Damian Mason - The Business of Agriculture

Damian Mason - The Business of Agriculture

Damian travels all over the globe talking to audiences about trends in the business of food, fuel, and fiber. With his clever wit and down-to-earth delivery, he has turned these topics into an interesting (and sometimes controversial) podcast.

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Damian Mason - The Business of Agriculture
  • Why Is Big Money Flooding into Farmland Right Now? | Damian Mason

    For years, money flowed into Ag tech—until the tap ran dry. But there’s one area still attracting outside investment: farmland. Ben Gordon and Brian Grundtner from Fractal join Damian to discuss the evolving landscape of capital in agriculture. Their company is pioneering a model where investor f...

  • Trade, Tariffs, Biofuel, AgTech, Farm Bill & the Future of Ag | Damian Mason

    From FarmCon 2025, Damian Mason sits down with three experts to tackle the biggest issues in American agriculture: trade, tariffs, biofuel, markets, Ag Tech, and the Farm Bill.

    Kevin Van Trump of the Van Trump Report dives into global agriculture markets and the key drivers of change. Roland Fum...

  • What a Farmer Wants You to Know About Food | Damian Mason

    How do farmers feel when misinformation about agriculture takes center stage? Dennis Bulani knows firsthand.

    After a conference speaker delivered a factually flawed tirade against modern farming, Dennis was inspired to write What a Farmer Wants You to Know About Food.

    In this episode, Dennis ...

  • Can Farming Shift to Health-Focused Food Production? | Damian Mason

    Is agriculture ready to pivot from maximizing yields to prioritizing nutrient-rich, health-focused food production? Join Damian in a thought-provoking discussion with Iowa farmer and Ag entrepreneur Kelly Garrett and Ag venture capitalist Carter Williams. Explore the future of farming as surpluse...

  • Food & Farming Trends: Does Protein Have Staying Power? | Damian Mason

    Protein is the hottest buzzword in food and diet trends—but will it stay that way?

    Damian Mason and RaboResearch’s Nicholas Fereday explore the booming demand for dietary protein and its impact on agriculture, from animal-based production to plant-based alternatives.

    Learn how "protein-enhanc...

  • Can Sustainable Aviation Fuel Propel Agriculture to New Heights? | Damian Mason

    Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) could become a game-changer for production agriculture, driving a surge in demand for corn and soybeans—two crops currently facing significant oversupply challenges. But will SAF truly take off? What policies, regulations, and incentives are necessary to make this ...

  • Gov Payments Impact Farmers: Subsidies, Supply, & Sustainability | Damian Mason

    Just before Christmas 2024, the federal government unveiled a $31 billion aid package for American farmers—$10 billion in direct payments and $21 billion in disaster relief for the past two years. But here’s the twist: even more funding might be on the horizon. In this episode, Damian Mason is jo...

  • Strategies Smart Farms Use to Weather Bad Ag Economies | Damian Mason

    Chris Barron has weathered several Ag downturns as an Iowa farmer. He’s also helped hundreds of farming operations succeed despite farm economy downturns as an Ag consultant with his company, Ag View Solutions. Chris joins Damian Mason to discuss the Business of Agriculture at the farm level, lay...

  • Beef In The 21st Century | Damian Mason

    American consumption of beef — contrary to predictions otherwise — has held up amazingly well, despite beef prices outpacing the rate of general food inflation. 85% of that beef is processed by the “Big 4” packers. Looking ahead, what changes are coming for beef? Will smaller meat processors, bac...

  • Will RFK Jr. “Un-Fauci” Our Food, Or Make Matters Worse? | Damian Mason

    RFK Jr. as head of Health and Human Services will oversee the Food and Drug Administration and will have a role in setting food policy in the United States. Will RFK “Un-Fauci” our food system? And what exactly is meant by “Fauci’d,” you ask? When a bureaucrat uses fraudulent science to achieve p...

  • Speaking of Agriculture — A Fun Conversation with Vance Crowe | Damian Mason

    Vance Crowe and Damian Mason have spoken to hundreds of thousands of Agricultural audience members. In this fun and fast moving discussion, they share "behind the scenes” stories from their careers on stage at Ag meetings all over the world. How do you handle a disagreeable audience? Why should y...

  • Ag Downturn & Demographics Impacting Land Use, Ownership, & Sales | Damian Mason

    As production Agriculture moves from banner years economically to a downturn, what changes will we see on the land front? Presumably values decline as other asset classes compete for investor dollars as the farm belt tightens amid lower commodity prices. Couple that with a dying generation handin...

  • Efficiency Gains Aren’t Enough to Make Production Ag Profitable | Damian Mason

    We in Agriculture are told, “The low cost producer wins.” That’s been generally true for as long as anyone working in Ag today can remember. But what about moving forward? Will efficiency gains be enough to keep Agriculture profitable? No, they won’t be. The reason: Focusing on efficiency address...

  • Big Fat Surprise — Bastardized Science and Bad Food Policy | Damian Mason

    Beginning in the 1960s, Americans were told of the evils of saturated fat. From the 1970s through the ’90s, “low fat” was a can’t miss marketing slogan. Abstaining from meat, eggs, butter, and milk would keep us thin and stave off heart attacks, we were told. Grains and fiber were the answer for ...

  • The Agriculture Economy: How Bad Is It and Where Is It Going? | Damian Mason

    We’re in year one of an Agricultural economic downturn due to low commodity prices. How bad are things, really? Where - geographically - are the numbers worse and who’s holding up better? Curt Covington, with Ag America Lending joins Damian Mason for the third time on The Business of Agriculture ...

  • Will Robert F. Kennedy’s Misguided Activism Set Ag Back 70 Years? | Damian Mason

    What happens if Robert F. Kennedy, the self-described "extreme environmentalist” who rails against “factory farms,” is in charge of the Department of Agriculture? The trust fund heir turned environmental lawyer turned politician led the first lawsuits against Monsanto, and he’s on the record as s...

  • Farmers Are Getting Irrigation Systems Paid for By Dr. Pepper | Damian Mason

    Netafim, a subsurface drip irrigation maker, is teaming up with corporations eager to offset their water consumption. Through their Corporate Partnership Program, Netafim secures commitments from outside corporations to fund 50% or more of the cost of new irrigation installation on farms. Similar...

  • Land Rich, Cash Poor Why America’s Small Farms Are Going Away | Damian Mason

    The number of farming operations in the U.S. has dipped below 2 million for the first time since we became a developed nation. Peak farm — meaning the year we had the most operations — occurred in 1935 when we had 6.8 million farms with a farming population of 32 million. Of a national population...

  • What Happens When A Farm Bill Dies? | Damian Mason

    Will we get a new Farm Bill and if so, what will it look like? Damian Mason asks those questions and plenty more of his guest, Roger Cryan, Chief Economist for the American Farm Bureau Federation. Dr. Cryan and Damian provide a brief history of farm legislation (it dates back to the 1930’s) as we...

  • How Strikes, Tariffs and China Trade Relations Impact American Ag | Damian Mason

    The International Longshoremen’s Association announced that they had reached an agreement to end their strike on the evening of October 3rd. This episode of The Business of Agriculture was already recorded and set for release on October 7. Given the tenuous state of affairs between the ports, shi...

  • What Will the Next 20 Years Bring For Corn Ethanol & Agriculture? | Damian Mason

    Explore the rise of corn ethanol in the United States in this insightful episode of The Business of Agriculture. Prior to the Renewable Fuels Standard of 2004, corn ethanol was a niche market. Fast forward to today, and nearly 40% of U.S. corn production is dedicated to ethanol. Join host Damian ...

  • Promoting Agriculture: Why We Suck At It & How We Can Improve

    The Business of Agriculture is all about producing food, fuel, and fiber. We’re damn good at it. What we’re not so good at is promoting our products. In a marketplace that’s oversupplied on just about every Agricultural commodity, differentiation, promotion, branding, and marketing are more impor...

  • The Truth About Livestock and Greenhouse Gas Emissions | Damian Mason

    Are livestock producers unfairly targeted by climate activists for their environmental impact? Do consumers face unjust guilt trips over their meat, milk, and egg choices? In this episode of The Business of Agriculture, we dive into the debate surrounding livestock and greenhouse gas emissions.

    ...

  • Technology To Reduce Farm Labor & Natural Resource Consumption | Damian Mason

    Two areas of increasing concern for production Agriculture: Water utilization and labor availability. Farmblox is a farm automation company connecting equipment and in-field sensors to a producer’s phone. Imagine a future with less time spent monitoring or guessing, and more time adjusting, based...