Videos

Ryan Skaar, COO of NanoBio Designs, joins us on Directionally Speaking.

Farm Credit Mid-America's Natasha Cox on the speed of change + prioritizing smart bets for innovators and farmers alike

Meet the entrepreneurs and innovators in this year’s Velocity cohort. Velocity is an agbioscience accelerator focused in three critical areas: food is health, bioinnovation and farmer-focused innovation. Guided by research and strong mentorship, participants ranging from students, start-ups and existing companies will create solutions to defined challenges. Velocity culminates with a $25,000 prize for each track and an opportunity to move big ideas forward.

Great innovation starts with answering one question: what problem are you uniquely positioned to solve?

Velocity is an agbioscience accelerator focused in three critical areas: food is health, bioinnovation and farmer-focused innovation. Guided by research and strong mentorship, participants ranging from students, start-ups and existing companies will create solutions to defined challenges. Velocity culminates with a $25,000 prize for each track and an opportunity to move big ideas forward.

Learn more about Velocity: https://agrinovusindiana.com/velocity/

Learn more about NanoBioDesigns: https://www.nanobiodesigns.com/

Farm Credit Mid-America's Natasha Cox on the speed of change + prioritizing smart bets for innovators and farmers alike

New data from USDA shares that net cash farm income decreased roughly 3.5% from 2023 into 2024 and we’re looking at inflation adjusted numbers. But here’s the piece of the silver lining that may be untold: that number – net cash farm income – is still above average when we look at the last 20 years from USDA data. This week, Natasha Cox, Senior Vice President of Farm Credit Mid-America, joins us to help make sense of the numbers, what it means to producers and to the broader agbioscience economy. We get into:  The macro perspective on the health of farm balance sheets across the Midwest Big trends that she’s looking at from a financial health standpoint of farms and agribusinesses Consolidation – from both the farmer and innovator perspective – as a factor in the economic system of agriculture in the US New investments being made on farm or within agribusinesses to better connect to the end market of food is health Natasha’s perspective as a farmer and how she prioritizes where to place her bets for her operations The criticality of surrounding yourself with good partners, knowing your options when it comes to strategic planning and investments and asking the right questions for your operations or business The innovation she’s most excited about in 2025 

Hoosier Ag Today’s Eric Pfeiffer on market turbulence, trade wars + the need for a Farm Bill to make plans for the future

Hoosier Ag Today’s Eric Pfeiffer on market turbulence, trade wars + the need for a Farm Bill to make plans for the future

Stumbling into agbioscience, forging your path in college + what young talent wants with Field Atlas’ Cameron Weber

Stumbling into agbioscience, forging your path in college + what young talent wants with Field Atlas’ Cameron Weber

The year 2025 is poised to be an interesting one for agbioscience. Venture capital inflows from 2023 to 2024 are roughly flat according to Crop Life, the production cost of corn and soybeans remains roughly in line or slightly below market price and the turbulence around global trade and what tariffs could mean leave an uncertain operating market for what could be ahead. Joining us today is Hoosier Ag Today president, Eric Pfeiffer, to make sense of what’s ahead. We get into:

The current perspective of the farmer, their natural optimism and knowing the challenges that lie ahead for 2025.

Trends he’s noticing that are operational changes to drive net farm income – particularly biologicals – and why that’s challenging.

Property tax reform as a major topic in the Indiana General Assembly and making this issue relatable to the general public – because it does impact them at the end of the day.

The biofuels tax credit bill in the Indiana General Assembly and its potential economic impact and jobs to the state of Indiana (not to mention better burning, more sustainable fuel).

On a federal level – trade wars – and tariffs potential impact, good or bad, on farmers.

Farmers needing certainty on The Farm Bill to make plans for the future – it does not appear to be a priority at the moment.

Reason for optimism from farmers moving forward.

Making a difference in the world – it’s nearly a universal desire for all of us. But where do you fit in? And how best to you make an impact? One college student is making that impact and blazing their trail. Cameron Weber, a biology major at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and a Field Atlas Ambassador, joins us today to talk their path to agbioscience, including:

Talking to two kinds of people – those that grew up on the farm and those who stumbled into it and are happy they did. Cameron is in the latter

Wanting to originally be a doctor until getting connected with Field Atlas at a career fair and learning more about agbioscience.

Finding a new path and forging your way forward as a college student

Their six-month internship with Corteva Agriscience as a greenhouse assistant in Puerto Rico

Field Atlas Ambassadors – what do they do? And what has Cameron’s experience been like in their five semesters with the team?

Cameron’s advice for companies searching for young talent (hint: it’s not ping pong tables in the breakroom and pizza on Fridays)

Working on their thesis as they wrap up their time at Rose-Hulman

Cameron’s plans headed into graduation this spring – pssssss – she's currently looking for a job....

AgriNovus’ Dan Dawes on Indiana’s unfair advantage, biggest lessons in leadership + reflections on agbioscience innovation

AgriNovus’ Dan Dawes on Indiana’s unfair advantage, biggest lessons in leadership + reflections on agbioscience innovation