FOCUS on Agriculture

May 14 2024 92 ep. 34 mins 835

FOCUS on Agriculture Podcast artwork

Join Preston Schrader and Jason Carr, scientists in the ag industry, as they interview guests about a wide range of agricultural topics. From digital ag, pests, and sustainability to increasing yield, they cover all aspects of ag to help growers succeed and open a dialogue with consumers.

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Episode 92: Duane Simpson - A Look into the Herbicide Registration Process

May 14 2024 32 mins

Duane Simpson is Head of Ag Affairs and License to Operate, North America, Australia, and New Zealand for Bayer Crop Science. For more detail on his career history, check out Episode 82, where we spoke with him about advocating for science-based, farmer-positive ag policy. In our latest conversation, Duane describes the herbicide registration process, discusses how farmers can shar

Episode 91: Marvin Pritts - Strawberry Production and Factors that Affect Flavor

Apr 25 2024 39 mins

Have you ever wondered why some strawberries from the grocery store or farmer’s market taste wonderful while others are relatively flavorless? Do you struggle to produce strawberries in your home garden? We learn about these topics and much more in our latest episode. Dr. Marvin Pritts is a professor and the director of undergraduate studies, School of Integrative Plant Science H

Episode 90: Ambassador Kip Tom - Threats and Opportunities in Modern Ag

Apr 05 2024 49 mins

Ambassador Kip Tom served as the United States Ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture from 2019-2020. As a seventh generation farmer, Kip has worked tirelessly as a voice for farmers in the U.S. and around the globe and is a strong advocate for technological advances in agriculture. In this episode we discuss Kip’s journey from farm boy to becoming an

Episode 89: Congressman Brad Finstad - Upcoming Policy and How Farmers Can Impact It

May 11 2023 18 mins

Congressman Brad Finstad was elected to Congress in a special election on August 9, 2022, and was sworn in three days later with his family by his side as he took the Oath of Office to proudly represent Minnesota’s First District. Brad is a fourth-generation farmer and resident of the New Ulm area. He and his wife, Jackie, met on the school bus in second grade and they are now th

Episode 88: Don Ort - Improving Crop Yields by Increasing Photosynthetic Efficiency

Jan 23 2023 38 mins

Dr. Donald Ort is is the Robert Emerson Professor in Plant Biology and Crop Sciences at the University of Illinois and Deputy Director of the RIPE (Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency) project. His research seeks to understand and improve plant growth and photosynthetic performance in changing environmental conditions, such as increasing CO2 temperature and dro

Episode 87: Stu Ellis - Half a Century of Changes in Agriculture

Dec 12 2022 49 mins

Stu Ellis has been a well-known agricultural communicator in Illinois for 50 years. He began as the farm broadcaster at WSOY in Decatur and expanded his service to corn belt farmers through radio, television, newspapers, newsletters, and the Internet. Listen to hear Stu's story - from growing up on the farm, attending college, and through a long, distinguished, and impa

Episode 86: Joni Stepanov - Controlled Environment Agriculture Part II

Nov 28 2022 31 mins

Joni Stepanov's long career in agriculture has culminated in her current role as horticulture consultant at AmplifiedAg. In this position, she conducts research to determine how to best manage crops in a completely controlled environment. Listen in to learn about her research. For a visualization of the concepts discussed in this podcast, check out the following v

Episode 85: Don Taylor - Controlled Environment Agriculture Part I

Nov 14 2022 31 mins

The mission of AmplifiedAg is to provide global access to safe food, by growing the indoor agriculture category through innovation, experience, and partnership. In this episode, we speak with CEO Don Taylor about how the company is achieving this mission. Listen to learn how a unit of land can produce over 100X the amount of food compared to traditional outdoor methods

Episode 84: Harvest Recap 2022 and the Challenges Farmers Face

Oct 31 2022 15 mins

Each year farmers are faced with a unique set of challenges, and 2022 was no exception. In this episode, Preston and Jason recap the 2022 growing season and discuss the future of farming. For added context to the discussion, check out the following episodes: Episode 42: Julie Borlaug - Dr. Norman Borlaug and the Green Revolution Episode 56: Matt Helm - New Tools in the

Episode 83: Jayson Lusk - Unnaturally Delicious: How Science and Technology are Serving up Super Foods to Save the World

Oct 17 2022 45 mins

Dr. Jayson Lusk is an ag economist at Purdue University, where he is a distinguished professor and head of the Department of Agricultural Economics. Dr. Lusk studies what we eat and why we eat it. He is the author of several books, including his latest, Unnaturally Delicious: How Science and Technology are Serving up Super Foods to Save the World. In this episode,