We’re about to get schooled! Special guests Keith Nance and Dennis Tankersley join hosts Sal Sama and Jeff Jarrett for this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies. Keith is the Superintendent of the West Washington School District, and Dennis is the construction teacher at West Washington High School.

You may be wondering why educators are on an agriculture podcast. The answer is easy! The high school is where our future employees are jump-starting their careers! You’ll learn about CTE (Career Technical Education) programming and how that can create the most fruitful opportunities for students and employers to keep the best and brightest in the local area. Keith will share about the manufacturing, CDL-A, health, and technical opportunities that exist, and of course, you’ll hear about the agriculture programs that exist in the local area. Dennis will share about his career path and the opportunities that exist in the construction realm. If you’re a business owner or manager and wondering what it looks like to partner with a local high school, you’re not going to want to miss this episode!

Why would a grower consider adding alfalfa as a rotation crop? We are joined by two special guests, Glenda Gehl and Emily Meccage, for this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies. Both Glenda and Emily are joining us from FGI, Forage Genetics International, which is a subsidiary of Land O’Lakes and has been an industry leader within the forage industry for over 30 years. Glenda serves as the President of FGI and leads the R&D efforts for the crop inputs business, and Emily is the Director of R&D and Innovation.

Both Glenda and Emily will share about their career paths and how they ended up working for FGI. You’ll learn more about FGI and how they work to bring the best technology and genetics to the market and the improvements that have been seen specifically in alfalfa over the last few decades. You’ll learn about the benefits of having alfalfa added as a rotational crop and how it can benefit the health of your soil and even decrease certain pests. “We make sure that when we’re releasing a variety, it’s the best of the best and it’s gonna perform the way we say it will.”

Would you believe Bill’s dream job is “selling propane and propane accessories?” Returning Sales Professional and special guest, Bill Houze, joins hosts Sal Sama and Jeff Jarrett for this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies. Bill handles propane sales and joins us representing Premier Energy.

In addition to all the laughs you’d expect when Bill is a guest, you’ll learn a bit about the portion of Premier Companies known as Premier Energy and their propane division. Bill will share about the “keep full” and Gold Cap program which protects consumers from fuel price spikes and makes sure customers don’t run out of propane. He’ll also share about the budget plans that exist that give a monthly bill for budgeting purposes. Did you know Premier Energy has an app called Premier Connect that allows you to order fuel for your tank, communicate with the team, and view your usage history over time? Buckle up for lots of learning and laughs on this episode of The High Ground!

Ryan may be starting his career as an author penning “A Day in the Life at the Stockyard” after this episode! Returning guest, Ryan Batt, joins hosts Jeff Jarrett and Sal Sama in the podcast room for this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies. If you’ve been around the podcast, you already know Ryan is the Facility Manager at United Producers in Little York, Indiana and among other things, spends his time chasing cattle.

Ryan, Jeff, and Sal will discuss the current state of the cattle market, challenges to overcome for those looking to get into cattle, and why the market has stayed so strong. Get ready for story time with Ryan telling about a buyer who wanted to put a calf in the van or a woman who put pigs in her fancy car! In addition to story time, you’ll learn about some of the interesting animals Ryan has seen come through the yard. “It’s just exciting because you never know what you’re gonna get in there!”

What’s the most traded nitrogen product that’s out there? Returning guest, Josh Linville, joins hosts Sal Sama and Jeff Jarrett for today’s episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies. As you may remember, Josh is the Vice President of Fertilizer at StoneX and has over 20 years of experience in the fertilizer industry.

Josh will give us a glimpse into what’s happening in the global urea market and how that sets the tone for the anhydrous market. You’ll learn how navigating transportation through war zones has impacted costs and why we’re dependent upon imports to meet our fertilizer demand. Josh will also discuss the UAN (Urea Ammonium Nitrate) market and why it’s much smaller than the urea market. Josh, Sal, and Jeff will take a look at the reasons behind import duties and Josh will share his advice as you head into 2025. “Look for your opportunities… Do not let the emotion of where it looks as we go into 2025 run your decision-making process.”

Jeff’s asking the good questions today, like, “What’s the strangest species you’ve created feed for?” Special guests, Kristy and Alan Lowe, join hosts Jeff Jarrett and Sal Sama in the podcast room for this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies. Kristy and Alan are co-owners of Lowe’s Pellets and Grain which has offered premium feeds for livestock for over 60 years.

In addition to learning about Kristy and Alan’s career paths, you’ll learn about the family business that was started by Alan’s grandparents and the business that exists today. You’ll also learn about the interesting animals that have been fed specialty feed from Lowe’s Pellets and Grain and the way pellets are created. You’ll also learn how the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) has impacted food and pellet mills and get a glimpse into what it means that Lowe’s Pellets and Grain is Safe Feed/Safe Food (SF/SF) certified. “Today I think we’re selling our feed in 18 states. It’s been cool to see the growth, but you talk about a learning curve!”

“The farmer is struggling because they’re really dying the death of a thousand apps.” On this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies, Tracey Wiedmeyer joins hosts Jeff Jarrett and Sal Sama in the podcast room! He grew up on a farm, and now Tracey is the co-founder and CEO of Gripp Ag, a company that creates mobile software to help growers scale their agriculture operations because of their operational data tracking.

Tracey will share about his career path and how he ended up connecting with Purdue University and DIAL Ventures. You’ll learn what the acronym stands for and how a traditional venture fund differs from a venture studio and what their relationship is to venture fellows. He’ll share how Gripp offers the ability to track operations, how growers are able to create training videos for their farming operation, and how the app has even been used to track diseases on apple trees.

We think all our guests are special, but this one is extra special! Harold Cooper rejoins hosts Sal Sama and Jeff Jarrett in the podcast room for this episode of The High Ground powered by Premier Companies. You may already know Harold is the CEO of Premier Companies, but did you know he used to aspire to run for governor?

Buckle up as Harold shares the story of how cooperatives were formed in Indiana, some of his leadership philosophies, and how being a student of military history has formed those philosophies. You’ll learn about how Harold views the cooperative system and what it means that Premier is farmer-owned and farmer-controlled. You’ll hear about the challenges of dealing with rapid changes and how, through the use of partnerships with groups like DIAL Ventures, Premier works to find new ways to make improvements for all stakeholders. “When I think about what happens here and how do you guide and lead Premier, I first look back. What was the character and the makeup of those that formed us? …That should be enduring in my mind.”