AgEmerge Podcast

We get introduce you to technologies that are helping growers meet the challenges of building soil health. Today is no exception as we welcome Paul Mikesell, Founder and CEO of Carbon Robotics where they have developed a system and technology for weed control that uses computer vision and very high powered lasers as the action for weed eradication. Listen in as Paul talks about the opportunities this technology creates! Paul has deep experience founding and building successful technology startups. Paul co-founded Isilon Systems, a distributed storage company, in 2001. Isilon went public in 2006 and was acquired by EMC for 2.5 billion dollars in 2010. In 2006, Paul co-founded Clustrix, a distributed database startup that was acquired by MariaDB in 2018. Prior to Carbon, Paul served as Director of Infrastructure Engineering at Uber, where he grew the team and opened the company’s engineering office in Seattle, later focusing on deep learning and computer vision. Paul holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the University of Washington. Follow Carbon Robotics: https://carbonrobotics.com/ https://www.youtube.com/c/CarbonRoboticsLaserWeeding https://www.linkedin.com/company/carbonrobotics/ https://twitter.com/carbon_robotics https://www.instagram.com/carbon_robotics/ Got questions you want answered? Send them our way and we’ll do our best to research and find answers. Know someone you think would be great on the AgEmerge stage or podcast? Send your questions or suggestions to kim@asn.farm we’d love to hear from you.

Today, Monte and Kim discuss a range of topics including some of the exciting things Monte’s been working on, thinking about, and implementing over the past year. This time of year also gives us an opportunity to evaluate what worked, and what didn’t, as well as explore new ideas and opportunities. And, we talk about some topics happening right now in agriculture. Monte Bottens has deep roots in agriculture. Raised as a fifth-generation, northwestern Illinois farmer, Monte is a business owner, entrepreneur and thought leader. Monte began his farming career with two bred sows given to him by his grandmother. Thanks to great guidance from his dad and equipment-sharing startup assistance, today he’s the owner of Bottens Family Farm. The farm utilizes the latest agricultural innovations in precision farming technology, crop management systems, and participates in advanced regenerative ag principles to produce a diversity of crops and grass-fed livestock. He is the Founder, President and CEO of Ag Solutions Network, Inc. (ASN) headquartered in Moline, Illinois, where he leads the development and distribution of the POWER2GRO crop production system. ASN utilizes the latest technological advancements and highest-quality ingredients to enable farmers to build soil health and soil wealth. Monte is the Founder and Partner of California Ag Solutions, Inc. (CAS) in Madera, CA. The CAS team serves farmers of the Central Valley by helping them adopt reduced tillage techniques combined with improved water and nutrient efficiency using ASN’s POWER2GRO system on a wide variety of crops. Monte has a love for the agricultural diversity in California. He serves on the leadership team of Conservation Agriculture Systems Innovation (CASI) center that develops integrated reduced tillage and irrigation techniques in California and globally. His excitement for ag tech and continuous process improvement also led him to get involved with the UC Davis Entrepreneurship Program and the Sacramento Angels. He has a desire to teach others and make region specific practices applicable for all different crops, soil types, and climates throughout the US. He has presented at many conferences and universities sharing his passion for soil health and agriculture innovation. Monte is a graduate of Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois. He and his wife Robyn live in Sherrard, Illinois, close to family and the family farm. Got questions you want answered? Send them our way and we’ll do our best to research and find answers. Know someone you think would be great on the AgEmerge stage or podcast? Send your questions or suggestions to kim@asn.farm

Dr. Pam Marrone is a scientist, CEO, thought leader and serial entrepreneur. With more than 30 years of a career focused on biological products for pest management and plant health, she shares today about starting and leading three companies. In her words, she says, she got “hooked on microbes” early on and spent her career looking for environmentally responsible, biologically based solutions. By the end of this podcast we’re pretty sure, you’ll be hooked on microbes, too! In August 2020, Dr. Marrone retired as CEO of Marrone Bio Innovations (NASDAQ: MBII), a company she started in 2006 and listed on NASDAQ (MBII) in 2013. She remains on the Board of Directors and as an advisor. She is the treasurer of the Association for Women in Science, on the board of the Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research, is a Senior Fellow of the Arizona State University Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems and is a past alumni-Trustee of Cornell University. She is an advisor or board member for several ag/food tech and life sciences companies, most founded or led by women. She has a B.S. in entomology with Honors and Distinction from Cornell University and a Ph.D. in entomology from North Carolina State University. Learn more about Dr. Marrone: https://marronebio.com/ https://twitter.com/pammarrone https://www.linkedin.com/in/pamela-pam-marrone-110ab6/

Dino Giacomazzi, is the CEO of Giacomazzi Almond Company, Inc and the fourth-generation to manage his family’s farm founded in 1893 by his Swiss-Italian great-grandfather. The operation consists of 700 acres of almonds, 300 acres of corn, wheat and alfalfa, and two miniature donkeys. Dino talks with us about his farming journey, including family farming identities, industry dynamics, new opportunities and the different pressures changing farming practices and improvements face. He and Monte also discuss the excitement and challenges of engaging the next generation in the paradigm shifting business of agriculture. Monte and Dino explore everything from dairy, to almonds and cover crops and especially how they’re working to break down those metaphoric silos that can obstruct change. That includes a deep dive into some of the pressure points like water regulations as well as labor, environmental factors and governing that affect farming operations today. The Giacomazzis were dairy farmers for 126 years and the oldest continuously operating dairy farm in California at the time of their sale in 2019. Dino has managed his family farm since 2002. Prior to that he had a 13-year career in the music and internet industries where he managed rock bands and developed online applications for internet startups and Fortune 1000 companies. Dino is a promoter of sustainable farming practices and was the 2012 Leopold Conservation Award recipient for California and named Sustainable Ag Champion by US EPA in 2010. Dino’s work on strip-tillage of dairy forage crops has been published in numerous journals and techniques developed on his farm have been adopted throughout California. Dino is currently utilizing highly efficient automated irrigation systems and implementing regenerative agricultural practices in his almond operation. Visit: https://giacomazzibrothers.com/ to learn more. Got questions you want answered? Send them our way and we’ll do our best to research and find answers. Know someone you think would be great on the AgEmerge stage or podcast? Send your questions or suggestions to kim@asn.farm We’d love to hear from you!

Dr. Fred Provenza, is a Professor Emeritus of Behavioral Ecology in the Department of Wildland Resources at Utah State University where he directed an award-winning research group that pioneered an understanding of how learning influences foraging behavior and how behavior links soil, plants, herbivores, and humans. Today, he and Monte explore some of that research and the connections between animal and human nutrition. Fred Provenza grew up in Salida, Colorado. He later worked on a ranch while attending school in Wildlife Biology at Colorado State University. He obtained a Master’s and a Ph.D. degree in Range Science from Utah State University where he then worked for 35 years. He is professor emeritus of Behavioral Ecology in the Department of Wildland Resources at Utah State University where he directed an award-winning research group that pioneered an understanding of how learning influences foraging behavior and how behavior links soil, plants, herbivores, and humans. That work culminated in a program called BEHAVE, which was active from 2000-2010. BEHAVE was an international network of scientists, ranchers, farmers, and land managers committed to integrating behavioral principles with local knowledge to enhance environmental, economic, and cultural values of rural and urban communities. Though BEHAVE is no longer active, the principles and practices continue to influence researchers and managers worldwide. He authored three books, including Nourishment: What Animals Can Teach Us About Rediscovering Our Nutritional Wisdom; Foraging Behavior: Managing to Survive in a World of Change; and The Art & Science of Shepherding: Tapping the Wisdom of French Herders (co-author with Michel Meuret). He published more than 300 research papers in a wide variety of scientific journals. He has been an invited speaker at more than 500 conferences. The many awards he received for research, teaching, and mentoring are the creativity that flowed from warm professional and personal relationships with over 75 graduate students, post-doctoral students, visiting scientists, and colleagues during the past 45 years. BEHAVE website link: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/behave/ Got questions you want answered? Send them our way and we’ll do our best to research and find answers. Know someone you think would be great on the AgEmerge stage or podcast? Send your questions or suggestions to kim@asn.farm We’d love to hear from you!

Welcome Nofence CTO Oscar Hovde Berntsen and CEO Knut Bentzen. Oscar and Knut talk with us about how Nofence has worked to develop technology to graze animals and control moves using virtual fencing technology. Monte discusses with them the opportunities virtual fencing could create through managed grazing utilizing daily or regular moves. They also explore other opportunities virtual fencing could provide through proper ground management and animal observation like where the animals move and how they graze. Nofence is doing pilot projects in the United States so they can learn more about the needs of growers here in the US. This is an exciting conversation as they explore this technology and its amazing applications. Got questions you want answered? Send them our way and we’ll do our best to research and find answers. Know someone you think would be great on the AgEmerge stage or podcast? Send your questions or suggestions to kim@asn.farm we’d love to hear from you! You can find more information on Nofence here: https://www.nofence.no/en/

Practical Farmers of Iowa: Facing the Horizon 2022 Nofence Presentation

Welcome Ben Moest, a third generation grain and livestock farmer located in Stephenson County, IL near the WI border where he and his family own and operate a hog and cash crop operation. Ben is the President of High Plains Grains, which he operates with his brother, Grant Moest, and two other partners. They raise 100% non-GMO corn & non-GMO soybeans along with small grains including wheat, rye, and oats. They also practice multi-species cover cropping on all of their acres annually and hope to begin the integration of livestock on the land in some form starting in 2022. Their primary focus in crop production is on soil conservation and building healthy, well-functioning soils that are improving over time. Family, communication, and legacy are all part of this exciting conversation where we hear how they’re all working in the operation and bringing their specific skills and talents together to create a well-oiled machine. In addition, we learn a lot about the mindset of building communication, fine-tuning management opportunities, and ultimately growing a business that utilizes and encourages new ideas. This conversation with Ben is so encouraging. The way his family approaches change and how they work together to communicate their individual desires and goals is exciting. And communication is really a big part of the equation. Recognizing that there are different ways for different types of operations to implement practices that build resilience in today's agriculture, is exciting to hear. After growing up on the farm, Ben attended the University of Wisconsin-Platteville where he earned a bachelor’s degree in agricultural business. After college, he earned his Series 3 license and spent time working as a licensed broker in the dairy risk management industry, while also becoming a licensed crop insurance agent, which he still is today. Ben came back to the family operation in 2019 to help raise a feminized CBD hemp crop, and then quickly started assisting in the management of the overall farm. What excites Ben most in life is soil stewardship & regenerative farming. He cares deeply for the land and has a life-long mission of leaving whatever land he's blessed to care for in much better shape than when he started. Ben believes farming production models of the future will be much more diverse and sustainable than what they are today, and he’s most excited about doing his part to help design, develop, test, and implement said models right on his own farm. Healthy people come from healthy ecosystems, and healthy ecosystems start with healthy soils. Got questions you want answered? Send them our way and we’ll do our best to research and find answers. Know someone you think would be great on the AgEmerge stage or podcast? Send your questions or suggestions to kim@asn.farm Mechanized CBD Hemp Video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=656Ll-GITZU&authuser=0&mc_cid=aea2bf6400&mc_eid=UNIQID

We’re bringing you a great conversation with Dr. Liz Haney, Founder of Soil Regen and co-founder of Regen Mills and Heritage Ground. Liz is a soil and ecosystem scientist with experience in regenerative agriculture education, soil health testing and analyses, carbon as well as conservation practice modeling. Today Monte and Liz unpack all of those areas including soil testing in the regenerative space, carbon, mobile milling and everything in between. Listen in as we explore these topics! Liz’s purpose, drive and passion are helping to improve producer profitability, environmental sustainability, and human health through regenerative practices and soil health. Throughout her career she has developed an expansive network of scientists, thought leaders, consultants, farmers and ranchers within the sustainable agriculture space. Liz loves nothing more than creating community and is skilled at coordinating and conducting educational events, workshops and conferences, bringing together today’s leading innovators in regenerative agriculture. Liz is the founder of Soil Regen and co-founder of Regen Mills and Heritage Ground with Sarah Varble and Russell Hedrick. Got questions you want answered? Send them our way and we’ll do our best to research and find answers. Know someone you think would be great on the AgEmerge stage or podcast? Send your questions or suggestions to kim@asn.farm We’d love to hear from you!

Today, Monte and Kim discuss a range of topics including some of the exciting things Monte’s been working on, thinking about, and implementing over the past year. This time of year also gives us an opportunity to evaluate what worked, and what didn’t, as well as explore new ideas and opportunities. And, we talk about some topics happening right now in agriculture. Monte Bottens has deep roots in agriculture. Raised as a fifth-generation, northwestern Illinois farmer, Monte is a business owner, entrepreneur and thought leader. Monte began his farming career with two bred sows given to him by his grandmother. Thanks to great guidance from his dad and equipment-sharing startup assistance, today he’s the owner of Bottens Family Farm. The farm utilizes the latest agricultural innovations in precision farming technology, crop management systems, and participates in advanced regenerative ag principles to produce a diversity of crops and grass-fed livestock. He is the Founder, President and CEO of Ag Solutions Network, Inc. (ASN) headquartered in Moline, Illinois, where he leads the development and distribution of the POWER2GRO crop production system. ASN utilizes the latest technological advancements and highest-quality ingredients to enable farmers to build soil health and soil wealth. Monte is the Founder and Partner of California Ag Solutions, Inc. (CAS) in Madera, CA. The CAS team serves farmers of the Central Valley by helping them adopt reduced tillage techniques combined with improved water and nutrient efficiency using ASN’s POWER2GRO system on a wide variety of crops. Monte has a love for the agricultural diversity in California. He serves on the leadership team of Conservation Agriculture Systems Innovation (CASI) center that develops integrated reduced tillage and irrigation techniques in California and globally. His excitement for ag tech and continuous process improvement also led him to get involved with the UC Davis Entrepreneurship Program and the Sacramento Angels. He has a desire to teach others and make region specific practices applicable for all different crops, soil types, and climates throughout the US. He has presented at many conferences and universities sharing his passion for soil health and agriculture innovation. Monte is a graduate of Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois. He and his wife Robyn live in Sherrard, Illinois, close to family and the family farm. Got questions you want answered? Send them our way and we’ll do our best to research and find answers. Know someone you think would be great on the AgEmerge stage or podcast? Send your questions or suggestions to kim@asn.farm

Dr. Pam Marrone is a scientist, CEO, thought leader and serial entrepreneur. With more than 30 years of a career focused on biological products for pest management and plant health, she shares today about starting and leading three companies. In her words, she says, she got “hooked on microbes” early on and spent her career looking for environmentally responsible, biologically based solutions. By the end of this podcast we’re pretty sure, you’ll be hooked on microbes, too! In August 2020, Dr. Marrone retired as CEO of Marrone Bio Innovations (NASDAQ: MBII), a company she started in 2006 and listed on NASDAQ (MBII) in 2013. She remains on the Board of Directors and as an advisor. She is the treasurer of the Association for Women in Science, on the board of the Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research, is a Senior Fellow of the Arizona State University Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems and is a past alumni-Trustee of Cornell University. She is an advisor or board member for several ag/food tech and life sciences companies, most founded or led by women. She has a B.S. in entomology with Honors and Distinction from Cornell University and a Ph.D. in entomology from North Carolina State University. Learn more about Dr. Marrone: https://marronebio.com/ https://twitter.com/pammarrone https://www.linkedin.com/in/pamela-pam-marrone-110ab6/

Dino Giacomazzi, is the CEO of Giacomazzi Almond Company, Inc and the fourth-generation to manage his family’s farm founded in 1893 by his Swiss-Italian great-grandfather. The operation consists of 700 acres of almonds, 300 acres of corn, wheat and alfalfa, and two miniature donkeys. Dino talks with us about his farming journey, including family farming identities, industry dynamics, new opportunities and the different pressures changing farming practices and improvements face. He and Monte also discuss the excitement and challenges of engaging the next generation in the paradigm shifting business of agriculture. Monte and Dino explore everything from dairy, to almonds and cover crops and especially how they’re working to break down those metaphoric silos that can obstruct change. That includes a deep dive into some of the pressure points like water regulations as well as labor, environmental factors and governing that affect farming operations today. The Giacomazzis were dairy farmers for 126 years and the oldest continuously operating dairy farm in California at the time of their sale in 2019. Dino has managed his family farm since 2002. Prior to that he had a 13-year career in the music and internet industries where he managed rock bands and developed online applications for internet startups and Fortune 1000 companies. Dino is a promoter of sustainable farming practices and was the 2012 Leopold Conservation Award recipient for California and named Sustainable Ag Champion by US EPA in 2010. Dino’s work on strip-tillage of dairy forage crops has been published in numerous journals and techniques developed on his farm have been adopted throughout California. Dino is currently utilizing highly efficient automated irrigation systems and implementing regenerative agricultural practices in his almond operation. Visit: https://giacomazzibrothers.com/ to learn more. Got questions you want answered? Send them our way and we’ll do our best to research and find answers. Know someone you think would be great on the AgEmerge stage or podcast? Send your questions or suggestions to kim@asn.farm We’d love to hear from you!

Dave Williams is the Chief Commercial Officer at CalCom Energy. Dave works on the Executive Team to implement CalCom’s strategic vision of being a leader in sustainable energy technology and financing solutions for agriculture and water. Dave’s team provides technical and financing solutions to save customers money and maximize returns. Prior to joining CalCom, Dave was a Senior Fellow at UC Berkeley and led an international solar development advisory business. Since 2005, Dave has been involved in developing energy projects around the world. He founded solar development companies in the Caribbean, Eastern Europe and Africa. He has advised heads of state, governments and private developers around the world to accelerate the adoption of renewable energy. Dave was selected as one of Time Magazine’s Innovators of the Year for his work on cool heat transfer. He has been a technical solar advisor for US Department of State, merit reviewer for the US Department of Energy’s SunShot program, and contributor to National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Dave has constructed and operated more than 50 solar projects across a range of PV technologies. Before joining the clean energy industry, Dave worked for Shell Oil and Procter & Gamble. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology.

Erin Vincent is a developer at an agriculture company where she builds apps for tracking land and crop data. Originally from Oregon, she’s a loyal consumer of Tillamook cheese and ice cream. Her love of learning and passion for travel have led her on adventures to the Middle East and Southeast Asia. Along the way, she’s enjoyed studying languages, the latest two being Thai and JavaScript. Erin earned her BA in International Relations, but owes her career in software development to a coding bootcamp.

Ag Solutions Network brings you the breakout session where Monte shares how he has implemented soil health principles on a large scale. Simply put, sustaining is not enough. Monte explores what it looks like to adopt soil health principles, what barriers we have to overcome, what success and yes, just as important, what failures we’ve seen as we improve our farming system. And it all starts with soil health.

Dr. Fred Provenza, is a Professor Emeritus of Behavioral Ecology in the Department of Wildland Resources at Utah State University where he directed an award-winning research group that pioneered an understanding of how learning influences foraging behavior and how behavior links soil, plants, herbivores, and humans. Today, he and Monte explore some of that research and the connections between animal and human nutrition. Fred Provenza grew up in Salida, Colorado. He later worked on a ranch while attending school in Wildlife Biology at Colorado State University. He obtained a Master’s and a Ph.D. degree in Range Science from Utah State University where he then worked for 35 years. He is professor emeritus of Behavioral Ecology in the Department of Wildland Resources at Utah State University where he directed an award-winning research group that pioneered an understanding of how learning influences foraging behavior and how behavior links soil, plants, herbivores, and humans. That work culminated in a program called BEHAVE, which was active from 2000-2010. BEHAVE was an international network of scientists, ranchers, farmers, and land managers committed to integrating behavioral principles with local knowledge to enhance environmental, economic, and cultural values of rural and urban communities. Though BEHAVE is no longer active, the principles and practices continue to influence researchers and managers worldwide. He authored three books, including Nourishment: What Animals Can Teach Us About Rediscovering Our Nutritional Wisdom; Foraging Behavior: Managing to Survive in a World of Change; and The Art & Science of Shepherding: Tapping the Wisdom of French Herders (co-author with Michel Meuret). He published more than 300 research papers in a wide variety of scientific journals. He has been an invited speaker at more than 500 conferences. The many awards he received for research, teaching, and mentoring are the creativity that flowed from warm professional and personal relationships with over 75 graduate students, post-doctoral students, visiting scientists, and colleagues during the past 45 years. BEHAVE website link: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/behave/ Got questions you want answered? Send them our way and we’ll do our best to research and find answers. Know someone you think would be great on the AgEmerge stage or podcast? Send your questions or suggestions to kim@asn.farm We’d love to hear from you!

Dr. Lundgren is an agroecologist, Director ECDYSIS Foundation, and CEO for Blue Dasher Farm. He received his PhD in Entomology from the University of Illinois in 2004 and was a top scientist with USDA-ARS for 11 years. Lundgren’s research and education programs focus on assessing the ecological risk of pest management strategies and developing long-term solutions for regenerative food systems. Watch additional AgEmerge videos: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLF-Hc8USB_JuIAJanERaat7q5qWWUCzCt

Eric McSherry Senior Director of Global and Technical Sales at Planet Eric McSherry's is the Sr. Director of Global Technical Sales. Prior to Planet, Eric held positions leading technical sales and product development teams at Autodesk and NVIDIA. He grew up in Illinois, receiving a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Planet designs, builds and operates fleets of compact, highly capable Earth-imaging satellites—collecting data about the changing planet to enable both commercial, defense, and humanitarian applications. Founded by NASA scientists, Planet has built and operates over 140 satellites (the largest satellite constellation in history), which images the entire Earth landmass every day.

Melissa Brandao is Founder and CEO of HerdDogg. For the past decade, Melissa has been a pioneer in the Internet of Things, for the farm. Recognized as a rural innovator at the Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation at the Smithsonian, she advocates for entrepreneurship and jobs as a path towards economic recovery for small-town America. She is a multi-patent holder, she speaks several languages and appeared in the 2016 reality TV show, America’s Greatest Makers. Watch additional AgEmerge videos: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLF-Hc8USB_JuIAJanERaat7q5qWWUCzCt

Tom Cotter Fourth-Generation Farmer and Soil Health Guru Tom is a fourth-generation farmer from southern Minnesota. In 1875 the land was first plowed and had continued in one way or another for the next 140 years. Tom grew up doing full tillage on all their acres. In the late 1990’s Tom’s Dad bought a tile pile and started trying cover crops. That is when Tom and his Dad, Mike's journey began, 4 feet below the surface. The differences in the soil were drastic from covered fields compared to full tillage fields. They started putting cover crops on all canning crop fields only. During the early 2000’s they had successes and failures with covers and really had nowhere to look for help. He was only planting winter rye as his cover and terminating with tillage. In 2010 he bought a used strip-till bar to try and reduce his tillage practices. When he put reduced tillage, cover crops, and livestock grazing together, soil health exploded. Currently, he uses multi-species cocktails after canning crops, interseeds 4 to 8 species into his corn in mid-June and grazes every acre. They were the first to get certified a Clean Water Farm in Mower County in 2016. Cover crops have also helped him to transition some acres to Organic cash crops and grass-fed beef. When he is not raising corn, soybeans, sweet corn, peas, alfalfa and oats he is out promoting soil health. He has spoken at many events in Minnesota and Iowa as well as the national scene at the National No-Till and Strip-Till Conferences. Tom’s father was a nationally known storyteller and always said: “Everybody has a Story to tell”. Tom is carrying on the tradition and sharing his story of soil health.

Mike Shuter is a corn, soybean, wheat, beef cattle & hog producer from east central Indiana. Mike and his sons Patrick & Brian have been no-tilling for 35 years, strip-tilling for 15 years and have been using variably rate technology as long as it has been available. For the last 8 years they have been researching cover crops and how to integrate them into their operation. In 2010 they started developing a 90-ft high clearance seeding machine to seed cover crops in standing corn & soybeans to get these crops off to a faster earlier start. All of their crop fields were seeded to cover crops starting in the fall of 2012. In the summer of 2014 they developed a 120 ft cover crop seeder and also developed a 24 row 28% nitrogen bar for their Miller Nitro sprayer. They custom seed cover crops for several other producers annually They are now marketing their products for the Miller Nitro sprayer. They are in the process of developing and patenting a new concept piece of equipment to work in the Organic No-till side of their operation. This concept is to use super-hot water to kill weed with a noninvasive cultivation process. Mike is also past president of the Indiana Corn Marketing Council. Their farm received the National Corn Growers Association Conservation Stewardship Award for 2015. Mike also received the Purdue Ag Alumni Associations 2015 Certificate of Distinction award. The farm also received the Indiana River Friendly Farmer award in 2016. Mike received the 2018 Eastern Indiana Livestock Breeders Distinguished Service award. The Shuter Family has a nationally recognized Registered Red Poll cattle herd that was originated in 1941 by Mike’s father Mervin and his father Leslie. Many National Champions have been produced from the Shuter Red Poll Herd including 3 consecutive National Champion Females, 2014, 2015 and 2016 as well as National Champion Bull in 2016. In recent years, Red Angus and Simmental females have been added to the herd that now numbers around 80 head of momma cows. An intensive Embryo Transfer program is used to propagate top genetics and nearly every female in the herd is either bred via Artificial Insemination or is used in the ET program. Watch additional AgEmerge videos: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLF-Hc8USB_JuIAJanERaat7q5qWWUCzCt

Daphne Miller, MD, is a practicing family physician, Associate Clinical Professor at the University of California San Francisco and Research Scientist at the University of California Berkeley School of Public Health. For the past fifteen years, her work has focused on aligning agriculture and conservation with human health. She has written two books about food, agriculture, and health: The Jungle Effect and Farmacology. Watch additional AgEmerge videos: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLF-Hc8USB_JuIAJanERaat7q5qWWUCzCt

Matt Foes hails from Bureau County Illinois (North Central Illinois) where he grew up on a corn and soybean farm. He attended Illinois State University where he graduated with a B.S. in Chemistry in ’95. Afterwards he attended the University of Illinois where he earned his M.S. in Weed Science (’98) documenting the first case of multiple resistance (ALS and Triazine) in waterhemp. Matt worked in the seed and chemical industry for many years conducting research and providing agronomic support for Monsanto chemical and their associated seed brands. In 2014, Matt joined Gregg Sauder’s new company, 360 YieldCenter, to focus on raising yields through better fertility programs and placement. Over the past 20 years Matt has taken what he has learned from the customers he has interacted with and put together a system to grow corn and soybeans as efficiently as possible back at the “home ranch.” The 2018 growing season marked his transition to focusing solely on the family farm and his family.

Science and Regenerative Agriculture with Tommy Fenster Tommy is a master’s student in Biology at California State University - East Bay and a member of the Ecdysis Foundation. His research focuses on regenerative management practices in California agroecosystems. Specifically, Tommy’s work is to quantify regenerative agricultural practices in almond orchards with regards to yields, biodiversity, and ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration. As the research intern at the Berkely Lab, Tommy utilizes the eddy covariance technique to quantify the greenhouse gas and water budgets for grazed grasslands that have had compost applied to them. Tommy’s undergraduate degree in Environmental Analysis was earned at Pomona College. https://www.ecdysis.bio/ To learn more about the Ecdysis Foundation, listen to the AgEmerge Podcast with guest Dr. Mike Bredeson, here: https://www.agemerge.com/podcast-2021/episode/9269b005/063-agemerge-mike-bredeson-ecdysis-foundation

Brad Schmidt is an Agronomist for Ducks Unlimited and part-owner of Heartland Heritage Farms LLC with his father and grandfather. After years of research in the field, Brad is an advocate for regenerative agriculture and works with producers all over the state of South Dakota, helping them implement practices that are conducive to healthier soils. Watch additional AgEmerge videos: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLF-Hc8USB_JuIAJanERaat7q5qWWUCzCt