Future of Agriculture

Daniel Foster is a proponent of agricultural literacy and is currently an Agricultural Teacher Educator at The Pennsylvania State University. He credits his mother for his love for the industry which all started when his mom decided to move out of Texas to Arizona to further her career in agriculture. He was just 15 going 16 at the time and was a starter on his school’s football team, so he consid...

Today’s guest grew up in Mariposa, California and has viewed the world from different lenses as a youth through the 4-H Youth Program. Marcus Hollan attributes his distinctiveness and success to his involvement in such programs when he was younger which allowed him to embrace the diversity of others and understand the importance of inclusion in a community. Marcus is one of the founders of the Cul...

Coley Jones Drinkwater belongs to a third-generation family of farmers who tend to and sustain the Richlands Dairy Farm in Blackstone, Virginia. Richlands Farm has been a dairy farm since the 1950s. Coley’s story makes you see life in agriculture from different perspectives - a multigenerational angle, a sustainability angle, and an entrepreneurship angle. On today’s episode, Coley talks about the...

Today’s guest is an independent movie producer from New York City. Sam Goldberg grew up in Manhattan without any background in agriculture. He was introduced to agriculture when a filmmaker approached him for a concept about grain entrapment, a real and grave danger that farmers and other members of the community are exposed to. Seeing the significance of the issue socially, Sam currently is raisi...

Joining us on today’s episode of Future of Agriculture Podcast are two educators who are making an impact in the agricultural industry by engaging the youth and influencing the future workforce of agriculture. Our first guest, Seth Heinert, is an Agricultural High School teacher in Ogallala, Nebraska who started a rural program two years ago. Beverly Flatt is a program manager who works with city...

Millennials are making waves in many of today’s business and career industries – and the agriculture industry is no exception. This week, I’m speaking with Mikayla Sullivan, co-founder and “Ringleader of Regal Operations” at Kinosol. Her team of millennials – many of which are fresh out of college – are on a mission to solve one of the world’s biggest problems – world hunger – through agriculture...

Today’s guest is from the Bronx in New York. His journey to agriculture started accidentally while he was dealing with student conflict in his class. From zero agricultural background, Stephen Ritz created a system – a whole school program that changed how the students, the parents, and the community view agriculture. This program, called Green Bronx Machine, is more than about educating his stude...

Today’s guest is my close friend, James Garner. He is a partner in a company called Cogent Communications that does public affairs work in agriculture and agricultural businesses in Sacramento, California. For ten years, he has been a part of a band called Johnny Cash Tribute Band, where he is the group’s manager and front man. On top of these varied roles, James has also been doing drag racing wi...

Women have been part of agriculture since the beginning of time. Today’s guest is passionate about showing how the roles of women have progressed and increased in this field. Born and raised in Iowa, Marji Guyler-Alaniz studied Graphic Journalism and Photography in college. Recently, she had a lot of surprises and transitions in her life in a span of only four years – from insurance to photography...

Today’s guest grew up in Grass Valley, California. Sara Hollenbeck lives with her husband on a ranch in Molt, Montana called the Hollenbeck Ranch. Together with her husband and in-laws, Sara manages a sheep operation in Molt on top of many other diverse things they do on the farm. On today’s episode, Sara talks about an unfamiliar topic to many – sheep operation. She discusses the necessary tasks...

Today’s guest is a scientist, researcher, and the founder of Dynamite Ag – a sales and consulting company founded in 2012. Growing up in a Christian household, Dr. Curtis Livesay was told not to do drugs, to research about it. This pursuit of knowledge led him to acquire a Ph. D. in interpersonal communication and research methods. It is also the heart of his company – to do great research and dis...

On today’s episode of Future of Agriculture Podcast, my guest is an engineer by who was born in Nebraska and grew up as a city kid in Omaha. Russ Conser eventually fell in-love with energy which started his decades-long career in Shell Oil where he learned more about oil, gas, and carbon. You may be surprised to hear that the knowledge and experience Russ gained in this industry eventually led him...

AgTech has experienced quite a boom over the years. There is no question that innovation can boost tremendous improvements in the Agriculture industry. And like me, many Agriculture professionals and business owners are curious and eagerly awaiting the next big thing from AgTech. Louisa Burwood-Taylor is currently at the heart of the AgTech industry as the Chief Editor of AgFunderNews.com. She was...

Food waste is a major issue in the United States, as well as the world. Research shows that about 97% of food wasted in the United States ends up in landfills and the less than 3% of waste that doesn’t see a landfill is being utilized in other commodities such as compost, black soldier fly larvae, and other methods. That means that approximately 30-40% of the calories available to the human popula...

On today’s episode of the Future of Agriculture Podcast, my guest is a Purdue graduate who was brave enough to make a career change from being a Turkey breeder in Perdue Farms to sales. Dave Myers shares his journey in farming and how a man changed his perspective when he was taught about the soil and how it can maximize the growth in farming. As Dave saw the struggles of many growers, he apprecia...

On today’s episode of Future of Agriculture Podcast, I have the privilege of talking with the Casey Neistat of Agriculture – Matthew Sligar.  He documents his life in relation to rice farming through video blogging.  He creates artistic videos that are made in engaging and amusing ways. Matthew is a rice farmer from Gridley, California.  He shared with us today where he got his inspiration and con...

I recently had the opportunity to attend a media event held by Monsanto announcing the new project initiatives that the company will be unveiling in 2017. The information, research, and development that this company has invested to bring better technology and products to the agriculture industry is simply amazing. On this week’s episode, I’m talking with Dr. Shannon Hauf of Monsanto. Dr. Hauf grad...

Utilizing Food Waste for Urban Agriculture with Tinia Pina of Re-Nuble The United States has a shortage of people who want to work in agriculture. We’ve gone from most of the population to only one percent of people working in this industry. There are fewer people with farms and a lack of individuals who want to make long lasting and meaningful careers in agriculture. There is something we can do...

On today’s episode of the Future of Agriculture Podcast, my guest, Jared Flinn, is the founder and operating partner of Bulk Loads. His site provides an online platform that connects shippers with the transportation companies. Jared graduated with a minor in agricultural economy, but wasn’t sure what he wanted to do with his credentials. He started working as a truck driver and grew to love all th...

This is a good time for reflection on this past year and anticipation of what is to come in 2017, and I’m energized about the potential we have in some of the strategic objectives that we’ll be rolling out here in the coming year. I’m also excited to interview our guest today who came from humble farming beginnings and is now a leader in agri-business and a force in politics. On today’s episode of...

On today’s episode of the Future of Agriculture Podcast, I am extremely excited to chat with a guest with whom I have the utmost respect for and who I am in awe of. Dr. Temple Grandin is an author and a professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University who is passionate about agriculture and the people involved in it. Temple has revolutionized the industry with practices she devised and is...

Kevin Heikes is the Founder of In10t.io, an advisory firm dedicated to helping clients solve problems in Agriculture related to technology strategy, product commercialization and digital system design. Kevin has worked with several start-ups, including FarmLink, where he served as Vice President of Product and Farms Technology where, post acquisition, by DuPont Pioneer he led the integration and p...

AgriCorps sends American college graduates and professionals into developing nations to teach agriculture and to build local agricultural communities. The volunteers, known as AgriCorps Fellows, work for one year in countries such as Ghana and Liberia. Trent shares his perspective on the future of agriculture in Africa, challenges and rewards of agricultural development, and the differences betwee...

Dr. Nate Storey holds a PhD in Agronomy and Crop Science from the University of Wyoming. He started his company, Bright Agrotech while completing his graduate studies. Six years later, Bright Agrotech are leaders in the high density indoor and greenhouse farming industry. They partner with farmers of all sizes to build a fresher, more distributed food system. Many of you, especially the more entre...

According to AgFunder, over $4 billion poured into AgTech investments in 2015. Many times when people think of the recent AgTech craze, their mind immediately goes to drones. I have been curious about drones for quite some time, both from a "coolness factor" perspective and from the perspective of "what's really that great about them in agriculture?". I had been looking to bring on a drone expert...