The High Ground - powered by Premier Companies

“Worst start to a podcast ever!”  Hosts Jeff Jarrett and Sal Sama are joined by returning guest Brian Scheid for this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies.  Jeff and Sal better watch what they say, because Brian is the Director of HR, and Environmental Health and Safety. 

On today’s episode, you’ll learn a lot about the Human Resources side of Premier Companies.  With around 550 people in a company, there’s a lot to juggle, from recruiting and onboarding to payroll and benefits. Brian and his team have a lot on their plate!  Brian, Jeff, and Sal will share about the turnover they’ve seen across departments and the generational makeup of their staff and the safety component of Brian’s role, including wild safety stories!  We’ll leave it up to you as to whether or not it’s actually the worst start to a podcast episode.

Welcome to Geek Week! For this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies, Jeff Jarrett and Sal Sama are joined by James Driscoll and Matt Persinger in the podcast room.  James is the Chief Technology Officer, and Matt is the IT Project Manager, both of Premier Companies.

You’ll learn about Premier’s IT department and the variety of adventures that come at them on a daily basis.  From last-minute trips due to router failures to everyone’s favorite question, “Is it plugged in?” you never know what you’ll get in Premier’s IT department. You’ll learn more about why Premier takes cyber security seriously and the types of tests they give their internal employees to make sure they’re not just clicking on any old link.  From learning about the team’s protection against hackers and ransomware to protection against credential harvesting, you’ll learn about the steps Premier Ag takes to keep their information and their customer information safe.

How should you time your nutritional and fungicide applications?  To shed insight on that topic on this episode of the High Ground powered by Premier Companies, Glenn Longabaugh joins Sal Sama, VP of Agronomy Sales and Marketing and Jeff Jarrett, VP of New Business Ventures and Fertilizer for Premier Ag.  Unless you’re brand new to the podcast, you already know and love Glenn, who is the Agronomist for Premier Companies.  

Glenn will share his thoughts about the current state of our crops and why certain soilborne pathogens including brown stem rot and red crown rot can’t be influenced much by fungicides and how they can cause significant yield loss.  You’ll also hear about the ideal application and timing of fungicides and nutritionals on soybeans and how Premier account reps can help growers figure out the correct timing for their fields.  “If we can do what’s best for the crop, it’ll almost always make the grower more money.”

What does it mean when we say we’re in a “carry market”?  Returning guest, Aaron Bledsoe, joins hosts Sal Sama and Ryan Priest for this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies.  As the Grain Merchandiser for Premier Companies, Aaron has a front row seat to the changing markets and is here to provide some insight for what that could mean for growers in the Midwest.  

Aaron will share his thoughts on the impact of on-farm storage on overall grain movement, and how another high yield harvest could impact the overall market.  You’ll also hear about how Premier Companies is growing to accommodate higher yields and what the need for exports may look like in the coming years in light of our increased use of used cooking oil for biodiesel products.  Aaron will share his advice for the new crop and proactive measures that can be taken between now and harvest.  “It’s gonna do you no good to look at the past on this one!”

Grain prices stink.  So why shouldn’t we talk about fertilizer, too?  On this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies, our favorite fertilizer guy, Josh Linville, is joining hosts Ryan Priest and Sal Sama fresh from the Southwestern Fertilizer Conference.  Josh is the Vice President of Fertilizer at StoneX, and with over 20 years of experience in fertilizer, he’s got a plethora of topics to cover today.

Are you curious about the fertilizer tariffs and how those are impacting the fertilizer market and how flows happen?  Have you wondered how the war in Ukraine has impacted exports from Russia?  In addition to discussing fertilizer application, supply, and timing, you’ll hear how an election year complicates things even further.  Josh will explain why he thinks urea prices will get worse and why we’re still trying to get our stores filled up from the last couple of years.  “Don’t let the markets lull you to sleep.  Keep an eye on it!  …Now’s the time we actually gotta start putting pen to the paper.”

You see insects and say, “Let’s go bomb ‘em,” right?  Well, maybe.  Everyone’s favorite guest, Glenn Longabaugh, joins hosts Ryan Priest and Sal Sama for this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies.  Glenn is the Agronomist for Premier Companies, and he’s here to talk about all things involving pest management.

You’ll learn about why the presence of certain insects means you should hold off on treatment and why the threshold for integrated pest management has changed since the 1980s.  Are you wondering what makes the many varieties of aphids so difficult to manage?  Glenn’s got the scoop.  He’ll also share why hoverflies are actually beneficial and why the correct timeline on the integrated pest management program is not only beneficial to the wallet but beneficial to the environment as well.  Ryan, Glenn, and Sal also dig into what we should be doing with our late season soybeans to enhance or protect yield.  Buckle up for another information-packed episode of The High Ground!

What does the Indiana State Board of Animal Health do?  Bret D. Marsh, D.V.M. joins hosts Ryan Priest and Sal Sama in the podcast studio for this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies.  Dr. Bret, a 30-year Indiana State Veterinarian, is a Boone County native who received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Purdue University.

You’ll hear about his background on the ranch, education at Purdue University, and what it’s like to practice veterinary medicine at the Indiana State Fairgrounds.  He’ll share how the Indiana State Board of Animal Health interacts with other state and federal government agencies including the DNR, the Department of Agriculture, Food and Drug Administration, and even the Department of Homeland Security.  What happens when unusual mortality is seen on farm animals and gets reported to the state?  What is Prop 12, and why is that the boogeyman for ag?  You’ll learn all that and more on today’s episode!

What’s the difference between sustainability and conservation?  Special guests Sydney Calhoun and Evan Eggersman join hosts Ryan Priest and Sal Sama for this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies.  Sydney is the Trax Conservation Agronomy Lead, and Evan is the Trax Ag Technology and Sustainability Lead for Premier Companies.

In addition to learning about the basics of sustainability, you’ll learn how participating in the Trax program can increase the effectiveness of the conservation efforts of the grower.  Evan will explain a bit about the nitrogen management and carbon sequestration programs and how farmers can be rewarded for their participation.  They’ll also share about an exciting partnership between Truterra and the USDA that’s resulted in a program that can pay a grower to participate in the cover crop and no-till conservation efforts for the first time.  If that's not enough, they’ll also touch on the reasons farmers have a love/hate relationship with cover-crops and the way technology can help a farmer collect the data to meet the program requirements.  “We haven’t really had… somebody that can connect some of the government resources and Premier Ag together, and that’s what this whole grant has been about."

“It’s about these big flat fields, and big skies, and that’s truly where the passion is, and I may not get to do that a lot, but I get to work for the guys who do.” Chris Weldon joins hosts Ryan Priest and Sal Sama in the podcast room for this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies. Chris is the Market Development Project Manager for the Indiana Soybean Alliance and Indiana Corn Marketing Council.  

In addition to telling some wild plumbing and closet stories, Chris will share the story of his career path and what brought him to his current role. You’ll learn about how the Indiana Soybean Alliance is working with national partners to create demand for Indiana products on a global scale. You’ll learn about the Soybean Oil Masters Program which is designed to provide education to international stakeholders about U.S.-grown soybeans and the advantages of importing the product and how the checkoff program works on behalf of the farmer. “Every single farmer in our state, in some way, is somebody that I’m working for.”

Why is the beef market so exceptional right now? Returning guest, Ryan Batt, joins Andy Pinnick and hosts Sal Sama and Ryan Priest in the podcast room for this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies to dig into that question! As you may remember, Ryan is the Facility Manager, and Andy is the Senior Director of Livestock Marketing for United Producers Inc.

Ryan will share where the markets currently stand along with the perfect storm that has created it.  You’ll learn about what happens when the cattle are loaded up to go to market, how the cattle are bid upon, and what happens in the vaccination programs along the way. You’ll learn more about livestock risk protection in addition to care tips through the summer.  Have you considered getting into the beef on dairy bandwagon? Andy will share his thoughts on what the future could bring in the beef market and why the beef on dairy trend looks like it will continue.  “This beef on dairy, it is the hottest thing going as far as production and getting people involved in it right now.”