The Modern Acre

Alison Woitunski DiFiore is the Director of Small Farm Initiatives at FruitStand, which is a division of Apeel Sciences. FruitStand is an online platform that enables farmers to sell directly to customers with an emphasis on exotic fruit and unique crop varieties. Alison joins us to share about how her journey in farming ultimately led her to lead the team at FruitStand. She shares lessons learned along the way and how they are scaling the business. We also discuss Nuss Farms' partnership with FruitStand this year. Tune in! Show Notes: https://themodernacre.com/150

Get 20% off the Nuss Farms Squash Box! Gabe Brown is one of the pioneers of the current soil health movement which focuses on the regeneration of our resources. Gabe, along with his wife Shelly, and son Paul, own and operate Brown's Ranch, a diversified 5,000 acre farm and ranch near Bismarck, North Dakota. He is a partner, along with Ray Archuleta, Shane New, and Dr. Allen Williams, in Understanding Ag LLC. He is also an instructor for Soil Health Academy, which focuses on teaching others the power and importance of healthy functioning ecosystems. In this episode you will hear more about Gabe's journey to discovering regenerative agriculture, how context is key to a successful transition, and why regenerative ag is reaching a tipping point. We we're honored to have Gabe on the show and you won't want to miss it! Show Notes: https://themodernacre.com/149

Jody Levy is the Co-Founder and Creative Director of WTRMLN WTR, the pioneer in deliciously hydrating, super healthy watermelon water. Jody joins us to share the story of founding and scaling the business, covering areas of branding, supply chain, and sales. Show Notes: https://themodernacre.com/148

Kit Barron is the Head of Automation and Artificial Intelligence at FarmTogether, a technology-enabled farmland investment platform that provides accredited investors with direct access to farmland as an asset class. Kit has over 10 years of experience leveraging technology to shape the future of food and agriculture. Kit joins FarmTogether after six years at the Climate Corporation, where he helped build the world's leading AgTech platform, most recently as Director of Product, New Features. Kit joins us for a wide-ranging conversation covering his time at Climate Corp, his role at FarmTogether, and the role automation, agtech, and AI has in agriculture. Don't miss this one! Show Notes: https://themodernacre.com/147

Lew Moorman is the Co-Founder of Soilworks, a Public Benefit Company on a mission to accelerate the Regenerative Food Movement by helping launch scalable, repeatable businesses that fuel the Regenerative economy. Lew's background is in the tech industry and he shares his story about why he decided to jump into the ag industry and start investing there. Tune in to learn what's he's up to with Soilworks, PastureMap, and Wholesome Meats! Show Notes: https://themodernacre.com/146

Bakur Kvezereli is the founder and CEO of Ztractor, a startup that develops Autonomous Electric Tractors (AETs) to increase farming efficiency, productivity, safety on the field while reducing production cost and environmental footprint. Ztractor has 3 models under development BearCub 24, Mars 45, and Superpolit 125. The first model BeraCub 24 is available for online pre-orders. Prior to entrepreneurship Bakur was Senior Investment Officer at $1.5 Billion Sovereign Wealth Fund, focusing on investments in Ag Tech. Between 2008-2011 he was the delegate to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Bakur joins us to talk about what led him to start Ztractor, the challenges of growth, the timing of the industry, and where they are going from here. Tune in! Show Notes: https://themodernacre.com/145

David Nothmann is the Chief Revenue Officer of Terramera, a cleantech leader focused on fusing AI, science and nature to create revolutionary technologies that transform how we grow food and solve other world-scale challenges. David joins the podcast to share more about his journey in the ag industry, including starting at Monsanto, investing in agtech, and his current role with Terramera. This episode was full of ag insights! Show Notes: https://themodernacre.com/144

Mike Machado is a California farmer, veteran, and former State Senator. He continues to own and operate his family's walnut farm in Linden, California. Mike joins us to share more about his decades-long journey in agriculture, lessons along the way, passing it to the next-generation, and continuing to innovate along the way. Mike also shares his perspective on leveraging environmental easements through California Farmland Trust as a way to protect his farmland from development. Show Notes: https://themodernacre.com/143

Buy our squash box here!!! Tim and Tyler are back and feeling fiery. Tune in to learn why we think there should be more action and less complaining about how much farmers make for every dollar spent and why we're trying to do something about it with our new squash boxes. We also share our thoughts on the Driscoll's and Plenty partnership and what that indicates moving forward. Lastly, Tyler explains a hot take on Halloween decorations. Show Notes: https://themodernacre.com/142

Arama Kukutai is a co-founder and partner at Finistere Ventures, one of the pioneering venture firms dedicated to agritech, founded in 2006. Arama has been an investor, company founder and entrepreneur in the Agribusiness sector for over 20 years. Arama joins us to talk all things agtech investing, covering what he's paying close attention to right now and if the investment space is oversaturated. Don't miss this interview with an expert in agtech! Show Notes: https://themodernacre.com/141