Entrepreneurship

249: John Deere Acquisition, Scaling Autonomous Tractors, and Product Market Fit with Igino Cafiero, CEO and Co-founder of Bear Flag Robotics

Igino Cafiero is the Co-founder and CEO of Bear Flag Robotics, which was acquired by Deere & Co in August 2021 and is now run as an independent subsidiary. Bear Flag Robotics is developing autonomous farming technology. Growers can orchestrate a fleet of autonomous equipment directly from their smartphone or tablet, allowing them to realize productivity gains and reduce their operational expenses.

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245: Fractionalized Farm Ownership in an Emerging Market with Oscar Baracaldo, CEO and Co-Founder of Farmfolio

Oscar Baracaldo is the CEO and Co-Founder of Farmfolio, an agtech platform that has come together to fulfill a single mission ― To Evolve Agribusiness Ownership. This simple and compelling mission has guided the company to create some of the most meaningful operations in the country of Colombia, for Farmfolio, and for farm owners across the globe.

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243: Innovating the Ag Retail Model with Alexander Reichert, Co-Founder and CEO of AgVend

Alexander Reichert is the co-founder and CEO of AgVend, a digital commerce platform in the agriculture industry. AgVend’s tools constructively power the omnichannel experiences for ag retailers, distributors, and manufacturers. Alexander joins us the podcast to talk about founding AgVend, evolving the business model, disruption vs. innovation, and much more. Tune in!

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240: A Nuanced Deep-Dive into Regenerative Ag with David Leon of Farmer’s Footprint and Biome Capital

David Leon is an impact-oriented executive whose experience spans early stage venture building in funds, tech, non-profits, and consumer brands. He’s a co-founder and Partner at Biome Capital (a regenerative ag real asset fund) and a co-founder and Executive Director at Farmer’s Footprint (a non-profit accelerating the universal adoption of regenerative agriculture).

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238: Developing Natural Ingredients to Reduce Food Waste with Natasha Dhayagude, Co-Founder & CEO of Chinova Bioworks

Natasha Dhayagude is the CEO and Co-founder of Chinova Bioworks, who has developed a revolutionary clean-label preservation technology extracted from white button mushrooms for use in food and beverage applications.

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235: Growing Ancient Grains to Develop a Consumer Product with Claire Smith, Founder and CEO of Teffola

Listen on Apple Podcasts or Everywhere Else Claire Smith is the founder and CEO of Teffola, a CPG company that exists to create bold, fresh, and innovative granola for the health-aware consumer. They do this by creating whole-food plant-based snacks sourcing at least one ingredient per product from their 7th generation family farm. Connect with Teffola Website |…

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231: Healthy Snacks and a Transparent, Regenerative Supply Chain with Kristy Lewis, Founder of Quinn Snacks

Kristy Lewis is the founder and CEO of Quinn Snacks, a CPG company reimagining classic snacks by bringing real ingredients and transparency back to the snacks you love. Kristy joins the podcast to tell us about the founding story, Quinn’s focus on their farmer-partners, their approach to regenerative ag, how they have scaled, and much, much more. Tune in!

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230: Commercializing Ag Trait Technologies through Strategic Partnerships with Han Chen, Co-Founder & CEO of ZeaKal

Han Chen is the Co-Founder and CEO of ZeaKal, a plant traits innovator that helps crops capture more carbon and sunlight, leading to healthier, nutrient-rich food and feed. ZeaKal is committed to building a more equitable and resilient agricultural system on a smaller environmental footprint. Their plant traits dramatically improve the yield and composition of staple crops, resulting in carbon capture for better nutrition, as well as higher incomes, lower costs, and efficiencies along the ag supply chain.

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229: Investing in Regenerative Ag in 2022 with Pete Oberle, Managing Partner at Trailhead Capital

Pete Oberle is a Managing Partner at Trailhead Capital, a mission-driven investment firm creating outstanding financial, societal, and ecological returns by backing entrepreneurs who are building the regenerative future of food and agriculture.

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228: Scaling a Family Ag Business Going Direct to Consumer with Nicole Atchison, CEO of PURIS Foods

Nicole Atchison is the CEO of PURIS Foods, a family-owned company founded in 1985 in Oskaloosa, Iowa. Built with intention over 30 years, PURIS’ plant-based food system benefits every link in the chain of production: flavorful and nutritious choices for people, profitable opportunities for growers, flexible ingredients for food makers, and practices that nourish soil, the environment, and life on earth. Nicole is the daughter of the founders of the company.

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