Episodes — AgTech So What Podcast

What’s limiting adoption of irrigation tech? Check out this free report for our insights.

Sarah Nolet

Ep 66: Jim Chambers (Trimble) and Derek Norman (Bayer) on agtech acquisitions

Ep 66: Jim Chambers (Trimble) and Derek Norman (Bayer) on agtech acquisitions

Today’s episode is all about corporate investments and acquisitions in agtech. Two guests, Derek Norman (VP at Leaps by Bayer) and Jim Chambers (President and General Manager of the Worldwide Agriculture Business at Trimble) cover different ways startups can engage with corporates, from early stage direct strategic investments, to channel partnerships, to acquisitions.

This episode was recorded LIVE at an event we co-hosted with Tim Hammerich, host of the Future of Agriculture podcast. If you're not yet a FoA listener, check out episode 201 featuring AgThentic Partner Matthew Pryor.

Ep 64 Pete Nelson on partnering with growers to build better agtech

Ep 64 Pete Nelson on partnering with growers to build better agtech

This week Sarah is joined by a guest host, Cass Mao, Principal Advisor at AgThentic, to chat with Pete Nelson of AgLaunch about how growers and agtech companies can work together in a model that they call "farmer-centric innovation"

Pete Nelson, originally a farmer and an English major at University, has been actively involved in building the support ecosystem for new agricultural enterprises for over 15 years. He has worked with a variety of public and private sector partners and helped to launch multiple startup companies. More recently, as President of AgLaunch, Pete has been working on sector-specific initiatives to fund, incubate, and accelerate agricultural companies with high growth potential by working with farmers.

In this episode, Pete explains what “farmer-centric innovation” means, how AgLaunch is driving it, and how having growers at the table fundamentally changes outcomes for startups and regional communities.

Ep63 Evan Fraser on 3 barriers to agtech adoption and impacts of COVID-19 on agriculture

Ep63 Evan Fraser on 3 barriers to agtech adoption and impacts of COVID-19 on agriculture

Evan Fraser is a food systems innovation expert. His passion for agriculture comes from his love of good food and summers spent spent working on his grandfather’s farm (more on that in the episode). He brings a multi-disciplinary and systems approach to his work, with degrees and work experience in various fields from anthropology to atmospheric chemistry to agriculture.

In this episode, Evan and I cover two main topics:

  1. Three big barriers to agtech adoption, and what’s being done to overcome them; and

  2. The impact of COVID-19 on agricultural supply chains.

Check out the episode blog for more on Evan and links to additional resources.

Ep 62 Allison Kopf on indoor ag business models and women in agtech (rebroadcast)

Ep 62 Allison Kopf on indoor ag business models and women in agtech (rebroadcast)

We hear all the time that we need to "feed the world" and that "agtech can help" But what role will indoor farming play? How do these systems work, what can they grow, and how do they make money?

We believe there will be many viable, profitable farming systems in the future. And that though there is a lot of hype around indoor agriculture, there’s a place for these systems, too.

Today’s guest, Allison Kopf, is an agtech entrepreneur and indoor ag expert. Her company, Artemis, builds software for indoor farms and specialty crops. In this episode, rebroadcast (with updates and edits) from a couple years ago, Allison shares an indoor ag 101. We also cover the challenges for women in agtech, and how we can increase gender diversity at conferences and in the market.

BONUS Episode: Live panel from evokeAG 2020 featuring global agrifood tech experts

BONUS Episode: Live panel from evokeAG 2020 featuring global agrifood tech experts

evokeAG, Asia Pacific's largest agrifood tech event, brought together 1300 innovators earlier in February this year in Melbourne, Australia. The jam-packed event featured international experts, innovative farmers, dozens of startups, and much more, showcasing what the region has to offer in agrifood tech innovation.

This bonus episode gives a taste of evokeAG and a live recording of the first panel on the main stage: The Asia-Pacific region and how we are rising. Panelists included:

Ep61 Alisdair Tulloch on the first-mover advantages of going carbon neutral

Ep61 Alisdair Tulloch on the first-mover advantages of going carbon neutral

Today’s guest is Alisdair Tulloch, a fourth generation grape grower, who has been on a journey to make his family business, Keith Tulloch Wine, carbon neutral.

In this episode, Alisdair shares:

  • Why they decided to go carbon neutral;

  • What practices and technologies they’re using, and what is and isn’t working; and

  • The financials - what the expensive parts are, and where the returns are coming from.

Ep 59: Mic Fels on startup buzzwords and where the real value is in agtech

Ep 59: Mic Fels on startup buzzwords and where the real value is in agtech

Mic Fels and his wife Marnie crop about 11,000 hectares in Esperance, Western Australia. But Mic is not your average farmer. He's an early adopter of technologies and farming systems (e.g., Controlled Traffic), and an innovator, building and commercializing a range of software products and machinery through his company, iPaddock.

On this episode, Mic shares where he is- and isn't- getting value in agtech, and what he's learned about both startups and farming from his journey as an entrepreneur.

Ep 58: Fiona Aveyard on drought, dust storms, and value-adding

Ep 58: Fiona Aveyard on drought, dust storms, and value-adding

Agtech is about more than the technologies. It's about new business models in agriculture, and of course the innovators driving changes along the value chain. Today’s guest, Fiona Aveyard, a 5th generation mixed farmer, is definitely an innovator and an entrepreneur.

We talk about how she’s working on a new supply chain and new value add products that can bring more profits to the farm and create jobs in her local community. And she’s doing all of this while facing dust storms and the worst drought in history.

This episode is again part of our series in partnership with Farmers2Founders.

Ep 57 Fee Turner and Lee Coleman on being farmers and agtech founders

Ep 57 Fee Turner and Lee Coleman on being farmers and agtech founders

Fee Turner (Bitwise Agronomy) and Lee Coleman (FarmSimple) are both farmers as well as founders of agtech startups. They, along with six other farmer-led businesses, have been selected into the Farmers2Founders Bootcamp program, an intensive 3 month accelerator that is helping them take their business to the next level.

In this episode, Fee and Lee tell us about their farms, startups, and the challenges they're facing being farmers and founders.

This episode is produced in partnership with Farmers2Founders. To learn more, check out https://www.farmers2founders.com/ or follow @farmers2founder on Twitter.

Stuart Austin on the tools for regenerative agriculture

Stuart Austin on the tools for regenerative agriculture

Stuart Austin is a regenerative farmer and self-proclaimed early adopter of technology.

In this episode we cover everything from how Stuart got involved in regenerative ag, to the tools he's using (and helping build) to make 6 and 7 figure decisions at Wilmot Cattle Company.

Stuart also shares his views on alternative proteins, transparency in agriculture, and the books and movies that he's found inspirational.

Meet two of the farmer-led startups in the Farmers2Founders Bootcamp

Meet two of the farmer-led startups in the Farmers2Founders Bootcamp

Ash Miles and David Ricardo are Australian farmers and founders of agtech startups Training Paddock and Farm Service Manager. They, along with six other farmer-led businesses, have been selected into the Farmers2Founders Bootcamp program, an intensive 3 month accelerator that helping them take their business to the next level.

Episode 53: researcher & startup collaborations in agtech (live panel)

Episode 53: researcher & startup collaborations in agtech (live panel)

Coming to you live from the AgTech Meetup in Sydney, this panel explores what it takes for startups and researchers to collaborate successfully in agrifood. Panelists for the evening were: Dr Peter Thorburn, Chief Research Scientist at CSIRO; Tegan Nock, Co-Founder at SoilCQuest 2031; and Nick Hazell, Founder and CEO at V2 Food.

The AgTech Meetup is proudly sponsored by SproutX, Australia’s first agtech accelerator.

Episode 51: Victor Friedberg on the transition from commodity to identity

Episode 51: Victor Friedberg on the transition from commodity to identity

Today’s guest, Victor Friedberg is the co-founder of S2G ventures, a Chicago-based firm that has backed companies across the ag and food industries such as Beyond Meat, Maple Hill Creamery, Benson Hill Biosystems, and Mercaris. Victor is also the founder of Foodshot Global, a non-profit consortium of companies focused on creating a food system that's more healthy, sustainable, and equitable.

Episode 48: Peter Thompson (Responding to climate risk)

Episode 48: Peter Thompson (Responding to climate risk)

Today’s episode is the 4th in the theme Responding to Climate Risk, brought to you in partnership with the Australian Farm Institute. Check out episodes 42, 44 and 46 to hear more on this theme. 

Today’s guest is Peter Thompson, a farmer based in rural Queensland, Australia that has been farming regeneratively before the word existed. He and his wife Nicki run grassfed beef cattle, do broadacre cropping, and have about 6000 acres of wilderness conservation country.

Episode 42: Anika Molesworth (responding to climate risk #1)

Episode 42: Anika Molesworth (responding to climate risk #1)

Anika Molesworth is a passionate advocate for sustainable farming and climate change action. She can be heard across Australia and abroad discussing the balance of rural landscapes and managing climate risk in agricultural systems.

In this episode we talk about managing climate risk and how Anika’s family experience taking on a property in far west NSW sparked her interest in this style of agricultural study. We also look at the differences she sees between the Riverina and South East Asia, and what we can learn from each. We also touch on technology of course, and its role in managing climate risk and telling the stories of the land.

This is the first of four episodes in partnership with the Australian Farm Institute on the theme "responding to climate risk".

Episode 40: Tim Rethus (Getting AgTech Ready #1)

Episode 40: Tim Rethus (Getting AgTech Ready #1)

Tim Rethus and his family are cropping farmers near Horsham in Victoria, Australia. They are early adopters and innovators who are leveraging best practices achieve their commitment to “sustainable, low cost farming”.

Tim has some valuable insights to share about adopting (and building) new technology, where to look for inspiration, deciding to shift to a whole new farming system, and more.

This episode is the first of four that we will be releasing on the theme of “getting agtech ready.” This theme is brought to you in partnership with Decipher, an easy-to-use precision agriculture solution helping growers and agronomists in 60 countries make data driven decisions. To learn more about Decipher, visit their website or follow them on twitter.

Want more on getting agtech ready? Check out our eBook!

Episode 37: Anthony Rudd, I-AG

Episode 37: Anthony Rudd, I-AG

Anthony began as John Deere Australia’s first integrated solutions manager. John Deere’s precision ag technology was tested in the USA and then brought to Australia. Anthony was integral in joining the technology to the dealership, and then helping connect the value to the grower. After leaving John Deere, Anthony, not wanting to abandon the relationships he had fostered but also recognizing the gaps in the market around managing on-farm data, founded I-AG. I-AG aims to bridge the gap between, “I’ve bought this piece of equipment and we can’t get it to work” and “I can now use and harvest the data to benefit my production”.