Latest 3 Episodes

Turning Wheat Straw Into A Value-Added Human Food Ingredient

Comet Bio is a technology-enabled food ingredient company that, after eight years, is finally ready to churn out food ingredients. The company extracts fiber — arabinoxylan to be specific — from wheat straw and turns it into an ingredient for food companies to use in food for human consumption. This is a win-win for everyone involved: New demand for an Ag by-product (straw) is always good, creating a product that adds up to 100 times value is even better. Comet’s CEO, Rich Troyer explains the process, the product, and the potential. The company’s first processing facility is in Denmark, with plans to build and open a facility in North American wheat country in the future.

Organic Poultry — at Scale — with Farmer Focus

Organic food sales growth still outpaces conventional, despite food inflation and even after nearly two decades of “organic” being a thing. Additionally, the margins are better for organic. So, how much longer can “organic” grow organically? How do organic chicken farms operate, is it the same as vertically integrated conventional poultry production? Where does the product end up?

Lorenzo Bared, VP of Strategy for Farmer Focus, the nation’s largest branded organic poultry producer with a business model focusing on independent family farmers.

If I Had a Billion Dollars, Where In Ag Would I Invest It? Or, Would I?

I was recently asked by two investor friends of mine, “Damian, if I handed you a billion dollars, where in Ag would you invest it?” The question, as well as the six weeks of pondering it inspired in my head, made me think this was a solid and stimulating topic for The Business of Agriculture. Looking from 2023 and beyond, where within our industry will there be a need for investment capital to fuel expansion to feed new demand? Biologicals? Ag tech? Real estate? Environmental plays using Ag? Food waste? Infrastructure? Rob Saik of AgVisorPro joins me on this fun discussion.