The Business of Agriculture Podcast

Money was pouring into Agricultural startups a few years ago. What's the investment climate look like now? Damian Mason is joined by Business Transaction Attorney Max Bremer on this episode of The Business of Agriculture. They discuss money flow into Ag, the pace of mergers and acquisitions, and how legislation is pushing some consolidation.

The Business of Agriculture Podcast with Damian Mason is Sponsored by: Pattern Ag pattern.ag Redox Bio-Nutrients redoxgrows.com Truterra truterraag.com

Most people don't hold investment money in the Ag commodity space. That may be changing as investing in things like corn is made easier via ETFs — exchange traded funds. Jake Hanley with Teucrium explains the oftentimes complex commodities trading industry and how his company is simplifying — or as Damian Mason says "democratizing" — commodity investing. Whether you're looking to diversify into alternative investments or not, you should listen to this information-packed episode of The Business of Agriculture.

The Business of Agriculture Podcast with Damian Mason is Sponsored by: Pattern Ag pattern.ag Redox Bio-Nutrients redoxgrows.com Truterra truterraag.com

Fruits and vegetables have been bred over the past half century for the primary objective of transportability and shelf life. The tradeoff: taste and nutrient density. As marketplaces mature and consumers are afforded increasing food options in the produce section, might a play toward taste, nutrition, and reduced food waste be a winner? Nathan Pumplin, CEO of Norfolk Healthy Produce thinks so. He explains his company's proprietary purple tomato (you read that right, it's purple!) and its myriad benefits — reduced food waste, novelty appeal, flavor, and above all, nutrient density. Another fun discussion with Damian Mason about food, production, and the business side of Agriculture.

The Business of Agriculture Podcast with Damian Mason is Sponsored by: Pattern Ag pattern.ag Redox Bio-Nutrients redoxgrows.com Truterra truterraag.com

Most of the fertilizer applied to fields, doesn't actually get absorbed by the plant. That's an economic as well as environmental liability for Agriculture. Technological advances in adjuvants, fertilizer amendments and biologicals aim to change farming. In this episode of The Business of Agriculture Podcast with Damian Mason, Clark Bell, CEO of NanoYield talks to Damian Mason about technology that maximizes efficacy of products we already use in Ag — fertilizer and herbicide — while allowing a reduction in applied rates.

The Business of Agriculture Podcast with Damian Mason is Sponsored by: Pattern Ag pattern.ag Redox Bio-Nutrients redoxgrows.com Truterra truterraag.com

Frank Tiegs started farming in the Columbia basin region of Washington in 1975. Then he bought an apple packing facility. From there, the operation has expanded mightily to involve 140,000 acres of farming and 15 food processing facilities. Upon Frank's recent passing, his son Keith re-joined the business as president. In this episode of the Business of Agriculture Podcast, Keith talks to Damian Mason about the potato biz, specialty crop production, food processing, the business side of Oregon Potato Company, and all that goes into managing the operation.

The Business of Agriculture Podcast with Damian Mason is Sponsored by: Pattern Ag pattern.ag Redox Bio-Nutrients redoxgrows.com Truterra truterraag.com

Indiana appears poised to become the twenty-fifth state to restrict — or outright ban — ownership of Agricultural real estate by foreign entities. Many people — from both within and outside of Ag — have been calling for such legislation. Currenly, twenty four states have similar laws on the books. Generally, the legislation is directed at entities from "adversarial" nations such as China. Why did it take this long for the alarm to sound? Why has our federal government not addressed this national security concern? In this episode of The Business of Agriculture Podcast with Damian Mason, Indiana farmer and state representative Kendell Culp joins Damian Mason to discuss the details of legislation he introduced to the state house. If you're concerned about American sovereignty as the pace of foreign infiltration quickens, listen to this.

The Business of Agriculture Podcast with Damian Mason is Sponsored by: Pattern Ag pattern.ag Redox Bio-Nutrients redoxgrows.com Truterra truterraag.com

A full three quarters of farmworkers in the U.S. are migrants and many are here illegally. Add in food service, meat processing, and the ancillary industries that feed the food business and you're talking about a LOT of foreign-born workers who work to put food on America's table. Is the migrant crisis we're witnessing on our nation's southern border a crisis for Ag? Or is it a net benefit? The upside to having several million people walking into our country: Possible new pool of workers (unless they're economically un-incentivized!), new customers, and possible economic contributors (in the longer term). The downside: Criminality and a drain on resources. American Agriculture has — for a very long time — imported foreign-born workers to harvest the produce, milk the cows, and cut the meat. Is it what's happening now different? More importantly, is the current situation a crisis or a benefit for Ag?

Sponsored by: Pattern Ag pattern.ag Redox Bio-Nutrients redoxgrows.com Truterra truterraag.com

In the last episode Todd Thurman joined Damian to cover a topic most in Agriculture have never considered: Are we permanently over supplied with Agricultural commodities? Pointing out the reasons demand won't outpace - or even keep up with - our productive capacity, Thurman and Mason painted a picture of long term surpluses that keep prices below break even. In this episode Todd and Damian ask "what if we're wrong and we're not Agriculturally oversupplied?" The pair look at 8 factors that might decrease global Ag production or increase demand.

Sponsored by: Pattern Ag pattern.ag Redox Bio-Nutrients redoxgrows.com Truterra truterraag.com

We in Agriculture love production! For example, we're producing about 50% more corn, soy, and pork than we did just a quarter century ago here in the U.S. The playbook for decades has been: find more global markets to peddle our commodities so we can keep doing what we like doing, which is producing stuff. Here's the problem — and the commodity price outlook is reflecting this — we have too much supply and demand is decelerating. Todd Thurman joins me to discuss some unpleasant realities: Population growth won't support more Ag production. Nor will increased globalization or advancing economies. Quite simply, global food production is way over-supplied and likely will be for a long time. And if we reduce food waste from the current 35% rate, it adds even more to our supply. What does the future of an oversupplied Ag system built on a "feed the world" mentality look like? Potentially "un-pretty" economic outcomes could be around the corner.

Sponsored by: Pattern Ag pattern.ag Redox Bio-Nutrients redoxgrows.com Truterra truterraag.com

It's setting up to be a challenging year for farm economics. Add to that: it's an election year, Washington DC is as dysfunctional as ever, and we still don't have a Farm Bill — which was supposed to have been passed last year. What's the outlook financially for farms. What about trade policy? Does renewable energy investment favor Ag? Will the U.S. government be ladling out cash to farmers by end of year? Those questions and more are addressed as Damian brings back a friend of the show, Jim Wiesemeyer, Policy Analyst for Pro Farmer and Farm Journal.

Sponsored by: Pattern Ag pattern.ag Redox Bio-Nutrients redoxgrows.com Truterra truterraag.com