The Business of Agriculture Podcast

Farmers love to talk about the weather but in this episode we go deeper and talk about systems, climate, global weather patterns, and the year ahead. My guest is Eric Snodgrass, Senior Science Fellow for Nutrien Ag Solutions. Will we see the sort of devastating dryness we experienced in the west in 2022 make a repeat? Will we have subsoil moisture replenished? And what about the Mississippi river…will it fill up soon? Those questions and more in this episode of The Business of Agriculture. Sponsored by Pattern Ag pattern.ag and AGvisorPRO getagvisorpro.com

Lasse Jakobsen was born in Denmark, now the Millennial heads up U.S. business development for the company his grandfather created to serve European hog production. Today, Protekta is a joint venture with a Danish organization that produces feed additives, among other things, for pork, poultry, and primarily dairy producers. Lasse discusses the advantages of selling to a consolidating industry, lessons learned about customer outreach, surviving Covid disruptions, the advantage he has from working in Europe, and other business perspectives. Sponsored by Pattern Ag pattern.ag and AGvisorPRO getagvisorpro.com

Your smart phone has more technology and capability than NASA's Apollo program had 50 years ago. Think about that, then think about the technology in today's modern farm machinery. Data collection, yield monitoring, analysis down to the square foot…It's amazing to say the least. John Deere business development manager Dan Paschke joins Deere dealer representatives Jeremy Ostrander and Jon Carlo of Agrivision Equipment and PrairieLand Partners to discuss farm machinery, technology, and the past and present of the Business of Agriculture from their perspective. Sponsored by Pattern Ag pattern.ag and AGvisorPRO getagvisorpro.com

Two weeks ago I posted on social media a photo of an antique tractor next to a modern machine. In my post I referenced the advancements we've made since the antique tractor worked the land — 7 times increase in per acre yield, less natural resource consumption per calorie produced, environmental advancements, etc… Then, as often happens on social media, the detractors began commenting. This post brought out the nostalgia for simpler times back when small farms could compete and farming was easier and more profitable. The only problem with these comments of course is that they're completely inaccurate. In this episode I debunk revisionist Ag history. The good old days weren't always good. Sponsored by Pattern Ag pattern.ag and AGvisorPRO getagvisorpro.com

Renewable diesel is the new buzz talk everywhere in Agriculture. Will its take off and reality match the fervor in farm circle discussions? Will the tax credits giving RD lift off remain with us? Will more biofuel fuel the "no food for fuel" debate? Well, yes, that's almost a guarantee! Mac Marshall, VP of Market Intelligence with the United Soybean Board talks all things soybean and renewable diesel, from numbers to acres, to marketplace issues and more. Sponsored by Pattern Ag pattern.ag and AGvisorPRO getagvisorpro.com

Fertilizer markets have been tumultuous for a few years now. Just when you thought things had settled down on fertilizer price and availability, a hurricane hit, a war broke out, and the Mississippi dried up. Nathan Carson is VP of Operations with Chemical Dynamics, a Florida specialty fertilizer company. He shares perspective on Florida Ag and outlook on fertilizer price and availability. Nathan also provides discussion points on everything from California's water problems to Mexican fentanyl's role in produce imports. Tune in — this is an awesome talk! Sponsored by Pattern Ag pattern.ag and AGvisorPRO getagvisorpro.com

The global population is getting older and fertility rates have been plummeting. Unless you follow my commentary, this is probably news to you. Most everyone in Ag is still operating under the misguided assumption that population growth is boundless. It's not. As fertility rates drop like a rock, the population gets older. Fast. Here in the U.S. for instance, our median age has aged by more than a decade in the last 50 years. An aging population means big changes for our industry. From the product mix we produce (old people don't drink milk), to the quantities we put on the plate (old people eat less), to questions of labor availability (working age population is at record high), there are huge challenges associated with an aging population. Todd Thurman joins me to discuss how Ag must admit and address this reality. Sponsored by Pattern Ag pattern.ag and AGvisorPRO getagvisorpro.com

Ken Wall left his post as an attorney and moved his two sons back to the Ontario specialty crop farm he was raised on in the 1990s. Since then he's expanded the enterprise, gotten in the seed business, built a food processing facility, and created a niche manufacturing company. He explains the business of asparagus and describes his diversified Agriculture business. Did you know Germans eat about 3 times as much asparagus as North Americans do? That, along with outlook for the future of horticulture, a peek at labor's impact on Ag, and more in this awesome episode of The Business of Agriculture podcast! Sponsored by Pattern Ag pattern.ag and AGvisorPRO getagvisorpro.com

There's an industry within the world's most important industry that most folks probably don't think a lot about but it's huge and it's growing: The fats and oils side of Ag. Vegetable oil demand is growing, not just because of human consumption but also as a fuel source with renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel demand on the up tick. Then there is the animal fat by-product and its myriad uses. All this and more is explained and discussed with Chris Peterson of HeroBX as Damian prepares for his presentation at the American Fats and Oils Association. Sponsored by Pattern Ag pattern.ag and AGvisorPRO getagvisorpro.com

You've likely heard the horror stories about unhealthy Agricultural family business succession. Dysfunctional relationships, favoritism, squandered wealth, sibling rivalry — Elaine Froese, the Farm Family Coach, has seen it all. The sad part: it's all preventable. Elaine joins me to discuss strategies to successful business succession. She shares valuable information and tips on how to run a family operation like the business it is. Sponsored by Pattern Ag pattern.ag