Soil health on a large scale, can really be enhanced through data and digital tools. It’s pretty incredible to hear how that is being applied to farms like the one you’re going to hear from today in Argentina. Today we’re joined by Kevin, a large farmer in Argentina, as well as Syngenta’s Catriel Pedermera and Bill Suess, to talk about leveraging technology to build healthier soils at scale.

 We know soil compaction is an issue, so being able to diagnose it more precisely helps us to make the decision: okay, here we need to intervene with some vertical work maybe, and we thought this one was very compacted, but the data shows it's not that compacted. A lot of this is saving time. And also there are problems we know we have that we can work on and, save time and a lot of money like in variable rate, be more efficient in the solution, and in the resources applied to the solutions of those problems.” - Kevin, Argentine farmer

Kevin farms soybeans, corn, some cotton and some peanuts west of the Buenos Aires province. He’s the fourth generation in the family-owned business that has been there for over 100 years. He talks about the transition the family has made from a cattle farm to 100% no-till crop farm.

Kevin also works closely with Catriel, an agronomist with Syngenta in Argentina who also joins us on today’s episode. Both Kevin and Catriel are well-versed in collecting soil data and implementing precision agriculture to make the farm more productive and build soil health over time.

Also on the show today is Bill Suess, digital product manager with Syngenta Group who has an extensive background in farm management and precision ag. He works as part of a small team that is intensely mapping soils to find agronomic solutions for growers around the world.

This Week on Soil Sense:

• Meet Kevin, a large-scale farmer in Argentina

• Discover some of the soil health challenges in Argentina, and what farmers are doing to deal with those

• Hear how Catriel and Bill at Syngenta are working with farmers like Kevin to implement technology to improve soil health and overall profitability

• Understand how Kevin is usually precision agriculture technology and other advanced tools on his farm.

Listen to the full season here: https://www.syngenta.com/agriculture/sustainable-agriculture/soil-health/soil-sense-podcast

This season of the Soil Sense podcast is brought to you by Syngenta. If you are interested in what soil health looks like in practice and on the farm, please subscribe and follow this show on your favorite podcast app, and leave us a rating and review while you’re there!

The  Soil Sense podcast is for those that believe building healthier soils is not just a prescription, but rather a pursuit. On this show, we unpack the way farmers collaborate to build healthier soils and adapt systems to work on their farm for both sustainability and profitability.

Farmers and agronomists have a lot on their plate just to produce a profitable crop every year. So what happens when their buyers start requesting they also change practices to move in a more regenerative direction? Today we hear Emily, an agronomist for a large farm in Alberta, Canada, and Syngenta’s Tara McCaughey, about the quest to grow a more regenerative potato.

“ It's very different from what we're used to. We have somebody who comes here, sells us a product, we see the results. It's instant ROI. With a lot of these practices, it's gonna cost you extra time and people, but you don't necessarily get that right back, that harvest. This is more of a long game. So trying to justify that when you're convincing people to make a change. I think that's an additional barrier is that you might not see your yield increase year one. And that's just a different mindset shift from what we're used to in ag I think.” - Emily, Agronomist in Alberta, Canada

Emily is an agronomist for a very large farming operation in Alberta, Canada. She’s been doing that for about five years and has an additional 15 years as agronomist, mostly working for a large french fry manufacturer. Emily recently traveled the world as a Nuffield Scholar studying regenerative agriculture practices in potato production systems.

Tara has been with Syngenta for a number of years in various capacities, but currently she is the Head of Technology Solutions in Sustainable Ag Function. So her team ensures that technology, including chemistry, biological crop input products, as well as digital ag solution technologies are market-ready and supported once they're in the market with farmer customers.

This Week on Soil Sense:

• Meet Emily, an agronomist in Alberta, and Tara McCaughey, Head of Technology Solutions in Sustainable Ag at Syngenta Canada

• Discover what’s working when it comes to implementing regenerative farming practices in potato cropping systems

• Consider why building soil health is a long term investment instead of a product that can offer clear and instant return on investment (ROI)

• Listen to how agronomists like Emily work with other stakeholders to find prudent ways to implement changes

The  Soil Sense podcast is for those that believe building healthier soils is not just a prescription, but rather a pursuit. On this show, we unpack the way farmers collaborate to build healthier soils and adapt systems to work on their farm for both sustainability and profitability.

Listen to the full season here: https://www.syngenta.com/agriculture/sustainable-agriculture/soil-health/soil-sense-podcast

Thank you to Syngenta for sponsoring this season of the Soil Sense podcast. If you are interested in what soil health looks like in practice and on the farm, please subscribe and follow this show on your favorite podcast app, and leave us a rating and review while you’re there!

In order for soil health to go from words and ideas to actions and outcomes, there needs to be support at the farm level - whether that’s a corn farmer in the U.S. or a peanut farmer in rural Northeast China. Today we talk to two farmers in China who are embracing new ideas for their farms, improving their soil, and helping their communities to see the value in building healthier soils.

 ” I do believe that soil health is an issue for the whole mankind, for the whole world. And thus when I came back home, I wanted to share with, my community about how we can handle the land and also soil better so that our after generations would also be able to enjoy these healthier soil.” - Xingjia, Chinese Peanut Farmer

Today we hear from two farmers, Chi and Xingjia, who farm in the Liaoning Province of northeast China. These two say they have had some big challenges with soil in their area, including erosion and lack of fertility. Xingjia and Chi got involved in a Syngenta program called Hope Soil Health, which provides training that they say they’ve been able to implement on their farms.

Fang Yao of Syngenta also joins the podcast to share more about that Hope program. All of today’s guests provided their answers through an interpreter.

This Week on Soil Sense:

• Meet farmers Xingjia and Chi, as well as Syngenta’s Fang Yao

• Understand some of the challenges and solutions farmers are working with in rural northeast China

• Discover the Hope Soil Health program and how it’s providing training for farmers

• Explore the impact of innovative farmers and well-researched training

The  Soil Sense podcast is for those that believe building healthier soils is not just a prescription, but rather a pursuit. On this show, we unpack the way farmers collaborate to build healthier soils and adapt systems to work on their farm for both sustainability and profitability.

Listen to the full season here: https://www.syngenta.com/agriculture/sustainable-agriculture/soil-health/soil-sense-podcast

Thank you to Syngenta for sponsoring this season of the Soil Sense podcast. If you are interested in what soil health looks like in practice and on the farm, please subscribe and follow this show on your favorite podcast app, and leave us a rating and review while you’re there!