Advertise on podcast: The Truth About Ag

What happens when a farm grows from a family operation into a business employing 10, 20 or 30 people? The equipment, acres, and financial systems may have evolved, but how people are managed doesn’t always keep pace. After an introduction with Todd Andries, Evan is joined by Lyndsay Seafoot, founder and CEO of Curbridge, to talk about the people side of running a farm business. They discuss compensation for family members, career progression, employee handbooks and contracts, performance conversations, hiring and onboarding, bonus structures, and what farms compete against when trying to attract good people to rural communities. They also discuss the less tangible side of leadership: the difference between being friendly and being friends with employees, why the first week shapes someone's experience for years, why feedback should come before a problem hits the breaking point, and how good leaders give people room to use their strengths. Lyndsay also shares her experience as an entrepreneur and why she works with a business coach. Her go-to advice: sometimes you have to slow down to go fast.

After an introduction in which Kristjan and Evan answer questions that have come in from the last few episodes, they are joined by Candace Laing. Candace shares her path from a family farm in southwest Saskatchewan to senior leadership at Nutrien and now CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, including how her agricultural roots have shaped the way she approaches business, policy and leadership. The conversation explores Canada’s economic future and the role agriculture should play in it. Candace, Kristjan and Evan discuss investment, rural infrastructure, regulation, productivity and why production agriculture can still struggle to find its place in national conversations alongside energy, mining and other major industries. They also explore where collaboration and larger-scale thinking could help agriculture participate in new investment and growth opportunities. Candace also shares the story behind her book, Girl, You Got This, and why she believes sharing real career experiences can help more women see themselves in leadership. The discussion touches on women in agriculture, succession and the importance of putting the right person in the right role regardless of gender or tradition.

Policy uncertainty has become a constant in agriculture, but the bigger question is what producers should focus on. Evan and Kristjan are joined by Shaun Haney and Tyler McCann for a farm-level look at the forces shaping Canadian agriculture right now, including trade, global markets and the broader policy decisions influencing costs, commodity prices and business risk. The conversation ultimately comes back to management. In an environment where markets can move quickly, and outside factors are difficult to predict, knowing your numbers, understanding how much risk your business can carry and making decisions with a longer view become increasingly important. The group also challenges some of the prevailing pessimism around Canadian agriculture, looking at the competitive advantages producers have today and how better financial and risk management can help farms respond to uncertainty.

After an introduction in which Evan discusses what he would do to help agriculture in the future, Evan and Kristjan are joined by Andrea Gruza and Mitchell King of Bonnefield Financial for a conversation about farmland, access to capital and the role of private investment in Canadian agriculture. Andrea and Mitchell explain how Bonnefield works with farmers, including sale-and-leaseback arrangements, land unit exchanges and expansion-related land purchases. They discuss how lease rates are determined, how long-term leases and buyback options can be structured, and what they look for when deciding which farm operators to work with. The conversation also covers farmland ownership rules, the availability of capital in different provinces, succession and transition situations, and the challenges farms can face when land they currently rent or want to acquire comes up for sale. Evan and Kristjan also share their perspectives on land ownership, rental arrangements, working capital and the importance of understanding the different financing and partnership options available to a farm.

After an introduction with Evan and Kristjan discussing the beginning of harvest and how important it is to sit in someone else’s seat, Colin Brisebois joins them. Most people know Farm Credit Canada for lending, but they talk about the work happening beyond what you’d expect, including the partnership with Maverick Ag. From advisory services and strategic partnerships to transition planning and business education, Colin explains how FCC is working with producers as farm businesses become more complex and the demands on owners continue to grow. The conversation moves through some of the challenges facing farm families today, including succession, bringing the right advisers together, and actually putting plans into action. Colin also talks about the value of surrounding producers with people who can fill specific skill needs, rather than expecting one person to be great at every part of the business. Looking ahead, Colin shares where FCC is placing its attention, including transition, innovation, new forms of capital, technology adoption and the long-term strength of rural communities. It’s a broader look at how FCC sees its role in Canadian agriculture, and how knowledge, advice and capital can work together to help producers move their businesses forward.

Kristjan and Evan kick off the episode with a wide-ranging discussion on the major challenges impacting the agricultural industry. They share insights into evolving global market conditions and practical financial strategies farms can use to navigate policy shifts, manage finances, and plan strategically.  Then, live from Ag in Motion, they’re joined by Craig Davidson, CEO of Taurus Ag and the newest sponsor of The Truth About Ag. Craig shares the story behind Taurus as the company marks 25 years in business, his roots on a fifth-generation farm, and the philosophy that has shaped much of the company’s approach to agronomy and fertility: think like a plant. They dig into plant health, biologicals, fertilizer availability, salt load, phosphate and sulfur, and why measuring the value of fertility by tonnes purchased can miss what actually matters to both the plant and the farm’s margin. The conversation also moves beyond agronomy into how Craig thinks about business, relationships and the future of agriculture. He talks about the value of challenging customers and being challenged in return, supporting rural communities, being willing to fail in pursuit of something better, and the potential for AI, better data and emerging computing technology to help agriculture make faster, more precise decisions.

Live from Ag in Motion at the John Deere booth, Kristjan and Evan are joined by Deanna Kovar, President of Deere's Ag and Turf Division. She grew up on a Wisconsin dairy farm, started as a summer intern decades ago, and has since worked her way through nearly every corner of the company. It's a chance to talk shop with someone who's both run the numbers on a combine's R&D budget and filled the drill herself. The conversation ends up being less about any single product and more about how Deere thinks. How a company built on iron became just as much a technology company, why that bet on precision ag decades ago still shapes everything they build today, and how they're trying to earn farmers' trust with their data while actually making it useful. Trade policy and tariffs come up; so does the long road from "nobody wanted to touch Operations Centre" to "I can't run my farm without it," and there's real talk about right to repair, retrofitting older equipment, and where the next wave of value on the farm is actually going to come from. It's a wide-ranging, honest conversation from someone who clearly hasn't lost the farm-kid perspective despite the corner office — capped off with a few personal questions that get at how she thinks about leadership, decision-making, and what she'd want for the future of North American agriculture.

Evan and Kristjan sit down with Dick Wittman, farm management consultant, educator, and longtime faculty member of Texas A&M's Executive Program for Agricultural Producers (TEPAP). The conversation takes a hard look at an uncomfortable trend: using a proficiency checklist tracked over 25+ years, Dick reveals that farm operators, even massive, sophisticated operations doing hundreds of millions in sales, are scoring worse on basic management fundamentals today than they were two decades ago. We talk through why: gaps in agricultural education, a generation that hasn't been tested by a truly bad year, and an industry-wide habit of avoiding the "boardroom conversations" around budgets, job descriptions, and strategic planning until a crisis forces the issue. But this isn't just a story about what's going wrong; it's about the fixes. We cover succession planning as a daily discipline rather than a one-time event, hiring outside your family, the generational shift bringing more non-owner managers into leadership roles, and why building SOPs and a culture people actually want to work for matters more than ever. If you've ever wondered whether your farm would pass its own report card, this episode might change how you grade yourself.

The episode opens with Taylor Phillips setting the table on AI and tools in a practical way: what they are, how they are used, and why the starting point should be the problem you are trying to solve, not the technology itself. That carries into the full conversation with Nick Horob, who joins Evan and Kristjan to discuss farm software, AI, and the difference between building something interesting and building something useful. Farms do not need more disconnected tools. They need better ways to see their numbers, manage information, and make decisions with less friction. The conversation pushes past the broad excitement around AI and gets into where it can actually help. Nick talks about large language models, hallucinations, trusted sources, custom GPTs, and the importance of starting with the outcome before building anything. Whether it is equipment knowledge, grain marketing, SOPs, invoicing, or field-level financial decisions, the value comes from using AI with guardrails and farm-specific context. When the cost of building software keeps falling, the harder skill is knowing what should be built in the first place. For farm leaders already acting as the human router between employees, managers, advisors, accountants, and data systems, AI has potential but only when it is tied to better decisions, clearer workflows, and a farm that is easier to run.

Bryce Eger returns to The Truth About Ag for a wide-ranging conversation on professional capability, leadership, follow-through and why the ag industry needs to get more comfortable being uncomfortable. From basic networking and follow-up to the difference between credentials and real knowledge, Bryce challenges the idea that experience, titles or confidence automatically equal capability. Evan, Kristjan and Bryce talk about what separates valuable advisors, salespeople and industry professionals from those who are simply showing up with a pitch. It comes down to asking better questions, respecting people’s time and teams, solving problems the customer actually believes are problems, and doing what you said you were going to do. The conversation also touches on risk, decision-making, action items, hard conversations and why agriculture cannot afford to keep talking about the same issues without taking steps forward. Bryce also shares the story behind his book, Course Corrections: Building the Pre-Shot, Post-Shot and Recovery Habits of Leadership, and why golf became the lens for exploring leadership, learning and self-awareness.

Kristjan and Evan take a timely look at the decisions, risks, and structural pressure building across Canadian agriculture. They discuss the real-time decisions farmers are facing around seeding, canola acres, crop insurance, market risk, and the cost of pushing through difficult conditions. The episode moves into the larger structural questions facing the industry. Land values, rental rates, equipment, infrastructure, capital access, tax, succession, labour, and management are all part of the conversation as they consider what happens when old assumptions no longer hold. They discuss how land appreciation has covered up losses for some farms, why infrastructure can limit flexibility, and why the next phase of agriculture may require different financing models, different HR systems, and a clearer focus on operating profitability. Kristjan and Evan also talk about the human side of the business, including time, family, health, and the long-standing belief that hours worked are a measure of success.

After catching up on how seeding is going, Kristjan and Evan sit down with Pierre Petelle, President and CEO of CropLife Canada, to talk through crop protection, seed technology, regulation, and how Canada competes for new agricultural tools. Pierre explains CropLife Canada’s role in representing companies involved in crop protection, seed technology, distribution, and other agricultural inputs, while also drawing on his previous experience working with the pesticide regulator. A major focus of the conversation is the Pest Management Regulatory Agency, or PMRA, and why timelines, predictability, and regulatory efficiency matter. Canada represents about 4% of the global pesticide market, so if the process becomes too slow or uncertain, companies may prioritize larger markets like the U.S. or Brazil instead. Kristjan, Evan, and Pierre also talk about activist pressure, access to information requests, European-style agricultural policy, trade concerns, and proposed changes to the Pest Control Products Act. The episode comes back to a larger question for Canadian agriculture: how do we keep the system rigorous without making it so difficult that farmers lose access to the tools, technology, and innovation they need?

After an introduction with Kristjan and Evan discussing the hot topics in ag, they are joined by Gary Mar, President and Ceo of Canada West Foundation.  Gary Mar has worked across provincial politics, diplomacy in Washington and Asia, and that varied experience shows up in how he talks about trade and policy. It’s less about theory, more about what actually moves decisions. One point comes up early and keeps resurfacing: agreements don’t carry as much weight as people think. They set structure, but they don’t solve problems on their own. Relationships are what push decisions forward. That same thinking carries into how Canada approaches the U.S. and global trade more broadly. Framing negotiations around “they need what we have” can work against you if it removes leverage before the conversation even starts. At the same time, influence isn’t just federal anymore; governors, state relationships, and long-term positioning matter more than most Canadians assume. Agriculture fits directly into that conversation. Canada has a strong story across food, fertilizer, energy, and critical minerals, but it doesn’t translate into influence on its own, especially when many decision-makers haven’t seen how modern operations actually run. Production alone doesn’t move the needle if infrastructure can’t keep up. Rail, ports, and corridors ultimately decide whether output turns into revenue. The opportunity is there, particularly in Western Canada, but it depends on aligning policy, infrastructure, and market access. And at a basic level, better decisions start with better understanding, something that still doesn’t happen often enough.

After an introduction featuring Ryan Denis from the What the Futures podcast, John Deere’s inaugural CTO, Jahmy Hindman, joins Evan and Kristjan for a conversation. They cut through the noise around AI and ag tech and get into what’s actually changing on the farm. From his roots in Iowa to leading technology at Deere, Jahmy brings a practical lens to how data, machines, and decision-making are starting to come together. A big part of the conversation comes back to the gap between how much data farms have and how little of it turns into something useful. What does “good” actually look like? How should farms compare performance? And where does Deere fit as equipment shifts from standalone machines to systems that have to work together? They also spend time on the tension farms that they are feeling right now. Technology is moving fast, equipment is becoming more complex, and the way it’s paid for is changing. Nothing about that is simple. This episode lays out where things are headed, where they’re not, and what that means for how farms operate going forward.

After an introduction featuring Maverick Ag CTO Taylor Phillips, Devin Lammers joins Evan and Kristjan to talk about where AI in agriculture is actually creating value and where it still falls short. From a bison ranch in South Dakota to MIT, FBN, and now TerraClear, Devin brings both a tech and farm lens to the conversation, grounded in what works in the field. The discussion starts with TerraClear’s work on HGV’s farm, mapping over 60,000 rocks and improving efficiency during one of the least liked jobs on the farm. Beyond rocks, the bigger opportunity: using high-resolution data and AI to understand what’s happening in the field in real time and make better decisions, faster. This episode is really about turning data into action. From clean data and simple systems to ROI and real-world execution, the conversation highlights what needs to happen for agtech to move from ideas to something producers actually use.