Vets In Ag Podcast

"To me, the question of a changing climate is not a political question. But I became very aware that the people in my generation who right now have both the political and economic authority, don't have the political or economic will to make those changes. So I thought, ok, think globally, but act locally. Is there actually something that I can do?” Our guest this week is Ken Smith - a Navy veteran and now a Savory Institute Accredited Professional Associate Educator based in Fort Worth, TX. Ken teaches holistic management practices to military veterans and civilians alike all over the country. From humble beginning on a small sustainable farm in Arkansas, then to the Navy Academy and Vietnam followed by a long career in manufacturing. Towards the end of this chapter, Ken began to wonder if there was something he could do to change the way businesses thought about sustainability. This passion began with for-profit businesses, but Ken quickly realized he could make a more meaningful contribution to sustainability if he focused his efforts on agricultural land management. Allan Savoy’s 2013 TED Talk was the turning point for him. Enjoy this episode as Ken and I get into our shared military experiences afloat in the vast oceans, a shockingly similar early childhood for him and my kids, and why Ken, throughout the episode, kept coming back to the phrase, “If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”

“The wine starts the conversation. It brings people in and sets them up for what we’re really trying to do, which is support our community through agriculture.” This was a beautifully simple explanation by one of our guests describing how a for-profit entity can not only enable a non-profit effort but can also serve as a funnel to drive like-minded individuals towards a common goal. We have two guests on the podcast this week - Ben Martin and Leanne Babcock – both with the Dauntless Veterans Foundation. Ben was an early guest on the podcast (episode 8) and is the founder and winemaker at Dauntless Wine Co – a veteran-owned and operated winery in the Willamette Valley of Oregon whose ultimate mission is to give back to warriors in need by offering them a place to learn about agriculture. Leanne Babcock grew up in Oregon’s Willamette Valley picking blueberries and plums on her grandfather’s orchard. She enlisted in the US Air Force in 2003 working on emergency vehicles before being commissioned as an officer several years later and began that chapter of her career as a logistician.  She is currently supporting logistics and engineering efforts as an individual mobilized augmentee assigned to North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and US Northern Command (USNORTHCOM).   Our conversation picks up with Ben describing what it was like having Leanne first show up to Dauntless Wine Company and making her intentions clear that she wanted to support their efforts help veterans in the Willamette Valley through a non-profit foundation. Have a listen to this episode to find out this team’s early struggles with starting a non-profit in a post-pandemic world, the interplay between a for-profit entity and the foundation, and the story behind how how Dauntless’s largest donor last year was 9-year old boy! Enjoy!

“Only 7% of all technical information is transmitted through the verbal word. Everything else is done through body language, rhythm speed, volume, intonation, etc.” But what do verbal and non-verbal communication have to do with veterans in agriculture? Our guest this week on the #VetsIn Ag podcast referenced this quote while describing his own transition into the private sector. William Foster, an agricultural equipment technician at Ben Burgess and Co., a John Deere dealer in the UK, began his career in the British Army leading and teaching tracked vehicle reconnaissance and equipment. There he developed a set of tangible and intangible skills that should have been directly transferrable to the agricultural machinery sector. However, due to an early career rejection and a typo in a presentation request, a passion was ignited in Will to close this skill gap and prove to his current employer that he had what it took to be successful in this industry. Have a listen to this episode to find out how Will ended up here, his passion for helping veterans transfer their skills to a new career, and his views on the future of mechanized machinery in ag and the nuances of a farmer’s right to repair.

It sucks to suck Our guest for this week is Greg Putnam, President and Co-Founder at Little Belt Cattle Co, a Montana-based cattle ranch which provides sustainably-raised, 100% Montana beef to the local markets in Bozeman and Big Sky. After spending some time working in the outdoor industry after college, Greg decided it was now or never to join the military. After a successful 10-year career as a Navy SEAL, Greg and his family left the military and settled back into Montana so his three young daughters could have the life they always wanted . As Greg tells it, there was no master plan that shaped this new direction in his life, but like many military veterans, he had a passion for ranching and cattle production and was willing to put in the work to learn something from the ground. Have a listen to find out from Greg why it “sucks to suck.” Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/littlebeltcattleco/

If you can identify the most worthy goal for you personally, why would you do anything else? This is the fourth episode in our multi-part series sponsored by Farmer Veteran Coalition (FVC), a national non-profit organization mobilizing veterans to feed America and transition from military service to careers in agriculture. This series will showcase unique partnerships between FVC and several organizations offering programs and support for military veterans in agriculture. Our guest today is Joshua Morris, owner/operator at Cold Spring Farm in the Missouri Ozarks. He’s also a Farmer Veteran Coalition member, Fellowship Fund recipient and Kubota’s Geared to Give recipient. Joshua has worn many hats throughout his military career and into the agriculture: Parachutist, Engineer, Real Estate Investor, Bison Rancher, Show Goat Expert, Cattlemen, Published Author, and YouTuber. We get into all of this during today’s episode and Joshua shares some fantastic information about how to create niche agricultural opportunities wherever you settle. And the Farmer Veteran Coalition has been along for the entire ride the entire time!

"I try to live everyday to the fullest" Our guest this week is Liz Riffle, owner/operator at Riffle Farms, the first commercial bison operation in the state of West Virginia authorized to field harvest animals for sale as individual cuts. Liz’s journey from growing up in a small-town in New Hampshire after the fast-paced life of moving around the country with her Navy pilot father and nursing mother is so relatable for many veterans! After being assigned to the Wounded Warrior unit at Walter Reed as a 22-year old nurse in the middle of two wars, Liz managed to reach back to her time growing up with horses as a way to cope with the difficulties of this assignment. She also met her husband, Jimmie, here and after 8 years in the Navy, set off as a trail blazer into the field of commercial bison production. This episode is all about that journey – what it's like to raise bison, the regulatory and logistical challenges of starting something so nuanced, and real conversations about holistic management and farm profitability. Liz is such a great orator that I hope you find this conversation as interesting and engaging as I did. Enjoy!

This is the third episode in our multi-part series sponsored by Farmer Veteran Coalition (FVC), a national non-profit organization mobilizing veterans to feed America and transition from military service to careers in agriculture. This series will showcase unique partnerships between FVC and several organizations offering programs and support for military veterans in agriculture. Our guest for this episode with Malissa Burgess, an Assistant Manager with Analytic Acquisitions. Malissa is working as a small business vendor contracted by the USDA to implement the Discrimination Financial Assistance Program. Based in Katy, Malissa is working throughout the great state of Texas conducting outreach and technical assistance for farmers and ranchers applying for the program. If you’re interested in the applying for the program or have already started applying, but are stuck at certain parts of the application, Malissa does a great job of condensing this application process into digestible parts with practical ways to navigate each step. Enjoy!

This is the second installment in our two-part episode with Sawyer Clark from Gold Leaf Farming. In the previous episode, Sawyer and I talked about his early farming experiences in Oregon, his activity duty Army time, and his transition from military service into business school before landing at Gold Leaf.  In this episode, Sawyer and I dive into the details about Gold Leaf Farming: Who they are What they do Why they do it the way they do, and How they approach both farmland investment and management. It’s a unique position they sit in – both investor and manager – but it creates a sort of “vertical integration” within the farmland management space that sets them aside from their peers. Their long-term vision, ability to invest in that vision, and skill to make that vision a reality are things Gold Leaf does quite well. Enjoy!

"Every job is a people job" Our guest this week is Sawyer Clark. Sawyer is a former Army intelligence officer and the Director of Asset Management at Gold Leaf Farming. In this capacity, Sawyer leads a team that farms ~5,800 acres of pistachios, almonds, and dates all the way from northern California to Yuma, Arizona. Since its inception six years ago, Gold Leaf has grown to 85 full-time employees, 27 farms, and more than 12,000 acres.   From his time growing up in Oregon farming blueberries and hazelnuts to a short but meaningful career in the Army, Sawyer never really struggled with a lack of purpose like many veterans. Sure, he had several “what’s next” moments, but that uncertainty, at least to me, never seemed to linger much for him. Before leaving the Army, a small side hustle selling ammunition from his apartment seemed like a great way to explore business. Next was a stint at Stanford for his MBA where he spent less than three months wondering what might be next before landing a job at Gold Leaf even before graduating. Through all of those experiences and into Gold Leaf, Sawyer never lost track of the fact that every job in a people job, but especially in agriculture. There were so many great lessons learned from Sawyer’s early career and unique aspects to Gold Leaf’s business that we decided to make this interview into two episodes! Enjoy this first installment that dives deeper into Sawyer’s background before Gold Leaf.

"Remember that you will become like the five people you spend the most time with." Our guest this week is AJ Richards. AJ is a combat veteran, entrepreneur, and CEO of Sustenance Earth, an early-stage SAAS marketplace that plans to connect consumers directly to local food producers, starting with beef. His passion for ag stems from his family ranching background in Southern Utah, followed by an enlistment in the Army National Guard and a deployment to Iraqi from 2005-2006. Like many veterans, AJ struggled to find his purpose following military service, spending time selling pest control products, working in the oil field, self-development coaching, managing a USDA beef processing plant, and starting a CrossFit style fitness competition. The quote above comes from a realization during this search that he was not surrounded by the type of people who would have a positive impact on this life. So he made a change. In this episode, AJ and I discuss the myriad of business opportunities he’s been a part of, some of them unsuccessful, and the lessons learned from those experiences. It was enjoyable following this story during our conversation where he never lost sight of his desire to be back in agriculture. Sustenance Earth was born out of those experiences as well as the struggles we all saw with the food supply chain during COVID. Listen in as AJ describes his path to be the “Airbnb” for the food supply chain. You can follow AJ on LinkedIn, Instagram, and TikTok. He's also started a discord group geared towards helping producers find interested buyers. The group can be found here - www.feedthepeoplebythepeople.com