The Cutting Edge Podcast

A conversation with Eliza Greenman, fruit explorer and Germplasm Specialist at the Savanna Institute, and Scott Brainard, Tree Crop Breeder at the Savanna Institute and post-doc at UW-Madison, about the history of mulberries and current research to develop improved varieties for agroforestry systems.

https://www.savannainstitute.org/

Amaya Atucha, Associate Professor and Fruit Crop Specialist at UW-Madison, shares the latest research on day-neutral strawberries and table grapes at UW. This episode is the audio recording of a presentation Amaya gave during a winter webinar series.

To watch the video recording, visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5aIcZaR9qw.

For more information on growing fruit in Wisconsin, visit https://fruit.wisc.edu/

More information and resources on day-neutral strawberries and table grapes can be found at www.emergingcropswi.org

Co-hosted with Jacob Grace from the Savanna Institute, this episode features Paul Dietmann, Senior Lending Officer in the emerging markets loan program at Compeer Financial, who works with farmers marketing their products directly to consumers or in value-added agriculture.

Compeer Financial: https://www.compeer.com/specialists/emerging-markets-industry-experts

Savanna Institute: https://www.savannainstitute.org/perennialaf/

An interview with Eric Rygg, President of Silver Springs Foods and Huntsinger Farms, the largest grower and processor of horseradish in the world, based in Eau Claire, WI.

An interview with Ruth McCabe and Emery Davis, conservation agronomists at Heartland Co-op, an agricultural co-op based in Des Moines, Iowa with over 70 locations around Iowa. Emery also farms with his family in southeastern Iowa.

https://www.heartlandcoop.com/

An interview with three people in the vanguard of winter camelina commercialization efforts as an oilseed cash crop in the Upper Midwest.

Colin Cureton is Director of Adoption and Scaling at the University of Minnesota's Forever Green Initiative.

Matthew Tentis is a 3rd generation farmer on White Barn Acres near Kellogg, Minnesota focused on raising cattle and regenerative agriculture.

David Kiesner is Director of Business Development at Millborn Seeds, a specialty seed company dealing with over 1200 unique species of seed, located in Brookings, South Dakota.

https://forevergreen.umn.edu/

https://www.driftlessgrown.com/members/white-barn-acres

https://www.millbornseeds.com/

Chippewa Valley Bean Vice President Charles Wachsmuth talks about the history of the family business, current markets, and what makes them unique in the world of kidney beans.

Located in Menomonie, WI, Chippewa Valley Bean is the world's largest processor of kidney beans, exports to 35 countries worldwide, and has tripled in size over the last 12 years. They are two-time winners of the Governor's Export Achievement Award.

Chippewa Valley Bean: https://www.cvbean.com/

An interview with Dale Hilgenkamp and Dean Duval about current and future markets for aronia berries.

Dale Hilgenkamp is an aronia farmer near Omaha, Nebraska and president of the American Aronia Berry Association. Dean Duval is an aronia farmer in Castana, Iowa as well as a board member of the association with a focus on research and development.

American Aronia Berry Association: https://americanaronia.org/

Forrest Funmaker of the Ho-Chunk Nation talks about the significant of their partnership with UW-Madison to conduct hemp variety trials at Whirling Thunder Farm near Tomah, Wisconsin. The partnership is made possible by a Sustainable Agriculture and Research Education (SARE) grant.

Ho-Chunk Nation website:

https://ho-chunknation.com/

An interview with Dr. Heather Darby and Phillip Alberti on the latest in hemp research. Dr. Heather Darby is an Agronomy Specialist for University of Vermont Extension. Phillip Alberti is a Research Program Manager in the Department of Horticulture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Resources:

University of Vermont Extension Hemp Research Reports

https://www.uvm.edu/extension/nwcrops/research

Midwestern Hemp Database

https://extension.illinois.edu/hemp/midwestern-hemp-databases

Ellison Lab, UW-Madison

https://alternativecrops.horticulture.wisc.edu/