FarmHer Talks

Join Founder and Host Marji Alaniz in thoughtful conversations to connect and inspire the FarmHer in all of us.

A Christmas Giving Spirit All Year Round 12/22/2023

A Christmas Giving Spirit All Year Round Meet FarmHer Melissa O'Neil! Melissa is CEO of Iowa's largest homeless shelter, Central Iowa Shelter & Services, in downtown Des Moines. Melissa embodies the Christmas spirit all year round by dedicating her life to those in need and encouraging others to do the same. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/29201848

A Food Truck Fueled A Local Farm 06/09/2023

A Food Truck Fueled A Local Farm Listen in how Jen Welch at The Crowded Acre takes local bacon (and more) from pig to plate with a nose-to-tail dining experience in her farms own food truck. During this episode, Jen shares how farmers can be successful on small farms and how the Welch family has grown up alongside The Crowded Acre's chickens, ducks, pigs, goats, and more. Note: The Bearded Lady has closed since filming this show, but the hard work, determination, and love that went into it remains. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/27088788

Being Yourself is the Best Self You Can Be 06/07/2023

Being Yourself is the Best Self You Can Be In pride month and every month, we at FarmHer believe being yourself is the best self you can be. Be who you are. And love who you want to be. Whether you are a part of the LGBTQ+ community or need advice on how to be a better, more supportive ally, this Nationwide Everybody Eats podcast is for you because love is love. Both of our guests are “Cultivating Change", literally as members of the Cultivating Change Foundation. Cultivating Change Foundation’s mission is “valuing and elevating LGBTQ+ agriculturists through advocacy, education, and community.” Our guests, Lydia Noyes, and Skyler Allison do just that. Take a listen as we learn more about their FarmHer journey, what they do for the foundation, and their advice on being a supportive member or ally to the LGBTQ+ community. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/27067920

Learning Butchery with RanchHers 05/26/2023

Learning Butchery with RanchHers Steak, cheeseburgers, and ribs... oh my! On this episode of our podcast, travel to Texas to meet women of Grrls Meat Camp! From ranching to butchery, they cover it all. On this FarmHer Talks episode, we visit the Manterola family at the Bar W Ranch cattle pens. Then head to Jake's Salon to meet Grrls Meat Camp founder, Kate Hill and make charcuterie. It's one meaty episode you don't want to miss! /episode/index/show/farmher/id/26944959

How To Make a Farm Last 100 Years 05/19/2023

How To Make a Farm Last 100 Years Have you ever wondered, how do farms last for generations? Catch a ride with April Hemmes as she shares about her century farm. This FarmHer teaches us how she has kept her family farm alive and going. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/26879610

How to Make the Perfect Pie Crust 05/12/2023

How to Make the Perfect Pie Crust From pigs to pies, Iowa FarmHer Cristen Clark goes from feeding pigs to baking pie at her food blog, Food and Swine. Join this mother of two as she shows and shares her love for family, farming and cooking. Then, learn her tips on the best pear pie and pie crust you've ever tasted. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/26811693

How Spain Influenced a USA Pig Farm 05/05/2023

How Spain Influenced a USA Pig Farm In this episode, Marji visits city-girl-turned-ranchher Krystina at Cook Pig Ranch, a pasture-based pig farm raising premium pork in southern California. The ranch is located in the Cleveland National Forest and designed after pig raising methods based in Iberico, Spain. This unique farm design allows the Cook family to raise a more flavorful pork product while raising their family on the farm. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/26751021

When She's Not Working, She's Riding 04/28/2023

When She's Not Working, She's Riding In this episode, we're getting to know Amy Heitland of Westfork Ranch in Sheffield, Iowa. Learn about her day from cleaning stalls to riding. Then, meet Amy's family that helps on the farm and hear how personal tragedy has shaped the Westfork Ranch program. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/26664138

Meet the First Ever Woman RMA Administrator Marcia Bunger 04/21/2023

Meet the First Ever Woman RMA Administrator Marcia Bunger On November 15, 2021, Marcia Bunger was named Administrator for the Risk Management Agency. On this BRAND NEW episode of FarmHer Talks, we discuss her journey from humble beginnings as a small girl living on a fourth generation farm in rural South Dakota to becoming the first member of the Asian American and Pacific Islander community and the first woman to serve as RMA Administrator. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/26609208

Love What You Do 04/14/2023

Love What You Do Liz Hunt is the head of Sustainable and Responsible Business for Syngenta. She has a background in horticulture and focuses every day on how to help farmers and landowners be more sustainable. Learn more about Liz and her journey in agriculture! /episode/index/show/farmher/id/26536713

Mud Buggys and Cowboys 03/31/2023

Mud Buggys and Cowboys Today's farming in Frostproof, Florida looks a bit different than it did years ago. In this episode, join Marji and FarmHer Shayla McCullers and her family on the Crooked Lake Ranch as we gather up a herd of cattle using low stress handling methods, cowboys on horses and a mud buggy! /episode/index/show/farmher/id/26399616

Annie's Project: A Vision for Education 03/24/2023

Annie's Project: A Vision for Education Annie's Project is an education program made for farm women, which has now spread to 38 states and US Virgin Islands with over 19,000 graduates. In fact, Annie’s Project is celebrating its 20-year anniversary this year! And Women's History Month is the perfect time to celebrate! Learn more about Ruth Hambleton, who inspired her to start the program, what they do, and how she helps women like you daily. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/26328615

Follow the Queen of the Show Ring at the Iowa State Fair 03/17/2023

Follow the Queen of the Show Ring at the Iowa State Fair Stock show life is the foundation of Lexi Marek's upbringing in agriculture. From the Iowa State Fair show ring to the Miss Iowa pageant stage, this young FarmHer has a way of inspiring everyone she meets and is a driving force within the future of agriculture. In this episode, join Lexi at the show barn and meet her show pig. Then, learn what judges look for in a show pig and check out Lexi's favorite fair food. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/26245392

The Diversification of Five Marys Farms 03/03/2023

The Diversification of Five Marys Farms It’s finally March and that can only mean one thing: it’s Women's History Month! At FarmHer, we meet women every day who are making history. Whether that’s through interaction on social media, an in-person meeting, or even a podcast interview. To kick our favorite month off, we brought in one extraordinary FarmHer who is so much more than just a FarmHer. She’s an entrepreneur of over twenty small businesses in different industries, mother to four other FarmHers who all happen to be named Mary, wife to a rancher she works right alongside, teacher to many, creative content creator, and more. I mean really, the list could keep going all day. Meet Mary of Five Marys Farms! /episode/index/show/farmher/id/26116659

Manufacturing in a FarmHer Way 12/07/2022

Manufacturing in a FarmHer Way Manufacturing: it might not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of FarmHers but for FarmHer Heather Bruce- it has been her whole life! Heather is the CEO of Osmundson Manufacturing, a worldwide leader that sells its parts to original equipment manufacturers, farm stores, and other distributors throughout North America, Australia, Russia, China, Vietnam, and even more countries. She is the fifth generation of this family-owned company. Her growing company prides itself on community involvement, the continuation of growth, and a family-focused work-life balance. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/25258512

FarmHer Firsts- FFA Edition 10/19/2022

FarmHer Firsts- FFA Edition Where are our past, current, and future FFA members?! This podcast is for all the officHers! Listen in as we chat with Peg Armstrong-Gustafson, Iowa’s first female state FFA president and female national officer candidate. Women like Peg pave the way for women like you! /episode/index/show/farmher/id/24736881

July is Ice Cream Month! Yum! 07/21/2022

July is Ice Cream Month! Yum! Did you know July is Ice Cream Month?! On this episode of FarmHer Talks, we discussed dairy in the most delicious way. Marji is joined by Stacey Noe who has not only built her career in the ag industry but has a new venture full of dairy goodness. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/23815328

Dairies Coast to Coast 06/30/2022

Dairies Coast to Coast In honor of Dairy Month Marji joined two very different Dairy farmers on this week's episode of FarmHer Talks. From a sixth-generation Maryland cow dairy to a Washington microgoat dairy, she traveled coast to coast to get the details on two different sides of the industry. Meet the women of the Brooms Bloom Dairy in Maryland and then across the country to the infectiously positive Rachael of the Lost Peacock goat micro-dairy. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/23588567

Where Art and Agriculture Meet: Des Moines Metro Opera 06/15/2022

Where Art and Agriculture Meet: Des Moines Metro Opera We hear the word "art" and don't take into consideration how broad it is. From the FarmHer beginnings of photography to the Des Moines Metro Opera, it is all art. And it shows us the world through a different lens. Just like in agriculture, you may not think you are a part of it but it enriches your everyday life. And the Des Moines Metro Opera is taking the agriculture world by storm with its world premiere of A Thousand Acres on July 9, 2022. Learn more about the event and how art tackles the tough issues in agriculture on this episode of FarmHer Talks. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/23440475

Pollinators and the BIG Role They Play Everyday 06/01/2022

Pollinators and the BIG Role They Play Everyday At FarmHer, we LOVE pollinators that's why Marji decided to chat with Keri Carstens, an expert on the subject. She'll explain the status of pollinators in our country, how we got here, what role modern agriculture plays, and what the future holds, on this episode of FarmHer Talks. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/23288828

A New Lease on Life 05/25/2022

A New Lease on Life Have you ever felt like you needed a fresh start? On our most recent episode of FarmHer Talks, Marji chatted with a duo who have given their family farm a new lease on life. Meet Shelby Watson Hampton and Susan Watson White, the niece and aunt behind some of Maryland’s finest wines. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/23225285

Happy Beef Month from the FarmHerd 05/04/2022

Happy Beef Month from the FarmHerd In Celebration of Beef Month in May, host Marji and co-host Lexi will talk with Elin Parker Ganshchow, a RanchHer and Entrepreneur raising grass fed cattle at the base of the Sangre De Cristo mountains in Colorado. The conversation goes from cattle production to how to make the best roast beef ever. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/23005232

Connection Is Key: Be Bold with FarmHer 04/13/2022

Connection Is Key: Be Bold with FarmHer The secret is out and we are so excited to gather back together for the first FarmHer post-pandemic event, Be Bold by FarmHer presented by Nationwideon May 20, 2022, at the FFA Enrichment Center in Ankeny, Iowa. One of the main goals of GatHering (do you see what I did there?) is to rekindle connection. Connection seemed to be somewhat lost during the pandemic times. What better to kick off post-pandemic celebrations than connecting with my favorite people: YOU! So what is happening at Be Bold? Why we are passionate about gathering back together? And how you can still be surrounded by other inspiring women by joining our event virtually too? I connected and discussed it with a familiar face, Krista Soda! /episode/index/show/farmher/id/22776527

A Natural Fit Into Sustainability 03/30/2022

A Natural Fit Into Sustainability To continue the discussion about what sustainability is for you, me, and all of the people who produce AND eat our food, we are going straight to the top. Marji talks about the S-word (aka sustainability) with Dr. Jewel H. Bronaugh, the United States Deputy Secretary of Agriculture, on our most recent Everybody Eats FarmHer Talks. From a standpoint of diversity and inclusion, she is the right voice to have at the table for sustainability in agriculture. Listen in to how she handles sustainability at the USDA, personally, and for the future of agriculture. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/22621481

Use Your Ambition: International Women's Day with Bayer 03/08/2022

Use Your Ambition: International Women's Day with Bayer It's International Women's Day AND March is Women’s History Month! and like always, we're celebrating women and their ambition to make an impact in today's world. I talked to Shannon Hauf, a woman who leads by example in agriculture by having a desire to always grow and evolve. She supports women every day in her role at Bayer Crop Science as Senior Vice President and Head of Seed Production Innovation and challenges you to ask, what are you doing to support women? /episode/index/show/farmher/id/22377653

Sustaining a Farm Legacy: We're Only Promised Today 03/07/2022

Sustaining a Farm Legacy: We're Only Promised Today FarmHers know sustainability means something different in all aspects of life. For Kasey Bamberger, third-generation Bryant Ag Owner in southwest Ohio, it's sustaining her business, self, and family legacy. That legacy started generations ago with her great-great-grandparents and the purchase of their farm at a sheriff's auction during the Great Depression. Talk about sustainable farming! Now, she dives into every day with a cup always overflowing attitude and an eagerness to learn that keeps that sustainability alive. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/22366538

The “S-Word” and Its Many Meanings to Different FarmHers 01/29/2022

The “S-Word” and Its Many Meanings to Different FarmHers Along with our friends at Nationwide, we are on a journey to better understand the "S-Word", or as you might know it: sustainability. Yes, we are digging into sustainability in a whole new way because it carries a different meaning and connotation to each of us. It depends on who we are, what boots we wear on a daily basis, our background, our families, our businesses….you name it. To break it all down, I had a discussion about what sustainability means to three women from three different parts of agriculture: Julie Kenney, the Deputy Secretary of Agriculture for the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, and a FarmHer right here in Iowa, Hannah borg, a FarmHer raising chickens in Nebraska, and Casey Cox, a FarmHer from a diverse family farm in Georgia. These women are professionals, business owners, growers, and consumers who each have their own take on the "S-Word". /episode/index/show/farmher/id/21945038

From the FarmHerd: Making Sustainability Personal to You 01/21/2022

From the FarmHerd: Making Sustainability Personal to You Everywhere I turn someone is talking about sustainability. In agriculture, and well… in just about everything. Farming, food, building, transportation, like I said, everywhere! I don’t know about you, but I find it hard to understand exactly what this confusing and overwhelming S-word means to me. So, in true FarmHer Style, I decided to dig in. I gathered the FarmHerd to talk about what sustainability means to us, as women, as business owners, as growers, and as consumers. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/21844283

What Is CBD? The New Hot Topic in Agriculture 01/19/2022

What Is CBD? The New Hot Topic in Agriculture A hot topic in agriculture right now is CBD. But what truly is it? When I think of CBD many questions come to mind. What is the difference between CBD and marijuana? What’s legal and what’s not? How is it grown? Who is growing it? Where?…you know, all the burning topics centered around this up-and-coming product. In honor of January being CBD month, expert hemp FarmHer, Peggy Coffeen, joined us. She is on a mission to share her knowledge about CBD and the products she grows, makes, sells, and uses. As a mother, wife, business owner, and FarmHer, she knows stress. Which is what inspired her CBD journey to begin with. /episode/index/show/farmher/id/21830105

Walking in a Christmas Tree Winter Wonderland 11/23/2021

Walking in a Christmas Tree Winter Wonderland Meet Sarah Scharlau, fifth-generation FarmHer at Pleasant Valley Tree Farm. Her farm is the perfect place to create country Christmas memories. In this Nationwide Everybody Eats episode, we will learn about the traditions her farm offers, what traditions are unique to her family, and all about her family farm or as I like to call it: Winter Wonderland! /episode/index/show/farmher/id/21264899

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