#86 – DNA Acres – David and Nicki Yanak (US Air Force)

Today's guests are David and Nicki Yanak from DNA Acres — two Air Force veterans who left the service with no farming background, a piece of land in rural Missouri, and absolutely no idea what they were getting into. David spent his career in security forces before a series of back surgeries brought his military path to an abrupt end. Nicki served in communications and later became a nurse. Neither of them grew up farming, nor had they planned to, but when a neighbor knocked on David's door and said "good — you have no bad habits I have to break," something clicked. What started with a backfield, a craftsman lawn mower, and a favor for a sick neighbor has grown into a direct-to-market operation raising cattle, chickens, and turkeys — built on non-GMO feed, regenerative grazing, and a stubborn commitment to doing things differently. As David puts it, "The farming community, regardless — big AG, regenerative, whatever — just seems to be a community that reminds me of the military. You need help, they show up. You got a question, you call, you ask, you get their perspective." In this episode, we talk about what it actually looks like to build a farm from scratch — the financial risk, the YouTube rabbit holes, and the patient, unglamorous work of improving land one season at a time. We also get into why David and Nicki made the leap to sell direct to their community, and why transparency in how their animals are raised is a reflection of the values they carried out of uniform. This is a real grassroots story. No shortcuts. No fancy equipment. Just two veterans figuring it out as they go — and finding purpose in the process. Enjoy!

“Agriculture is an act of peace. Well-fed people really don’t feel like fighting, but unfed people will do anything to feed their family.” Peter Byck is a Professor of Practice at the Schools of Sustainability and Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University, President of Carbon Cowboys, and documentary filmmaker. Peter’s work sits at the intersection of military readiness, national security, and regenerative agriculture. His journey involving the military and agriculture started with a simple question: why are we putting our military in harm’s way to protect resources we could be producing differently at home? That led him from documenting renewable energy at forward operating bases to his latest work: a four-part docu series called Roots So Deep You Can See the Devil Down There, which documents a multi-million-dollar research project comparing conventional and regenerative grazing. But Peter’s story doesn’t stop at the farm gate. In his newest film,  camp AMP, he follows US Army Major Eric Czaja and wife Angela, as they show how regenerative grazing inside a military installation can improve mission readiness while simultaneously creating pathways for veterans transitioning back to civilian life. In this conversation, we talk about how regenerative agriculture connects to military preparedness, why well-fed populations create more stable societies, and how scaling these practices across the military isn’t just good for farming – it’s good national security strategy. Enjoy!

Today’s guest is Alicia Ellis—a US Air Force veteran whose work goes well beyond farming as a lifestyle choice. Alicia has spent her career thinking about systems: how food is produced, how it moves, who controls it, and what happens when those systems fail. And for her, agriculture isn’t separate from national defense—it’s foundational to it. As Alicia puts it, “Food security is national security.” In this episode, we talk about why resilient food systems matter for military readiness, how agriculture fits into broader national security conversations, and why veterans are uniquely positioned to see those connections. Alicia shares how her experience in uniform shaped the way she approaches agriculture—not just as production, but as infrastructure that supports communities, installations, and the nation as a whole. This is a conversation about preparedness, risk, and responsibility—about why food deserves a seat at the national security table, and why veterans belong in that conversation. Enjoy!

Today’s guest is Matt Adler, a US Air Force veteran whose military background isn’t the typical straight line into agriculture—but stick with us, because the connection matters. Matt spent his time in uniform working in highly technical, high-stakes environments where mistakes weren’t an option. And while we do touch on his experience as a nuclear specialist, the real value of this conversation is how that kind of training reshaped the way he sees agriculture. As Matt puts it, “What the military really taught me was systems thinking… When I got into agriculture, I realized it’s the same exact thing.” In this episode, listen closely for a few key threads: first - how military systems thinking applies directly to soil health and farm management; secondly - why agriculture punishes shortcuts the same way the military does; and finally, how Matt’s transition forced him to slow down, filter noise, and focus on what actually drives outcomes on the land. This is a wide-ranging conversation, but at its core, it’s about interconnected systems and why veterans often see agriculture differently once they step into it. Enjoy! 1840 Farm Foundation - https://www.linkedin.com/company/1840-farm-foundation/ Elm Spring Farm - https://elmspringfarmco.com/

Today’s guest is Nate Hankes – US Army drone operator turned soil scientist then sales engineer at a cutting-edge agricultural sensor manufacturer. Nate spent 14 months in Baghdad during the 2007 troop surge, watching chaos unfold from a screen thousands of feet above, feeling both omniscient, at times, and impotent. He came home carrying a weight of the war he didn't know he had, spent nine years writing a book to process it, and took five months to hike the Appalachian Trail to figure out who he was after the uniform came off. As Nate says, “I called it the Bagdad hangover. I lost a decade of my life to it.” His path into agriculture wasn't some romantic calling—it was practical advice from his dad during the Great Recession and a college program that didn't require calculus. But somewhere between a Monsanto internship at an Idaho phosphate mine, graduate research on a selenium-accumulating plant that killed livestock, and learning hydroponics in a Bob Marley-playing, barefoot California office, Nate found something he didn't expect: Purpose through Science. Now he's at Apogee Instruments in Utah, working with researchers and growers who are trying to do everything from grow plants in space to monitor the distribution of light in their greenhouses. The company was founded by his former graduate advisor, Dr. Bruce Bugbee, who's been manufacturing high-fidelity environmental sensors for nearly 30 years. In this conversation, we get into: The moral weight of remote warfare Leadership failures that push good people out, and Why the precision of measuring photons matters when you're trying to feed people Nate doesn't sugarcoat the hard parts, and he's not interested in wrapping his military service in nostalgia. He's just trying to do work that matters. Enjoy!

Today’s guest is Robin Gentry McGee, founder of Essential Provisions. Robin’s story is part kitchen, part battlefield – not one of dirt and distant lands, but a battle for her father’s health. Her early years were spent in the family’s garden, followed by a career in food and restaurants, and then a seismic moment when her father’s hospital experience forced her to rethink what we call “hospital food.” That led her from the kitchen to product development and ultimately to building shelf-stable meals designed with service members and high performers in mind. As Robin says: “These guys, especially when they were deployed, they need a taste of home. They need to feel like this just came off their loved one's stove.” This episode isn’t about miracle cures or grand claims. It’s about how a daughter’s experience with her father—about family meals, advocacy, and seeing what people are actually fed when they’re at their most vulnerable—became the engine for a company trying to reconnect service members to real food. We dig into product development, sourcing from regenerative farms, the procurement challenges with the military, and the practical reasons why a “taste of home” matters for health, performance, and morale. Enjoy!

Today’s episode brings you a story that sits right at the intersection of grit, service, and the regenerative future of our military installations. And it starts with a spark—one that Angela Czaja noticed long before the Department of War ever cared about cattle, soil health, or regenerative grazing. As Angela puts it: “I saw, even in North Carolina, just this passion that Eric [her husband] had for livestock… this spark about him whenever he was around the livestock… That was just a really special place for him.” That spark eventually became one of the most unconventional, disruptive, and frankly needed ideas to hit the national security space in decades: using regenerative livestock management as a tool to harden military installations, restore degraded training lands, and create meaningful pathways for transitioning service members. Angela joins us today to give the inside view—not the thesis version, not the policy deck, but the family-level, marriage-level, move-across-the-country-three-times-with-kids-in-tow version—of what it really took to build what is now the Regenerative Grazing Open-Air Lab at Camp San Luis Obispo. In this conversation, you’ll hear how a dairy-farm kid from Wisconsin ends up shaping one of the most interesting ag-meets-national-security projects in the country… why livestock became a lifeline of purpose during her husband's transition from the Army Special Forces… and how their family’s faith, resilience, and service-driven mindset turned a wild idea into a model the Pentagon is now watching closely. You can also watch the short documentary produced by Peter Byck on YouTube here. Enjoy!

Our guest, Karl Palmberg from Sunlight and Rain Grass-fed Beef, is a man whose life has been shaped by service—first in the Air Force, flying F-16s, and now on the family farm, where he’s building a legacy of regenerative agriculture. Karl’s story is a powerful reminder that the transition from military service to farming isn’t just about changing careers; it’s about finding a calling that brings deep satisfaction and a sense of duty to something greater than oneself. As Karl puts it, “Being able to figure out how to feed people nutritious food gives a lot of job satisfaction whereas some of my peers end up doing other jobs that pay a lot more, but don’t give that kind of sense of meaning and purpose. And if I had to choose one, I choose the one that I have right now.” Have a listen as we dive into Karl’s journey, his intentional approach to farming and grazing, and the lessons he’s learned along the way about purpose, service, and the enduring connection between veterans and the land. Let's get into it!

Today’s guest is Juan Whiting— President of the Hinterland Institute, fourth generation farmer and rancher, and Army Reserve Civil Affairs officer. Juan has a masters degree in international development and prior to the Hinterland Institute and Stray Acres, he spent eight years in East Africa working on a regenerative ag movement. Today, Juan is on a mission to transform how we steward 26 million acres of Department of Defense land. Juan isn’t just talking about giving veterans a hobby farm or a soft landing. As he puts it, “we don’t just need to bring young people into agriculture. You need to bring in young people that can actually get the job done.” In this episode, you’ll hear how Juan and his team are building partnerships with base commanders, regenerative producers, and veterans to regenerate rangelands, feed troops from local installations, and develop the next generation of “regenerates” – veterans trained and equipped to manage the land regeneratively. This is a bold vision for national security, rural revival, and veteran opportunity – all rolled into one. Lets get into it!

Today’s guest is James Triplett—Army veteran, youth pastor, former diesel mechanic, and now co-lead of a dynamic regenerative farm in Mississippi. James isn’t here to play it safe. He’s here to talk about what it really means to hit rock bottom—and climb back out with purpose. From surviving suicidal ideation to managing 800 acres of rotationally grazed livestock in Mississippi, his story is proof that healing can happen on the land—but only if you’re willing to do the work. As James says: “I’m not chasing my dreams. I’m walking in my purpose.” In this episode, you’ll hear how James went from rock-bottom to running Etta Hills Farm alongside the son of regenerative ag specialist Dr. Allen Williams. We dig into soil, business, faith, and why teaching ag to kids might be one of the most powerful things we can do for the next generation. Let’s get into it.