Ep113: Stewarding Value Amid Uncertainty with Dusty Clevenger of Ascendant Partners
Release Date: 05/07/2025
Ep 132: Beans Without Borders - A History of U.S. Soybean Exports with Jim Sutter of the U.S. Soybean Export Council
The Pacesetter Pod
Show Highlights: USSEC’s formation, role, and three strategic objectives. [06:05] Why countries import soy, and its unique global demand growth. [14:10] How past U.S. trade tensions led to Brazil’s soy export boom. [16:12] A timeline of U.S.–China soybean trade from 1995 to the 2020 “Phase One” deal. [21:03] Benefits of reducing export risk by diversifying markets. [25:53] The future of U.S. soy in China in the 2025 tariff fallout. [26:45] What a VT study predicts about China’s soybean imports. [31:50] Will the 90-day tariff truce extension with China work? [38:35] Healing trust...
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Ep131: Agility is a Choice with Erik Lightner of Platinum Crush
The Pacesetter Pod
Show Highlights: Spotlight on Platinum Crush in soybean mainstay Iowa. [05:06] Erik Lightner’s reverse-trajectory from ADM and Haskell to startup leader. [11:36] Lessons in pacing business building and asset readiness. [15:48] Four strategic allocation categories for capital. [22:50] What are “must-haves” vs. “wants” in a $400M startup? [27:33] How regional crushers can compete with industry giants. [31:36] Why agility is a daily choice to prevent bureaucracy. [36:44] Gaining trust and market share amid local competition. [44:00] What Platinum Crush would do in a deficit area...
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Ep130: Straddling Hope and Uncertainty with Carrie Vollmer-Sanders of Field to Market
The Pacesetter Pod
Show Highlights: Field to Market’s unique positioning in the ag value chain. [04:51] Why equal voices matter in a cross-sector coalition. [06:26] What are Field to Market’s core functions and tools? [07:57] The value of real ag sector experience for coalition leadership. [10:42] Sustainability insights by agribusinesses from Field to Market’s Annual Meeting. [15:00] M&A lessons from harnessing diversity in coalitions. [27:41] The role of collaborative data in the Triscuits supply chain. [31:24] How U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol assesses sustainability. [36:26] Discover what’s next...
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Ep129: Ag's Efficiency Preoccupation Problem with Andrew Hoelscher of Farm Strategy
The Pacesetter Pod
Show Highlights: Understand the efficiency preoccupation in agriculture. [05:31] Facing the truth of bulk commodity vs. food production. [07:58] Uncover the true cost stack of food with bread pricing. [10:11] Capturing additive value and providing food solutions as producers. [13:15] Why ag innovation must focus on end-user food needs. [18:31] Explore the economics and benefits of shifting production-ag value chains. [22:44] Get to know Andrew Hoelscher and Farm Strategy. [26:01] Barriers and opposition to supply chain change. [31:22] How to foster trust and manage supply chain issues....
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Ep128: Ag's Asset Problem (Revisited)
The Pacesetter Pod
Show Highlights: Revisiting Ep. 111: Ag’s Asset Problem and Rural Blight [00:38] How your feedback improves thinking and learning. [04:13] Outpaced, misaligned small country elevator challenges. [06:42] Hyper-local solutions to make antiquated assets work. [10:26] Discover a novel entrepreneurial use of defunct truck houses. [14:00] Explore a listener’s elevator “checkoff” fund proposal. [15:13] A truck house retention criteria from a company successfully reducing them. [17:01] Why evolving opinions with new data and ideas matters. [23:24] Community participation shaping The...
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Ep127: 6 Rules To Bet Your Career On with Ernie Chappell of EFC Systems
The Pacesetter Pod
Show Highlights: Ernie Chappell’s background and the EFC Systems story. [04:54] The importance of prioritizing longevity and buyer needs over rapid growth. [08:00] Early signs of board misalignment and ways to resolve it. [19:11] How to communicate a vision to a board in a risk appetite mismatch. [23:00] The benefits of a people-first attitude in leadership. [29:55] Does the pain point you solve generate revenue? [31:06] Get over marketing aversion and tell your story with substance. [32:51] Understanding consolidation and embracing change. [34:08] Capital raising vs. capital efficiency and...
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Ep126: De-Risking M&A in Your Agribusiness
The Pacesetter Pod
Show Highlights: Laying M&A de-risking foundations in agribusiness. [00:40] Understand M&A as a process, not an event. [4:56] The pitfalls that lead M&A deals to disappoint. [06:36] The real challenge of post-deal integration. [10:53] How does M&A integration put pressure on a business? [11:35] Why a deal-objectives-derived integration plan matters. [17:29] The value of managing deferred decisions internally. [18:45] Being open to post-deal information asymmetry. [20:07] If you are interested in connecting with Joe, go to LinkedIn: , or schedule a call at .
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Ep125: Navigating Energy Abundance and 95% Flat Price Risk with Levi Hall of Horizon Resources
The Pacesetter Pod
Show Highlights: What sets Horizon Resources apart. [03:54] North Dakota’s ag co-op merger aversion [06:05] The ag co-op business model amid the Bakken oil boom and bust. [09:54] The power of scaling known capabilities in a time of rapid growth. [16:21] Grain origination and managing unhedgeable flat-price risk. [22:34] Buyer concentration, no-bid decisions, and hyperlocal market dynamics. [30:19] The unique value of truck houses for Horizon Resources. [34:34] Considerations of offensive vs. defensive asset deployment. [45:41] On the Horizon podcast as a powerful educational value driver....
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Ep124: The Ag Co-Op Diversification Myth
The Pacesetter Pod
Show Highlights: Definition of diversification. [02:28] Is diversification always objectively valuable in ag? [03:10] The diversification misnomer in the context of co-ops. [04:29] Perceived vs. real diversification. [08:27] Three critical risks of attempting true diversification. [13:01] What problems do we seek to resolve by diversification? [17:29] The fallacy that diversifying adds member value to co-ops. [21:18] Diversification vs. differentiation in agribusiness. [23:07] Advice to help rethink how to approach diversification. [24:44] If you are interested in connecting with Joe, go to...
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Ep123: Fixing Ag Freight with Jared Flinn of BulkLoads
The Pacesetter Pod
Show Highlights: BulkLoads’ origin story and company overview. [03:31] Opportunities and challenges ag bulk freight creates. [07:39] Service innovation with factoring and TMS solutions. [21:24] Insights on broad appeal and pain points beyond load matching. [26:26] The benefits of digitization in trucking and freight. [28:47] Explore the uses and trends of AI robotics in trucking. [36:20] The future role of load boards as robo-trucks and AI evolve. [39:54] Is there added complexity in ag bulk hauling vs. general freight? [47:12] Check out The BulkLoads Podcast hosted by Jared. [48:45] ...
info_outlineShow Highlights:
- Dusty’s “Formula for Growth Success” framework. [03:59]
- How to keep strategy alive, not static, to seize real market opportunities. [09:36]
- Clear strategies and simplifying strategic-fit decision-making in agribusiness. [15:30]
- The power of decisions deferred in M&A. [18:19]
- The key to securing shareholder buy-in. [24:34]
- How the market rewards you for growth and execution. [31:58]
- The reputational influence of stewardship in agribusiness. [35:49]
- Ascendant Partners’ full-suite of growth services for the ag industry. [40:29]
- Navigating distress and uncertainty in today’s market. [46:03]
Learn more about Ascendant Partners by visiting https://ascendantpartners.com/.
To contact Dusty Clevenger, go to https://www.linkedin.com/in/dusty-clevenger-849b6b5/.
If you are interested in connecting with Joe, go to LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/joemosher/, or schedule a call at www.moshercg.com.