what the world looks like

12:35 - Consumer understanding the experiences that occur in urban areas & bridge gap by bringing urban situational awareness to those in rural life

13:50 - Is Ag advocacy reaching the right audiences?

14:25 - We are late to the game (decades) to provide understanding of agriculture - ag advocacy comes in many forms and isn't one size fits all

15:30 - Come to terms that consumers do not need us. Despite messaging and communication/PR plans from the majority of commodity groups, the general public does not need us

16:36 - We have to be careful so we don't push the consumer further and further away from us.

17:30 - Anyone who feels entitled to someone else's value, are the ones who are quickly replaced.

17:45 - Meat is being created in a lab

18:50 - All to often our industry forgets that the general public is our customer

23:00 - Family crisis, saving the family farm, family dynamics, community and friends

26:00 - Experiences are not divided between ag and non-ag

27:43 - Opening eyes and hearts

Connect with Brian:

ArableMedia.com | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook