The Business of Agriculture Podcast

Crop input costs are reaching record levels in 2026, putting added pressure on farm profitability and financial viability. In this episode of The Business of Agriculture, Damian Mason is joined by Brian Adams of Life Scientific to discuss how producers can evaluate seed, fungicides, crop protection products, and off-patent alternatives to reduce spending without compromising agronomic performance.

The Business of Agriculture with Damian Mason is brought to you by:

• Ag View Solutions
• Tidal Grow Agriscience
• Nano-Yield
• Life Scientific

Also, make sure to check out DamianMason.com, XtremeAg's The Cutting The Curve Podcast and The Granary.

This content is protected. ©Damian Mason, all rights reserved.

U.S. meat consumption is at a record high despite rising grocery prices, especially for beef. Meanwhile, plant-based meat alternatives continue losing consumer interest and market share. Why are consumers still choosing real meat? Is the demand driven by protein preferences, nutrition trends, the MAHA movement, or changing perceptions about processed foods?

In this episode of The Business of Agriculture, Damian Mason speaks with Brian Earnest, Animal Protein Analyst at CoBank, about the economic, nutritional, and cultural forces driving continued demand for animal protein. They discuss beef prices, consumer purchasing behavior, protein demand trends, the decline of fake meat products, and what the future holds for livestock and meat industries.

The Business of Agriculture with Damian Mason is brought to you by:

• Ag View Solutions
• Tidal Grow Agriscience
• Nano-Yield
• Life Scientific

Also, make sure to check out DamianMason.com, XtremeAg's The Cutting The Curve Podcast and The Granary.

This content is protected. ©Damian Mason, all rights reserved.

Bayer and Corteva control a major share of the seed industry, but independent seed companies still have opportunities to compete and win. Damian Mason talks with Bob Miller, founder of Miller Hybrids in Kalona, Iowa, about how small seed companies can succeed through strong genetics, farmer-focused service, competitive pricing, and a clear focus on return on investment. Bob, a PhD plant breeder and former corporate seed industry professional, explains why he left the large-scale seed business to build an independent company focused on practical value for farmers. This episode explores seed industry consolidation, corn and soybean genetics, farmer ROI, and what consolidation means for agribusiness, growers, and the future of seed competition.

The Business of Agriculture with Damian Mason is brought to you by:

• Ag View Solutions
• Tidal Grow Agriscience
• Nano-Yield
• Life Scientific

Also, make sure to check out DamianMason.com, XtremeAg's The Cutting The Curve Podcast and The Granary.

This content is protected. ©Damian Mason, all rights reserved.

American agriculture is changing—quietly in some ways, dramatically in others. The question is not whether the industry will look different in ten years, but who will still be standing when it does.

In this episode, Damian Mason sits down with Scott Sartor of Croptell to unpack the real forces shaping the future of farming in the United States. From generational land transitions and shifting acreage decisions to the growing divide between large-scale operators and niche producers, this conversation goes beyond headlines and into what is actually happening on the ground.

The Business of Agriculture with Damian Mason is brought to you by:

• Ag View Solutions
• Tidal Grow Agriscience
• Nano-Yield
• Life Scientific

Also, make sure to check out DamianMason.com, XtremeAg's The Cutting The Curve Podcast and The Granary.

This content is protected. ©Damian Mason, all rights reserved.

Is agriculture facing a cyclical downturn, or are we witnessing a structural realignment of the global ag economy? In this episode of The Business of Agriculture, Damian Mason speaks with Illinois farmer and business advisor Mark Severson to examine the forces reshaping U.S. agriculture. Key topics include global competition from Brazil, evolving demand from China, margin compression, rising input costs, and the implications of protectionism and deglobalization. The discussion challenges traditional assumptions about agricultural cycles and explores whether long-standing boom-and-bust patterns still apply. This episode provides critical insights for farmers, agribusiness professionals, lenders, and ag investors evaluating risk, profitability, and long-term strategy in a changing agricultural landscape.

The Business of Agriculture with Damian Mason is brought to you by:

• Ag View Solutions
• Tidal Grow Agriscience
• Nano-Yield

Also, make sure to check out DamianMason.com, XtremeAg's The Cutting The Curve Podcast and The Granary.

This content is protected. ©Damian Mason, all rights reserved.

Can the United States re-shore fresh produce production to improve food security, public health, and supply chain resilience? In this episode, Damian Mason speaks with Zeb Portanova, CEO of Agricultural Scientific, about America's growing agricultural trade deficit, the risks of foreign produce dependence, and why domestic tomato production matters for national security. With more than $300 million committed to fresh, local, organic production, Zeb explains the investment case for rebuilding U.S. specialty crop capacity and creating a healthier, more secure food system.

The Business of Agriculture with Damian Mason is brought to you by:

• Ag View Solutions
• Tidal Grow Agriscience
• Nano-Yield

Also, make sure to check out DamianMason.com, XtremeAg's The Cutting The Curve Podcast and The Granary.

This content is protected. ©Damian Mason, all rights reserved.

American agriculture is facing a fertilizer supply crisis — and the disruption may arrive sooner than most producers expect. Nations with adversarial relationships toward the United States control critical production capacity and transportation infrastructure for synthetic fertilizer, and the fossil fuel dependence embedded in conventional manufacturing only compounds the vulnerability. Yet within this challenge lies a genuine question worth asking: could constrained fertilizer availability force the kind of agronomic innovation that has long been possible but rarely urgent? Midwest farmer-innovators Jason Mauck and Zack Smith join Damian Mason to examine the economic calculus that producers will soon face — including the possibility that lower input costs may offset yield declines, resulting in improved net margins.

The conversation covers precision agriculture technologies, biological nutrient alternatives, soil health strategies, and the financial modeling farmers need to evaluate real-world trade-offs. This is not speculation — it is a serious examination of how American producers can adapt and potentially thrive when synthetic fertilizer supply chains are no longer reliable. Where economic pressure, agronomic science, and environmental necessity converge, innovation tends to follow. This episode of The Business of Agriculture examines exactly what that might look like.

The Business of Agriculture with Damian Mason is brought to you by:

• Ag View Solutions
• Tidal Grow Agriscience
• Nano-Yield

Also, make sure to check out DamianMason.com, XtremeAg's The Cutting The Curve Podcast and The Granary.

This content is protected. ©Damian Mason, all rights reserved.

Fertilizer supply remains one of the most urgent issues facing American agriculture. From trade disruptions and Covid-era shutdowns to geopolitical conflict and reliance on imports from hostile regions, farmers are once again confronting uncertainty around fertilizer availability, pricing, and production. In this episode of The Business of Agriculture, Damian Mason speaks with Josh Linville, Vice President of Fertilizer at StoneX, about the current fertilizer marketplace and what comes next. They examine whether the United States can re-shore fertilizer production, the capital required to expand domestic capacity, the role of global supply chains, and whether fertilizer manufacturers are limiting output. This timely conversation explores fertilizer shortages, input costs, crop yield risk, and what the fertilizer fight means for farmers, agribusiness, and the future of U.S. farm productivity.

The Business of Agriculture with Damian Mason is brought to you by:

• Ag View Solutions
• Tidal Grow Agriscience
• Nano-Yield

Also, make sure to check out DamianMason.com, XtremeAg's The Cutting The Curve Podcast and The Granary.

This content is protected. ©Damian Mason, all rights reserved.

Water scarcity is becoming one of the biggest strategic threats facing American agriculture. In this episode, Damian Mason examines aquifer depletion, irrigation pressure, water regulation, and the long-term outlook for productive farm acres across the United States. Joined by Preston Marthey of PumpTrakr and Kansas farmer Brant Peterson, this conversation explores how agriculture can reduce water use through technology, better management, and greater awareness. The discussion also addresses whether rising demand from data centers and other industries could offset agriculture's water-saving gains. This is a practical, forward-looking episode on water management, farm productivity, and the future of U.S. agriculture.

The Business of Agriculture with Damian Mason is brought to you by:

• Ag View Solutions
• Tidal Grow Agriscience
• Nano-Yield

Also, make sure to check out DamianMason.com, XtremeAg's The Cutting The Curve Podcast and The Granary.

This content is protected. ©Damian Mason, all rights reserved.

A massive transition is underway in agriculture. Over the next 25 years, more than $1.5 trillion in farm assets will change hands as aging farmers retire and fewer heirs return to the farm. Despite the scale of this shift, 77% of farming operations still lack a will or estate plan.

In this episode, Damian Mason speaks with Shay Foulk and Chris Barron of Ag View Solutions about farm succession planning, estate management, and the difficult conversations necessary to secure the future of family farming. They discuss why many agricultural businesses avoid transition planning and how producers can transform potential family conflict into a structured business strategy.

If agriculture values the family farm, then farm businesses must treat succession planning as a strategic priority. This conversation outlines the steps producers must take to ensure their operation becomes a success story rather than a financial and emotional sob story.

Topics covered include:

• Farm succession planning strategies

• Estate planning for agricultural businesses

• Managing generational transition in farming

• Avoiding family conflict in farm inheritance

• Treating the farm as a business enterprise

The Business of Agriculture with Damian Mason is brought to you by:

• Ag View Solutions
• Tidal Grow Agriscience
• Nano-Yield

Also, make sure to check out DamianMason.com, XtremeAg's The Cutting The Curve Podcast and The Granary.

This content is protected. ©Damian Mason, all rights reserved.