Chuck Spenser is about as well versed on agriculture policy as you'll get. We ask him if Trump can beat up Justin Trudeau...

Farming in the UK sounds a lot like farming in Canada, but with a better accent. We talk about tenancy, subsidy and agvocacy. See what I did there? In the Social Jungle, Simon Haley is Tarzan. You should be following these accounts he started:

@FarmersOfTheUK

@FarmersOfTheWorld

@AgriChatUK

Tonight I'm delighted to be heading just over the English border to Sandbach in Cheshire to talk to farmer and digital marketeer, Cesca Beswick. @Cesca_Beswick

We talk about her early life on her family's dairy farm in Staffordshire, and how her Dad tragically died when she was 18 months old leaving her Mum to carry on the farm on her own, before eventually remarrying and moving up to Cheshire.

We discuss her decision to study Product Design Engineering at University, and how she gained an interest in social media marketing and saw the potential for it to be used in business, which back then was a new concept.

We talk about what she learned working in digital marketing after Uni, and what skills she was able to take back to the farm, when eventually the call of home proved too much and she joined her family business, complete with some Wiltshire Horn sheep in tow!

We hear about the various courses she's completed including foot trimming, A.I, and Entrepreneurs in Dairying, and the importance of personal development, before moving on to talk about 'Cesca's Lamb', the meat boxes that she's now selling direct to the public.

We also go into why the sheep have helped her confidence grow over the last 3 years. All this and lots, lots more.

Cesca's one of the loveliest people you could ever meet, and i really enjoyed learning more about her farming journey tonight.

Check it out folks..

This episode is kindly sponsored by NFU Cymru. For more information please visit www.nfu-cymru.org or www.rockandrollfarming.com

Rock & Roll Farming is proud to be part of the Farm & Rural Ag Network. For more great farming related content please visit www.farmruralag.com

Richard Lackey is the Chairman and CEO of the World Food Bank, an organization founded in 2015 to provide sustainable solutions to the food security and hunger issues around the world. He is a highly-regarded expert in the trading and securities industry and is passionate about finding solutions that will help end world hunger.

Richard joins me today to share the driving force behind World Food Bank, their mission, and how their unique program is designed to significantly impact the food security and hunger issues we currently face worldwide. He explains how his systematized approach helps impact the world from an economic standpoint and why systematic approaches are more sustainable solutions to combating world hunger and poverty. He explains how they use model farms to help farmers in third-world countries gain access to the tools, techniques, and strategies that can improve their crop grades, quality, and profits. He also shares his prediction for investors considering food as a future asset commodity and the potential impact that a single 5,000-acre farm can have on the lives of those living in countries such as Uganda.

“The ability to now store commodities for years and years - and maintain grade - is a game-changer.” - Richard Lackey

This Week on the Future of Agriculture Podcast:

• The food security issues that the World Food Bank focuses on solving.
• What is post-harvest loss and how it impacts the export market worldwide?
• How they use model farms as an educational tool within third-world countries.
• Why organizations are beginning to shift their focus from project-based programs to systematic solutions.
• How the company works with investors and creates profits.
• The technology they use to store commodities and remove the calendar risk associated with long storage periods.
• How his organization helps third-world countries mitigate and control price volatility.
• How the systematic approach is impacting the lives of farmers as well as the poverty crisis within third-world countries.
• His prediction on investors considering food commodities as an asset class in the future.
• The potential impact that one sustainable farm can have in a third-world country.
• How they determine how well crop genetics will work within each region.

Connect with Richard Lackey:

• World Food Bank
• The Case for Food as an Asset Class - Whitepaper

Join Our 100th Episode Celebration!

We are celebrating the Future of Agriculture Podcast’s 100th episode - and we want to celebrate with you! Visit SpeakPipe.com/FutureofAg to record your voice and tell us which Future of Agriculture Podcast episode was your number 1 favorite - and why! Who knows? We may even play your voice in a future episode! Head over to SpeakPipe.com/FutureofAg today to record your voice and share your favorite episode with us.

We Are a Part of a Bigger Family! 

The Future of Agriculture Podcast is now part of the Farm and Rural Ag Network. Listen to more ag-related podcasts by subscribing on iTunes or on the Farm and Rural Ag Network Website today. 

Share the Ag-Love! 

Thanks for joining us on the Future of Agriculture Podcast – your spot for valuable information, content, and interviews with industry leaders throughout the agricultural space! If you enjoyed this week’s episode, please subscribe on iTunes and leave your honest feedback. Don’t forget to share it with your friends on your favorite social media spots! 

Learn more about AgGrad by visiting: 

Future of Agriculture Website

AgGrad Website

AgGrad on Twitter 
AgGrad on Facebook 
AgGrad on LinkedIn 
AgGrad on Instagram 

Scott Daniel was the kind of kid that read Holstein magazines and had herdsmen as heroes. So, you can imagine how hard it was for him to shut down his own dairy. Listen to an open an honest account of his story.

please visit our sponsor:

https://www.farmcommand.com/

Do wind turbines help farmers... or do they just blow?
@lesleyraekelly and I talk wind and solar.
#WTFarmchat

Who would want to live in downtown Toronto, not own a car and choose almond milk over dairy? I learned a lot from 21 year old, urban planner, Kiana Simmons, but some of what she shared challenged point of view. If you want to know what an urban millennial thinks about food and farming you will want to listen to this.

Tonight I'm delighted to be travelling down to Silchester in Hampshire to talk to Crop Scientist and Director of the AgriFood Training Partnership, Professor Carol Wagstaff @cwagstaff

Tom Bottoms earned his bachelor’s degree in Plant Sciences from the California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo and in 2013, he received his Ph.D. in Horticulture and Agronomy from the University of California. He currently works as an employee of a large farming operation based in Northern California with the intention of eventually accumulating his own farm land and building his own operation.

Tom joins me today to share what inspired him to work in the agriculture industry and what motivated him to continue his education in agriculture. He shares why he decided to pivot his career from agriculture academia to work in the private sector, his experience while working with the African Leadership Partners in Swaziland, Africa and the challenges he has faced and overcome while helping a small farm operation significantly grow during his missionary operation in Africa. He also explains the importance of networking and building relationships within the farming industry to help you achieve your goals as a professional, the importance of self-awareness and professional development, and tips on how to get started in farming.

“You’ve got to continue to develop yourself - to put yourself in a situation where you’re learning about the industry.” - Tom Bottoms

This Week on the Future of Agriculture Podcast:

• Tom’s experience as a missionary in Africa.
• How he helped the African farm operation become successful.
• How he balances his personal life while advancing his career.
• The importance of networking with others in the industry and how it has impacted his career.
• The farming operation he is currently working with.
• Why he believes setting firm, inflexible deadlines on certain goals is dangerous.
• The importance of focusing on improving processes more than the financial opportunities available when you are just starting out in farming.
• The importance of building trust within your farm operation.
• How to get started in farming.
• Assets that young professionals can offer to established farming operations.

Resources Mentioned:

• Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…And Others Don’t book by Jim Collins
• Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies (Harper Business Essentials) book by Jim Collins
• Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business book by Gino Wickman

Tom Bottom’s Tips for Getting Started in Farming:

1. Try to keep your day job as long as you can while you are trying to get started.
2. Ask yourself what you are doing now to make it possible.
3. Read and understand how basic farming operations work.
4. Question everything.

Connect with Tom Bottoms:

• Email: Tommy@TVFarming.com

We Are a Part of a Bigger Family! 

The Future of Agriculture Podcast is now part of the Farm and Rural Ag Network. Listen to more ag-related podcasts by subscribing on iTunes or on the Farm and Rural Ag Network Website today. 

Share the Ag-Love! 

Thanks for joining us on the Future of Agriculture Podcast – your spot for valuable information, content, and interviews with industry leaders throughout the agricultural space! If you enjoyed this week’s episode, please subscribe on iTunes and leave your honest feedback. Don’t forget to share it with your friends on your favorite social media spots! 

Learn more about AgGrad by visiting: 

Future of Agriculture Website

AgGrad Website

AgGrad on Twitter 
AgGrad on Facebook 
AgGrad on LinkedIn 
AgGrad on Instagram 

Ag tech...

Big data...

backwards flushing toilets... Sarah Nolet covers it all

Please visit our sponsor:

https://www.farmcommand.com/

Today Rob and Lesley talk to professional curler Kirk Muyres. Kirk talks about how his diet and farm background affects his performance.

Dr. Jude Capper is a passionate supporter of the dairy industry both in her native UK and around the word. With a PHD in Ruminant Nutrition, she is something of an expert in dairy production, however that doesn’t stop on-line trolls from vegansplaining to her why dairy is bad. They have gone so far as to suggest that the reason she got breast cancer at 26 years of age is karma from eating meat and dairy. If she can keep her cool on Twitter, anyone can. We talk about her #Februdairy campaign. Also, she claims Will Evans is way cooler than me and Jerseys are better than Holsteins….

Tonight I'm delighted to be heading up to Perthshire in Scotland to talk to farmer, consultant, and host of the Pasture Pod Podcast Michael Blanche @totallyewesome

We start off with talking about how the hell he developed an interest in farming, given he's the son of an accountant and a teacher, and how he got his first sheep and a tractor at the tender age of 3. 

We discuss how he went from being an almost beret-wearing English student, to being a tweed underpants wearing REALM student at Harper Adams, and how this in turn led to a job in land agency.

We go into why ultimately this wasn't for him, and the next step which was working as a farm advisor for SAC, before talking about his first steps into the zany World of sheep farming, which was partly inspired by a life changing trip to Wales.

We talk about the initial challenges, and how in the first five years he TRAVELLED THE EQUIVALENT OF TWICE AROUND THE WORLD (?!) to see his sheep, and also the heartbreak of being repeatedly turned down for farm tenancies.

We hear at length about his Nuffield scholarship 'The Farming Ladder', and how the experiences he had, and 1st generation farmers he met from all around the World, changed his outlook and increased his determination and need to farm even more.

We also talk about how eventually, at the 8th time of asking he secured a tenancy, and just two months later had just £500 cash available for a 500 acre farm. We also of course discuss the fantastic Pasture Pod Podcast, why pasture pumps him up, and his bedroom shrine to me.

All this and lots, lots more. People take the piss out of me for overusing the word 'inspirational' in my podcast interviews, but I don't care - Michael Blanche is a truly inspirational man, and it was a pleasure, as well as great fun, to talk to him tonight..

This episode is kindly sponsored by NFU Cymru.For more information please visit www.nfu-cymru.org.uk or www.rockandrollfarming.com  

Rob Saik is the founder of the Agri-Trend® group of companies whose primary goal is to help farmers grow food through agriculture consulting services in areas such as agronomic production, carbon-offset trading, grain marketing strategies, and data management systems for producers around the world. He is the creator of The Agri-Prize contest series, a TEDx and keynote speaker, and the author of the book The Agriculture Manifesto - 10 Key Drivers That Will Shape Agriculture in the Next Decade which has earned an Amazon 2014 Best of Books award. Additionally, he is the Executive Producer of the movie KNOW GMO as well as the webisode series LEARN GMO.

Rob joins me today to discuss the mission behind The Agri-Trend and the connection between the organic movement and the non-GMO movement. He explains how he believes GMOs can impact the future of agriculture, sustainability, and the food supply around the world as well as the impact they can have on the health of consumers. He also shares why he believes many consumers refuse to use GMO-friendly products and the importance of due diligence when educating yourself about organic and genetically engineered crops.

“Most of what you are reading about GMOs on social media are an absolute distortion of the truth.” - Rob Saik

This Week on the Future of Agriculture Podcast:

• How Agri-Trend helps farmers allocate scarce resources.
• The impact that banning GMO products have had on certain countries and cultures.
• The connection between the organic movement and the non-GMO movement.
• What farmers should consider to grow more crops organically.
• Why farmers shouldn’t be at odds when deciding to grow organically or become GMO-friendly.
• Why he believes many people think GMOs are bad or unhealthy.
• How “organic” and “non-GMO” food labels are misleading consumers.
• How GMOs can contribute to the agriculture industry’s long-term sustainability.
• The impact that embracing genetically modified food can have on the world’s starvation crisis and consumer health.

Connect With Rob Saik:

• KNOW Ideas Media
• KNOW Ideas Media on Facebook
• KNOW Ideas Media on YouTube
• Will Agriculture be ALLOWED to Feed 9 Billion People - Rob Saik’s TEDx Talk

We Are a Part of a Bigger Family! 

The Future of Agriculture Podcast is now part of the Farm and Rural Ag Network. Listen to more ag-related podcasts by subscribing on iTunes or on the Farm and Rural Ag Network Website today. 

Share the Ag-Love! 

Thanks for joining us on the Future of Agriculture Podcast – your spot for valuable information, content, and interviews with industry leaders throughout the agricultural space! If you enjoyed this week’s episode, please subscribe on iTunes and leave your honest feedback. Don’t forget to share it with your friends on your favorite social media spots! 

Learn more about AgGrad by visiting: 

Future of Agriculture Website

AgGrad Website

AgGrad on Twitter 
AgGrad on Facebook 
AgGrad on LinkedIn 
AgGrad on Instagram 

Sometimes farming can be heartbreaking.... literally
Karen Eifert Jones talks about reevaluating her views on farming after her heart stopped. Plus working for the USDA during the Clinton years. Giggity
Please visit out advertiser
https://www.farmersedge.ca/

We are celebrating with a guest host on this week's episode of Keeping Ag Real.

The mission: Provide the listeners with a better look at my personality by inviting a guest host to interview me, myself and I.

The result: She or he makes me laugh until my stomach hurts. And, has a heck of a time telling us all that Keeping Ag Real is part of the Farm & Rural Ag Network.

Thank you to everyone's support this last year! I can't wait to see what is in store for year two.

Take a listen!

What happens when you return from a successful off farm job to the family and things go badly? Robert Larmer talks about his passion for silage, struggling through stray voltage issues and the mental toll it took. He’s also got stones – curling stones and has competed against Olympic champions.

Tonight I'm really happy to be heading down under to outback south Australia to talk to Gillian Fennell on her family's one million acre cattle station.

We talk about the part of Australia where they live, and some of the challenges they face with the climate and remote location, before moving on to talk about her background growing up in a small Queensland town and her time misbehaving at boarding school!

We discuss how she met her husband Mark, and how after a whirlwind romance they headed off windmill contracting in the Northern Territory, camping in the bush and fixing broken windmills, before moving back to town for a couple of years and attempting to live a 'normal life.'

We then hear about how her Father in Law sold up and moved to a one million acre cattle station in South Australia, and their decision to go along too. We talk about the initial challenges they faced with no air conditioning, no mobile phone, no internet, and the nearest town being 350km away, as well as the strains of living in such close quarters with in-laws.

Gillian talks candidly and openly about her history with depression, something that has plagued her since her teenage years, and how seeking treatment has helped her to control it, as well as the importance of social media in helping to overcome isolation problems.

We talk about their three children and how they're schooled at home via the Alice Springs School of the Air, and how challenging this can be, as well as the difficulties in keeping young people in rural communities. We also discuss Gillian and her husband Mark's roles as volunteer Ambulance Officers, and what this entails, dealing with incidents from road traffic accidents to bar brawl injuries.

We the discuss in depth the cattle on the farm - 5000 head of Charolais x Brahmans. We talk about their characteristics, and how they suit their system and management, as well as some of the practicalities and how they muster them 3 times a year using motor bikes and gyrocopters to wean and sell.

We also talk about the difficulties that particularly kangaroos, but also wild horses cause, and how they have to deal with these on a regular basis.

All this and lots, lots more. I started this podcast with the aim of helping to show off cool and interesting people involved in agriculture, and Gillian fits the mould for that perfectly! Check it out folks..

Simone Kain is the co-creator of George the Farmer, a social enterprise that focuses on educating kids about proper farming practices as well as how food and fiber are produced using apps, music, videos, picture books, and free curriculum-aligned educator’s guides. She drew inspiration from a 2012 survey in Australia that shows 10-12-year-old students don’t know where their food comes from. Simone describes George the Farmer as “everyone’s mate” and tackles the daily activities of Australian farming with passion.

In this episode, Simone explains how George the Farmer educates children. She shares the story behind George the Farmer, how they structured their app, and why knowing where your food comes from is essential. She also discusses the need for people to learn that a career in agriculture is not always about farming and how George the Farmer aims to do just that.

 
“We try to get kids to start thinking about the amazing opportunities available in agriculture.” – Simone Kain

 
This Week on The Future of Agriculture Podcast: 

• The origins of George the Farmer.
• What their app aims to do.
• Who their market is and their target age group.
• Their response from those who don't have a farm background.
• How kids have benefited from their app.
• Their future projects for George the Farmer
• Their process in trying to get George the Farmer in television.
• The challenges they've faced
• What surprised her the most in this project?

Connect with Simone Kain:

• George The Farmer
• Facebook
• Twitter

We Are a Part of a Bigger Family! 

The Future of Agriculture Podcast is now part of the Farm and Rural Ag Network. Listen to more ag-related podcasts by subscribing on iTunes or on the Farm and Rural Ag Network Website today. 

Share the Ag-Love! 

Thanks for joining us on the Future of Agriculture Podcast – your spot for valuable information, content, and interviews with industry leaders throughout the agricultural space! If you enjoyed this week’s episode, please subscribe on iTunes and leave your honest feedback. Don’t forget to share it with your friends on your favorite social media spots! 

Learn more about AgGrad by visiting: 

Future of Agriculture Website

AgGrad Website

AgGrad on Twitter 
AgGrad on Facebook 
AgGrad on LinkedIn 
AgGrad on Instagram 

Where does agriculture get their news and entertainment?

Also what are advertisers looking for?

Kelsey Banks is the Pumpkin Queen of Eastern Ontario but now lives in Saskatchewan. Going to college in the city and smelling like cows makes you the go to for questions on food and farming.

Tonight I'm delighted to be heading up to Malham in the Yorkshire Dales to talk to beef and sheep farmer, Neil Heseltine. 

And yes, first of all we start off talking about how a rugby playing upland farmer called Neil ended up with the slightly confusing twitter handle of @hilltopfarmgirl ;-)

After clearing that up though, we move on to talk about the farm that his family have been at for several generations, hilltopmalham.co.uk and the challenges of farming at 1200-1800ft above sea level, as well as discussing his early life and his time studying agriculture at Seale Hayne in Devon.

We talk about his return to the family farm, and the changed he's made since, including the reintroduction of cattle, the traditional British Breed of Belted Galloway, some of their characteristics, and the reasons behind that decision. We also chat about the Pasture Fed Livestock Association and how they're producing meat more sustainably from grass. 

We talk about how they reduced their Swaledale sheep numbers from a high of 800 to 200, and how their entire farming system is now based around the natural environment, which has seen flora and fauna, hares, and birds such as lapwings and curlews return to the farm. 

Neil tells us about the Nature Friendly Farmers Network, the recent surge of interest there's been in this relatively new organisation, and why he believes that increased focus on the environment in farming can lead to a more sustainable and profitable business.

We talk about the importance of selling their produce locally, and the social and community aspect of this, before moving on to talk about some of the scepticism he's encountered with regard to his way of farming.

We also discuss mental health in the farming industry, and how we must address the terrible accidental death and suicide statistics that are the largest of any industry in the UK. 

All this and much more. Neil's a great guy, farming in a really interesting way, and it was an absolute privilege to get to know him better tonight. Check it out folks.. 

This episode is kindly sponsored by NFU Cymru. For more information please visit www.nfu-cymru.org or www.rockandrollfarming.com 

Chris Rawley conceived the idea of crowdfunding platforms for agriculture while visiting a farm investment in Central America. He would soon start Harvest Returns, a crowdfunding company that serves investors looking to diversify their portfolio and invest their money on actual farms. Before founding Harvest Returns, Chris obtained corporate management roles in various companies and once served as a defense consultant at Special Operations Command Headquarters thanks to his military experience. He has been investing in real estate and agriculture for almost twenty years.

In this episode, Chris discusses how his company helps both farmers and investors. He shares how he got the idea of starting Harvest Returns, the company’s main goals, and what makes them different from other agricultural crowdsourcing platforms. He also shares some of their recent projects as well as some of their strategies in handling difficult markets.

 
“Agriculture is for people with long-term investment horizons.” – Chris Rawley

 
This Week on The Future of Agriculture Podcast: 

• What is equity crowdfunding?
• Who are their primary clients?
• What does Harvest Returns invest in?
• What assurance do investors have that their farm will be well managed?
• What would compel farmers to give up some of their ownership to get money?
• How do they handle a two-sided marketplace?
• How does their company make money?
• What made them start the company?
• How many deals have they closed so far?

Resources Mentioned:

• AgFunder

Connect with Chris Rawley:

• Harvest Returns
• Facebook
• Twitter

We Are a Part of a Bigger Family! 

The Future of Agriculture Podcast is now part of the Farm and Rural Ag Network. Listen to more ag-related podcasts by subscribing on iTunes or on the Farm and Rural Ag Network Website today. 

Share the Ag-Love! 

Thanks for joining us on the Future of Agriculture Podcast – your spot for valuable information, content, and interviews with industry leaders throughout the agricultural space! If you enjoyed this week’s episode, please subscribe on iTunes and leave your honest feedback. Don’t forget to share it with your friends on your favorite social media spots! 

Learn more about AgGrad by visiting: 

Future of Agriculture Website

AgGrad Website

AgGrad on Twitter 
AgGrad on Facebook 
AgGrad on LinkedIn 
AgGrad on Instagram 

Jonnie Roughrider likes tattoos and motorcycles. However, its was his views on preventative maintenance, when it comes to mental health, that steal the show.

Please watch this interview with Farmers Edge CEO Wade Barnes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22Fzg4QFu14

WTF is Mansplaining?