Ag Emerge Podcast Hosted by Monte Bottens

Thanks for joining us! Today we welcome Russ Green, the founder and Managing Director of a network of future agricultural leaders called MACKAYBEN. Russ has made it his mission to help identify and mentor these leaders. In this podcast, he and Monte cover a wide range of topics, including agricultural equipment, artificial intelligence, and discovering the next generation of agricultural leaders, from roles within major corporations to innovations being implemented on the farm.

Watch episode here: https://youtu.be/CwiU2-WL6kg

Russ has had a 45+ year career supporting the agri-food value chain. Having worked for and lead organizations like AGCO, Claas of America, and Case New Holland, Russ has deep industry knowledge and connections that can only come from a life-long devotion to the industry. Russ completed his undergrad at University of Northern Iowa and his MBA at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Lubar School of Business.

Russ credits his success in the agricultural business to being raised with a Midwest work ethic surrounded by people who genuinely cared for each other’s interests and community well-being. Named by Farm Industry News as one of the 10 Fascinating People in Agriculture in 2015, Russ has formed a successful 45-year career contributing to the growth and business expansion of several international industry players in North America.
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Russ is a ‘truth-teller and a sense-maker.” He is as comfortable with his problem-solving and communication skills with the producer in the small cattle feed yard as he is with his executive teammates in the corporate boardroom. One of his industry colleagues stated, that Russ’ ability to make strategic progress with the quote, “Russ has great people skills and is comfortable interacting with anyone from the small-scale farmer to the president of a multinational corporation or a State Governor or U.S. Senator.”
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Russ is the founder and Managing Director of a network of future agricultural leaders in a group named MACKAYBEN. Experienced agriculture mentors need to help our young ag and food leaders, as they have the daunting task of feeding the world and our future generations.
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Russ was recently featured in a video by Green Mountain Lion Corp. about industry leader success stories. https://youtu.be/UwkFISmui9s
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Focus Areas:
Executive strategic development
Rapid improvement
Dealer performance group leadership
Workforce development
Structuring teams
Coaching leaders to their greatest potential

Russ, named one of the 10 Fascinating People in Agriculture by Farm Industry News in 2015, attributes his success in agriculture to a Midwest work ethic and a community-driven upbringing. With a knack for problem-solving and communication, he’s equally at ease in a small cattle feed yard as in a corporate boardroom. Transitioning from a global corporate role to teaching and consulting, Russ brings his extensive industry experience and coaching background to inspire future leaders and align actions with strategy through MACKAYBEN.

SATISFYD Presentation: https://blog.satisfyd.com/blueprint-for-attracting-and-retaining-millennial-talent?hs_preview=VlEwCfpx-160998029434

https://mackayben.com/about/

https://www.machineryadvisors.org/russ-green

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.

We are excited to bring you this special podcast. It’s the live recording from the very first AgEmerge Event that was held in Monterey California in 2019. It all began when Monte read a paper Dr. White had written about the rhizophagy cycle and he knew he needed to get this powerful research and information in the hands of farmers and ranchers. Dr. White had everyone on the edge of their seats as he shared this groundbreaking research. We’ve included Dr. White’s main stage presentation along with his breakout session but first we bring you a special clip of Monte and Gabe Brown discussing that day because Gabe was both a presenter and listener when Dr. White was on the stage. Enjoy!

Dr. James F. White is Professor of Plant Biology at Rutgers University where he and students conduct research on beneficial microbes that inhabit plant tissues. Dr. White obtained the M.S. in Mycology and Plant Pathology from Auburn University, Alabama, and the Ph.D. in Botany/Mycology from the University of Texas, Austin.

Watch episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwiSd1sKMUU&t

Dr. White specializes in the study of endophytic microbes and how they affect plants. Dr. White is the author of more than 200 articles, and author and editor of reference books on the biology of endophytes, including Biotechnology of Acremonium Endophytes of Grasses (1994), Microbial Endophytes (2000), The Clavicipitalean Fungi (2004), The Fungal Community: Its Organization and Role in the Ecosystem (2005, 2017), Defensive Mutualism in Microbial Symbiosis (2009), and Seed Endophytes: Biology and Biotechnology (2019). Dr. White is a fellow of the AAAS, and Associate Editor for journals Fungal Ecology, Symbiosis, Mycoscience, and Scientific Reports.

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.

AgEmerge Podcast Episode 136 is dedicated to David Brandt, of Brandt Farms and Walnut Creek Seed. If you know your soil health, no-till history, and follow the leaders in these areas then you know how fortunate we were to get to visit with David before his passing.

Watch the episode here: https://youtu.be/Hmsi9yDDtbM

We lost David in a tragic vehicle accident on May 21st, 2023. Earlier that year he’d made a 2023 visit to Sinsinawa Mound in Wisconsin, where the Sinsinawa River begins its 21-mile journey to the Mighty Mississippi. He recognized the Mound as a place where this message of holistic land stewardship could flourish. He planted the seed. This vision has taken root at Sinsinawa Mound in Southwest Wisconsin. Aptly named Fields of Sinsinawa: A Farmer-Led Learning Center, brings the message of healthy soil for a healthy planet to the Midwest and beyond.

David is often referred to as the “godfather” of conservation agriculture and soil health. His message has had worldwide impact. He mentored many farmers who admired his practical approach and the ways he generously shared what he learned from the soil during his 50-year farming career.

You’ll find more information on how to connect with the Fields of Sinsinawa: A Farmer-Led Learning Center here: https://mcusercontent.com/d34a1e6b8b607f4dc0d40fa39/files/eb5a6547-135e-e5f2-cea2-5ac0f4d75e45/Fos_Funding_Packet_d9.pdf

Donate to the Fields of Sinsinawa: A Farmer-Led Learning Center here:
https://mcusercontent.com/d34a1e6b8b607f4dc0d40fa39/files/d4beeef8-68e3-3555-c5db-5a7b19a20fd3/FoS_Donation_Sheet.pdf

More about David's Farming Legacy:
David had been no-tilling since 1971, back when they called it trash farming and a whole list of other things. But David would not be deterred, he continued to test systems, implemented cover crops and utilized livestock to improve soil health. Listen in to this great conversation as he and Monte talked about the history, the present, and the exciting future on their farm.

David Brandt farmed 950-acres all no-till, in Fairfield County, which is located in central Ohio. He began no-till farming in 1971 and had been using cover crops since 1978. David participated in yield plots for corn, soybeans, and wheat into various covers. This information has been used by seed growers as well as county agents and universities to encourage other farmers to adapt no-till practices in their farming operations. He had also been planting various blends of cover crops to find out what benefits they provide to improve soil health. David was co-owner of Walnut Creek Seeds, LLC with his son and daughter-in-law Jay and Ann Brandt. David had articles published in Farm Journal, Ohio Farmer, Country Journal, and numerous no-till journals.

He worked in cooperation with The Ohio State University, the University of Illinois, Penn State University, Purdue University, and Milan Research Farm in Tennessee. David was most recently working with OSU Randall Reeder and Dr. Islam on reducing input costs of fertilizers and herbicides using various cover crops which improve soil health. The results of this study have been published in the International Soil and Water Conservation Research journal. (March 2014, Vol. 2, No. 1) He was also working with the regional NRCS soils lab in Greensboro, North Carolina on the benefits of cover crops to improve soil health.

www.walnutcreekseeds.com

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

Thanks for joining us! Today we welcome Brad Rosen the COO and Co-Founder of NODAR, a leading provider of next generation of stereo vision technology. Technology developments in agriculture continue to create effective ways for automation and sensing providing farmers with useful information and working to improve operation efficiency. Today Brad and Monte discuss the power of the type of sensing technology NODAR has developed. It’s a great conversation so let’s jump right in.
Brad Rosen is the COO and Co-Founder of NODAR, a leading provider of next generation of stereo vision technology. Brad is a seasoned business executive and entrepreneur.
With seven tech startups under his belt, Brad has a proven track record of taking ideas from inception to product market fit, to exit.
Watch episode here: https://youtu.be/1U8gpDTKYqw

Prior to NODAR, Brad started, ran, and sold Drync, a venture-backed B2B platform for retailers of beverage alcohol. Before Drync, Brad served as VP Product at Where, a mobile-first LBS company that was sold to eBay. Earlier in his career, Brad held roles at Cognio, a full-stack spectrum analysis system that was sold to Cisco, Ucentric Systems (sold to Motorola), and PureSpeech (sold to Philips).

Brad has an Electrical Engineering degree from the University of Colorado and an MBA from MIT's Sloan School of Management. Brad lives in Lincoln, MA with his wife and 3 kids.

Company Info: NODAR’s Founder, Leaf Jiang, spent 8 years getting his BS, MS, and PhD at MIT studying and implementing optoelectronic systems. He then spent 12 years at MIT Lincoln Laboratory building laser ranging systems for the military - putting them on Humvees and robots for various 3D sensing applications. In short, he’s been thinking about this 3D perception problem for a very long time!

From his extensive work with time-of-flight ranging systems (such as LiDAR), Leaf knew that they would not be a good fit anytime soon for many of the autonomous uses being discussed today, such as autonomy for the billion passenger vehicles out there. Laser-based systems are too expensive, too prone to failure, and have insufficient resolution to accurately detect objects. So Leaf set out to build something better and the answer was NODAR!
Website: https://www.nodarsensor.com/

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.

Thanks for joining us! Today we welcome Jeanne Carver, Founder and President of Shaniko Wool. Her story is one of successful adaptation to changing market needs. Jeanne and her late husband Dan have been using sustainable / regenerative practices for decades. Jeanne shares with us that Dan was an engineer and a systems thinker which is key to how they understood the land, soil and their operation.

From her family’s Imperial Stock Ranch, she and Dan transitioned from selling commodity lamb and wool to selling retail products that are ecologically sensitive. With the founding of Shaniko Wool Company, she has overseen the expansion of the Responsible Wool Standard (RWS) certified American wool into a variety of products and markets by working first with the ranchers, and with designers, brands and exclusively U.S. supply chain partners. There is so much packed into this wonderful discussion so let’s jump right in.

Watch episode here: https://youtu.be/Lj1gy73MUdY

Jeanne is at the forefront of an economic and rural revival, helping rebuild the importance of traditional skills, connections to the origins of food and fiber, and strengthening local, regional and domestic supply chain partners.

Her story is one of successful adaptation to changing market needs. From her family’s Imperial Stock Ranch (est. 1871), she and her late husband Dan transitioned from selling commodity lamb and wool to selling retail products that are ecologically sensitive. With the founding of Shaniko Wool Company, she has overseen the expansion of RWS certified American wool into a variety of products and markets by working first with the ranchers, and with designers, brands and exclusively U.S. supply chain partners. In an era of outsourcing and disconnect, she has led tirelessly with traceability and accountability, building relationships across the domestic textile industry.
Jeanne Carver, 2023 Hall of Fame Award
Jeanne serves on several boards related to agriculture, and in 2014, Jeanne became the source and voice of American wool for Ralph Lauren’s first Made in America Winter Olympic uniform program, and again in 2018 and 2022.

Jeanne believes the most important story she has shared is how well-managed herds of grazing animals on their ranch have revitalized grasses and contributed to healing streams and the restoration of traditional salmon runs in Buckhollow Creek, a major tributary to the designated wild and scenic Deschutes River. With the Carbon Initiative, she is investing in the research and measured and verified results of an even greater story: the positive ecosystem impacts of Shaniko Wool Company ranches across a broader piece of the American landscape.
Points of Interest:
- Jeanne and her husband Dan have been using sustainable / regenerative practices for decades.
- Her late husband was and engineer and was a systems thinker which is key to how they understood the land, soil and their operation.
- They operated Imperial Stock Ranch which was established in 1871.
- Her husband charged Jeanne with finding a market for selling their harvest.
- They evolved through the Value added journey, Jeanne understood that they needed to measure and monetize ecosystems deliverables
- They’ve done amazing things for the water and the whole basin, restoring salmon as one example
- She and her company are mentioned in King Charles book about food and farming
https://www.shanikowoolcompany.com

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.

Thanks for joining us! Today we welcome Chris Jones a Retired Research Engineer from the University of Iowa and author of The Swine Republic, Struggles with Truth About Agriculture and Water Quality. Today he and Monte discuss the agricultural efficiencies and practices that we can make happen in more environmentally responsible ways. That includes a system approach to our entire management practices. Chris talks about how we can work to deploy these practices in enough areas that they can make a difference at the landscape scale. It’s a powerful conversation so let’s jump right in.

Watch episode here: https://youtu.be/GF5Powy4gIc

Chris Jones retired in May of 2023 as a Research Engineer from IIHR-Hydroscience & Engineering at the University of Iowa, where his work focused on water quality and water monitoring in agricultural landscapes. Previous to that he worked at the Des Moines Water Works and the Iowa Soybean Association. Chris has a BA in Biology and Chemistry from Simpson College and a PhD in Analytical Chemistry from Montana State University.

He has authored 55 scientific journal articles, several book chapters and is author of the book The Swine Republic, Struggles with Truth About Agriculture and Water Quality. He also writes a weekly column posted on Substack at Riverraccoon.substack.com. He lives in Iowa City, Iowa.
Tell us your background and how you reached today’s line of work. I was born in Illinois and spent most of the rest of my life in Iowa and have observed firsthand how the state and its agricultural production systems have changed since the 1960s. While some things about agriculture's impact on the environment have improved, the environmental consequences of cornbelt agriculture are still severe and affect the quality of life of the region's residents. Consolidation in agriculture since that time has also had dire consequences for the prosperity and vitality of small-town Iowa. My work has focused on these consequences and how the condition of our environment can be improved within the backdrop of intense crop and livestock production.

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.