Episode 101: Making the Most of Water Variability with Joel Grosbach
Regenerative Agriculture Podcast
Release Date: 01/25/2024
Episode 158: Reducing Weeds and Pests with Regenerative Mulching Systems with Erwin Westers
Regenerative Agriculture Podcast
Erwin Westers runs a biodynamic seed farm in the northern Netherlands, producing high-quality seeds for potatoes, radish, and wildflowers. His operation uses innovative mulching and cover cropping to enhance soil health. Westers pioneers regenerative agriculture with techniques like Flechenratte surface decomposition, reducing pests and weeds and improving soil structure. He leads the Dutch Regenerative Alliance to share scalable practices with farmers. In this episode, Erwin and John discuss: Using Flächenrotte to incorporate cover crops shallowly, boosting microbial activity and soil...
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Podcast Extra: Farm to Table Talk - Fresh Eyes to Fix Farms with John Kempf
Regenerative Agriculture Podcast
In this Podcast Extra, John Kempf joins Farm to Table Talk, hosted by Rodger Wasson. Rodger is a seasoned food and agriculture expert from a Central Illinois farming family. He brings together chefs, farmers, policymakers, and researchers to discuss how food is grown, prepared, and shared. The podcast explores stories and ideas shaping the modern food system for anyone curious about their food’s journey. In this episode of Farm to Table Talk, Rodger and John discuss: How John’s Amish roots shaped his approach to revitalizing degraded lands Why Soil microbiome and minimal tillage...
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Podcast Extra: The Market Gardener Podcast - Why Nutrient Density Is the Future of Farming with JM Fortier and Kish Johnson
Regenerative Agriculture Podcast
In this Podcast Extra, AEA’s Director of Partnerships and Expansion, Kish Johnson, joins JM Fortier, founder of the Market Gardener Institute, for a compelling conversation on the Market Gardener Podcast. In this episode, they discuss how data-driven tools like SAP analysis and foliar sprays are transforming regenerative farming. Kish shares how farms are eliminating pests and diseases through optimized plant nutrition and improved photosynthesis. The conversation dives into the connection between soil biology, profitability, and nutrient density. Kish also addresses skepticism around ag...
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Podcast Extra: Field Talks with John Kempf and Cole Neese
Regenerative Agriculture Podcast
Join AEA founder John Kempf for Field Talks, a series of in-the-field conversations. This episode features Cole Neese, a corn and soybean grower in Indiana. Together, they explore real-time agronomic insights, crop progress, challenges, and success stories from the growing season. In this episode, John and Cole Neese, a farmer from West Central Indiana, discuss: Excessive Rainfall Challenges: Cole faced persistent wet conditions, saturating soils and delaying corn and soybean emergence. Success with Accelerate on Soybeans: Applying Accelerate at R2 increased soybean pod counts by 50-80%,...
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Episode 157: Farmers of Life, for Life with Grant Breitkreutz
Regenerative Agriculture Podcast
Grant Breitkreutz is a farmer from Minnesota who transitioned from conventional practices to a soil health–focused approach. Alongside his wife Dawn, he transformed their farm through no-till, diverse cover crops, adaptive grazing, and continual learning. He’s known for asking “why,” experimenting boldly, and sharing openly what’s worked and what hasn’t. Grant is a key voice in agriculture because he proves what’s possible when farmers take ownership of their decisions and data. His operation is profitable, resilient, and community-driven. He mentors others, helps lead the...
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Episode 156: Data-Driven Regeneration with Jonathan Lundgren
Regenerative Agriculture Podcast
Jonathan Lundgren is an agroecologist, farmer, rancher, and beekeeper, and founder and director of the Ecdysis Foundation and Blue Dasher Farm. Ecdysis Foundation is leading the Thousand Farms Initiative, providing data to validate regenerative agriculture’s impact on soil health, biodiversity, and carbon sequestration. His work challenges conventional farming by fostering farmer-scientist collaboration and advocating for sustainable practices that address global ecological issues. In this episode, John and Jonathan discuss: How fully regenerative farms can store carbon equivalent to seven...
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Episode 155: Rethinking Agriculture, Health, and the Science That Connects Them with Robert Verkerk, Ph.D.
Regenerative Agriculture Podcast
Robert Verkerk, Ph.D., is an environmental scientist and the founder of the Alliance for Natural Health, with over 40 years of experience studying the interplay between human health, agriculture, and ecosystems. His work focuses on promoting regenerative agricultural practices and natural health solutions, emphasizing the need to reconnect food production with ecological and human well-being through science-based advocacy and policy reform. His contributions to regenerative agriculture are vital because they bridge the gap between soil health, food quality, and human health, challenging...
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Episode 154: Soil, Sheep, and Superior Grapes with Ivo Jeramaz
Regenerative Agriculture Podcast
Ivo Jeramaz, a mechanical engineer turned vintner, immigrated from former Yugoslavia (now Croatia) to Napa Valley, where he rediscovered his ancestral connection to farming. Initially resentful of agriculture due to its demands in his youth, Ivo’s perspective shifted dramatically within weeks of arriving in Napa, where he embraced grape growing and winemaking as a fulfilling life’s work, now leading Grgich Hills Winery with a commitment to regenerative practices. Raised in a family that produced much of their own food and clothing, Ivo brings a deep-rooted appreciation for self-sufficiency...
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Podcast Extra: Our Food Systems Should Heal the Earth with Alana Mooi, Zach Bush, MD and John Kempf
Regenerative Agriculture Podcast
In this Podcast Extra episode, John Kempf joined an Earth Day conversation hosted by Farmer's Footprint, alongside Managing Director Alana Mooi and Founder Zach Bush, MD. Together, they explore the urgent need to regenerate our soil and food systems, emphasizing the deep connection between agriculture, human health, and the health of the planet. The discussion highlights how food systems must be understood as a web of relationships with the Earth, and how healing the land is inseparable from healing ourselves. They offer insights into why working with nature, rather than against it, is...
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Podcast Extra: Ask Me Anything with John Kempf - April 14
Regenerative Agriculture Podcast
This Podcast Extra episode is from John's Ask Me Anything webinar from April 14. Drawing from his extensive research and firsthand experience, John will provide insights and practical solutions to help growers achieve healthier, more resilient crops. In this discussion, the topics cover: Nutritional management with copper, nitrogen, potassium, and calcium prevents wheat and barley lodging better than PGRs. Soil aeration and oxygen flow enhance paramagnetism more effectively than paramagnetic rock powders. Side-dressing potassium, like potassium nitrate, benefits soil biology more than...
info_outlineJoel Grosbach is a fifth-generation farmer and AEA customer growing dryland and irrigated crops in Southwest Nebraska. Since his area only receives seven inches of average annual rainfall, incorporating regenerative practices such as cover crops, crop rotation, animal grazing, and minimal tillage are critical for water management. Joel grows a variety of crops, including popcorn and dry edible beans, and grows for his neighbor, who owns a seed production business.
In this episode, John and Joel discuss:
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Regenerating local ecosystem rainfall
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Structuring his farm only to use 7” of irrigation each season
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Choosing crops based on water needs
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Importance of cover crops and crop residue
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Reducing inputs and eliminating fungicides
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Mindset shifts that occur when transitioning to regenerative agriculture
About John Kempf
John Kempf is the founder of Advancing Eco Agriculture (AEA). A top expert in biological and regenerative farming, John founded AEA in 2006 to help fellow farmers by providing the education, tools, and strategies that will have a global effect on the food supply and those who grow it.
Through intense study and the knowledge gleaned from many industry leaders, John is building a comprehensive systems-based approach to plant nutrition – a system solidly based on the sciences of plant physiology, mineral nutrition, and soil microbiology.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
Since 2006, AEA has been on a mission to help growers become more resilient, efficient, and profitable with regenerative agriculture.
AEA works directly with growers to apply its unique line of liquid mineral crop nutrition products and biological inoculants. Informed by cutting-edge plant and soil data-gathering techniques, AEA’s science-based programs empower farm operations to meet the crop quality markers that matter the most.
AEA has created real and lasting change on millions of acres with its products and data-driven services by working hand-in-hand with growers to produce healthier soil, stronger crops, and higher profits.
Beyond working on the ground with growers, AEA leads in regenerative agriculture media and education, producing and distributing the popular and highly-regarded Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, inspiring webinars, and other educational content that serve as go-to resources for growers worldwide.
Learn more about AEA’s regenerative programs and products: https://www.advancingecoag.com
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VIDEO: To learn more from John Kempf about regenerative agriculture, watch this conversation between John and three AEA grower partners about how regenerative agriculture is changing lives and conventional farming: https://youtu.be/n9U6GwbYPDk