Damian Mason - The Business of Agriculture

Damian Mason - The Business of Agriculture

Damian travels all over the globe talking to audiences about trends in the business of food, fuel, and fiber. With his clever wit and down-to-earth delivery, he has turned these topics into an interesting (and sometimes controversial) podcast.

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Damian Mason - The Business of Agriculture
  • Ag Downturn & Demographics Impacting Land Use, Ownership, & Sales | Damian Mason

    As production Agriculture moves from banner years economically to a downturn, what changes will we see on the land front? Presumably values decline as other asset classes compete for investor dollars as the farm belt tightens amid lower commodity prices. Couple that with a dying generation handin...

  • Efficiency Gains Aren’t Enough to Make Production Ag Profitable | Damian Mason

    We in Agriculture are told, “The low cost producer wins.” That’s been generally true for as long as anyone working in Ag today can remember. But what about moving forward? Will efficiency gains be enough to keep Agriculture profitable? No, they won’t be. The reason: Focusing on efficiency address...

  • Big Fat Surprise — Bastardized Science and Bad Food Policy | Damian Mason

    Beginning in the 1960s, Americans were told of the evils of saturated fat. From the 1970s through the ’90s, “low fat” was a can’t miss marketing slogan. Abstaining from meat, eggs, butter, and milk would keep us thin and stave off heart attacks, we were told. Grains and fiber were the answer for ...

  • The Agriculture Economy: How Bad Is It and Where Is It Going? | Damian Mason

    We’re in year one of an Agricultural economic downturn due to low commodity prices. How bad are things, really? Where - geographically - are the numbers worse and who’s holding up better? Curt Covington, with Ag America Lending joins Damian Mason for the third time on The Business of Agriculture ...

  • Will Robert F. Kennedy’s Misguided Activism Set Ag Back 70 Years? | Damian Mason

    What happens if Robert F. Kennedy, the self-described "extreme environmentalist” who rails against “factory farms,” is in charge of the Department of Agriculture? The trust fund heir turned environmental lawyer turned politician led the first lawsuits against Monsanto, and he’s on the record as s...

  • Farmers Are Getting Irrigation Systems Paid for By Dr. Pepper | Damian Mason

    Netafim, a subsurface drip irrigation maker, is teaming up with corporations eager to offset their water consumption. Through their Corporate Partnership Program, Netafim secures commitments from outside corporations to fund 50% or more of the cost of new irrigation installation on farms. Similar...

  • Land Rich, Cash Poor Why America’s Small Farms Are Going Away | Damian Mason

    The number of farming operations in the U.S. has dipped below 2 million for the first time since we became a developed nation. Peak farm — meaning the year we had the most operations — occurred in 1935 when we had 6.8 million farms with a farming population of 32 million. Of a national population...

  • What Happens When A Farm Bill Dies? | Damian Mason

    Will we get a new Farm Bill and if so, what will it look like? Damian Mason asks those questions and plenty more of his guest, Roger Cryan, Chief Economist for the American Farm Bureau Federation. Dr. Cryan and Damian provide a brief history of farm legislation (it dates back to the 1930’s) as we...

  • How Strikes, Tariffs and China Trade Relations Impact American Ag | Damian Mason

    The International Longshoremen’s Association announced that they had reached an agreement to end their strike on the evening of October 3rd. This episode of The Business of Agriculture was already recorded and set for release on October 7. Given the tenuous state of affairs between the ports, shi...

  • What Will the Next 20 Years Bring For Corn Ethanol & Agriculture? | Damian Mason

    Explore the rise of corn ethanol in the United States in this insightful episode of The Business of Agriculture. Prior to the Renewable Fuels Standard of 2004, corn ethanol was a niche market. Fast forward to today, and nearly 40% of U.S. corn production is dedicated to ethanol. Join host Damian ...

  • Promoting Agriculture: Why We Suck At It & How We Can Improve

    The Business of Agriculture is all about producing food, fuel, and fiber. We’re damn good at it. What we’re not so good at is promoting our products. In a marketplace that’s oversupplied on just about every Agricultural commodity, differentiation, promotion, branding, and marketing are more impor...

  • The Truth About Livestock and Greenhouse Gas Emissions | Damian Mason

    Are livestock producers unfairly targeted by climate activists for their environmental impact? Do consumers face unjust guilt trips over their meat, milk, and egg choices? In this episode of The Business of Agriculture, we dive into the debate surrounding livestock and greenhouse gas emissions.

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  • Technology To Reduce Farm Labor & Natural Resource Consumption | Damian Mason

    Two areas of increasing concern for production Agriculture: Water utilization and labor availability. Farmblox is a farm automation company connecting equipment and in-field sensors to a producer’s phone. Imagine a future with less time spent monitoring or guessing, and more time adjusting, based...

  • Pulses: Plant-Based Protein & Growth for Agriculture | Damian Mason

    In this episode, we dive into the world of pulses—edible seeds from the legume family, including lentils, dry beans, and chickpeas (also known as Garbanzo beans). Discover why pulses are becoming a crucial part of the food industry, driven by rising consumer demand for plant-based protein, increa...

  • Diestel Ranch’s Regenerative Agriculture at a Premium Price! | Damian Mason

    You've probably heard about Regenerative Agriculture, now there's Regenified Certified. This innovative certification designates products produced using advanced regenerative farming practices. In this episode of The Business of Agriculture, host Damian Mason is joined by Heidi Diestel from Diest...

  • Solar Development On Farms — Facts, Finances & What To Know | Damian Mason

    The subject of solar development on farm ground generates a lot of impassioned opinions. But do you know the all the facts? Listen to Damian’s discussion with Illinois farmer John Carroll, who has eight on-farm solar developments powering livestock and farm facilities. He is also exploring commun...

  • 3 Thoughts On The Future of Farming, Food Prices, & Our Farms | Damian Mason

    Imagine a future with more environmental regulation, a fusion of regenerative and conventional farming practices, tastier food that’s still affordable, fewer farmland acres — especially of corn and soy — with more acres of oddball crops like sorghum. These are just a few of Damian Mason’s BIG tho...

  • The Impact of Obesity Drugs on Agriculture | Damian Mason

    41.9% of Americans are obese. Most of these people are not on obesity drugs. Yet. But that day is coming according to Damian Mason, and when it does Agriculture is going to — for the first time ever — face a marketplace of declining per-person caloric consumption. Todd Thurman joins Damian in thi...

  • How De-Globalization & More Factor into American Ag Trade | Damian Mason

    The United States’ Agricultural projected 2024 trade imbalance isn’t due to a lack of sales. In fact, American Ag is on track to sell more corn, soy, pork, and other farm products than ever before. The imbalance — meaning we’re buying more dollars worth of Agricultural goods than we’re selling — ...

  • Does Agriculture Have A Bee Problem? | Damian Mason

    Bee populations are declining, as you’ve likely heard. Is the decline a problem for Agriculture? Yes, says Itai Kanot, co-founder of BeeHero. With 75% of food crops requiring pollination, humanity needs bees. We need both wild honeybees — and perhaps more importantly — the kind kept by profession...

  • Are Chinese Drones Spying On American Agriculture? | Damian Mason

    The global Agriculture drone market is predicted to grow by 31.5% annually over the next four years. That’s good for Ag innovation but bad for American national security. Why? Because the dominant global manufacturer of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV’s) for Agriculture, is directly linked to the C...

  • Agricultural Investment On The African Continent | Damian Mason

    Historically, investment in Africa has been extractive, as in, spend money to build mines or infrastructure to extract resources from the continent. Jeff Bordes with Acres Club says his company is changing that by deploying capital investment into Africa to build farms to nourish the local popula...

  • Ideas Agriculture Can Use & Ideas Agriculture Should Lose | Damian Mason

    Recycled freight containers turned into backyard hydroponic farms for suburbanites? Space farming to combat the perils of Earth-bound climate crisis? These are just two of the multitude of Agriculture-themed business ventures being pitched by their founders, investors and public relations consult...

  • Labor Cost: A Huge Factor in America’s Ag Trade Deficit | Damian Mason

    The U.S. is staring down its largest Agricultural trade deficit in history. One factor in that is the amount of off-shore produce and specialty crop imports from nations with significantly lower labor costs. Jamie Clover Adams, Executive Director of Michigan Asparagus joins Damian Mason to explai...