Agtech - So What?

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. Relevant links:

• Wilmot Cattle Company- https://www.wilmotcattleco.com.au/
• Write up of the 2019 Field Day- https://www.maiagrazing.com/250-plus-graziers-attend-field-day-on-drought-resilience/
• RCS Grazing for Profit course- https://www.rcsaustralia.com.au/products/family-business/grazing-for-profit-2/
• Allan Savory’s TED talk- https://www.ted.com/talks/allan_savory_how_to_fight_desertification_and_reverse_climate_change
• You inc. by John McGrath- https://www.amazon.com.au/You-Inc-Attract-Amazing-Business/dp/0732276365
• Remember the Titans (trailer)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ir1OH33uiwA
• Maia Grazing- https://www.maiagrazing.com/
• FarmBot- https://www.farmbot.com.au/

Ashlea 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. In this episode, Ash and David share the story behind Training Paddock and Farm Service Manager, and reflect on the differences and similarities between running a farm and building a startup. Relevant links:

• https://www.trainingpaddock.com.au/
• https://farmservicemanager.com/
• https://twitter.com/FarmServiceApp (@FarmServiceApp)

This episode is produced in partnership with Farmers2Founders. To learn more, check out https://www.farmers2founders.com/

Aidan Connolly is the CEO of Cainthus, and agtech startup using cameras and machine learning to help farmers make better decisions. Before that, Aidan helped Alltech grow from $24 million to $2.3 billion. During that time he was, among many things, Director of the Pearse Lyons Accelerator where he saw hundreds of agtech startups in all different sectors. Aidan shares his insights on:

• What it's like to go from a global agribusiness to a startup
• How cameras are transforming agriculture
• How to get engineers off the keyboard and onto the farms they're trying to help
• Why it's so important for farmers to help entrepreneurs, even when it's frustrating

For more from Aidan, check out:

• Aidan on LinkedIn
• Aidan on Twitter
• Aidan on Forbes
• Cainthus

Other resources:

• HBR on the average age of successful founders

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; and Nick Hazell, Founder and CEO at V2 Food. V2 Food: https://www.v2food.com/ SoilCQuest: https://www.soilcquest.org.au/ CSIRO: https://www.csiro.au/ The AgTech Meetup is proudly sponsored by SproutX , Australia’s first agtech accelerator.

Murray Scholz farms with his wife Emma in Southern NSW and the Eastern Riverina on the foothills of the snowy mountains. They grow wheat, canola, lupins, and barley, and run beef cattle and prime lambs. Murray’s family is celebrating their 100th anniversary this year, after his great-grandfather came to the area in 1919. They’ve always been an innovative family, adopting new practices and striving to run a profitable and sustainable business. In this episode, Murray shares several stories of how his thinking has changed through overseas travel and exposure to new perspectives, and the business decisions he’s made as a result. Tune in to learn about:

• What it’s like to be in the middle of the GMO controversy, where no one seems to listen to what you’re really saying
• Why Murray decided to run sheep, after publicly criticizing them for years
• How a hiking trip in Switzerland challenged his views on ag policies
• The decisions you can make when you’ve been collecting data for over 30 years
• Tips for agtech startups to better engage with farmers

To hear more from Murray or follow what Scholz farming is up to, check out:

• Practical tips from Murray on integrated weed management and water use efficiency: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9b4QRvoma1o
• Murray on why they integrated sheep and how they’re benefiting from a mixed farming operation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KjUfhCDzkU and https://www.theland.com.au/story/6272468/lifting-profit-to-cut-risk/
• Find Murray on twitter and Facebook @ScholzFarming

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. In this episode, Victor and I chat about: · How Victor went from tech entrepreneur to food and ag investor · How a systems approach to investing can decrease risk · Opportunities for farmers to benefit from consumer trends · Victor’s reflections on the agrifood tech opportunities down under Additional resources:

• S2G Ventures
• FoodShot Global
• Maple Hill Creamery
• Beyond Meat
• Umami
• Organic Fraud Imports in the news

Check out our "getting agtech ready" eBook here: https://www.agtechsowhat.com/getting-agtech-ready-ebook

Tim Hammerich, who grew up on a hobby farm in Northern California selling pigs, goats and ducks, is the Founder of AgGrad and the host of the Future of Agriculture podcast. In this episode, Tim and I chat about careers in agriculture, including what companies are looking for, tips for getting a job, and what’s different about jobs in agtech. For more on Tim, check out AgGrad (https://aggrad.com/) or find him on Twitter @TimHammerich and #FutureOfAgriculture Podcast

This week, Dr. Rachel Hay, social scientist at James Cook University and boutique pig farmer, shares insights from her PhD on the role of women in agtech adoption. Published in 2014, Rachel’s findings still hold true and could be helpful for agtech companies looking to understand the industry and develop marketing strategies that can cut through the noise.

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 broad-acre cropping, and have about 6000 acres of wilderness conservation country. His farming philosophy has developed over a lifetime on the land, and in this episode he shares his insights about:

• Finding compromises that are truly win-win;
• Avoiding the temptation of silver bullet solutions;
• The long list of technologies they’ve adopted; and
• The importance of balance.

Find out more about Peter and his project's here:

• EchoCattle: https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Agricultural-Cooperative/Echo-Cattle-228388813850666/
• PeterPointT, his invention that’s now sold globally: https://www.facebook.com/433620400044090/videos/1219724138184212/
• Soil2Soul: www.soil2soul.com.au
• Walk over weighing project: https://futurebeef.com.au/projects/walk-over-weighing/

Today’s episode is a live recording from the Sydney AgTech meetup. Our guest is Dan Harburg, senior director at Indigo Ag. IndigoAg is one of agtech’s biggest startups. They’ve raised over $650M, have over 1k staff, and are working to expand in the US and internationally. Dan was visiting Australia to learn more about carbon farming, and the work happening here that might be helpful to Indigo and farmers around the world. Indigo Ag - https://www.indigoag.com/ Episode produced by Grow Love Project.