Land O’Lakes, Inc. recently launched the final episode in the first season of its ag business and innovation podcast, “Something Greater.” The series is geared toward member-owners in the Land O’Lakes Inc. co-op, its employees, savvy growers and the agricultural community.
“We recognize that our farmer-owners and local ag retailers benefit from a rich and transparent dialogue about the work we do on their behalf,” said Kim Olson, Chief Communications Officer of Land O’Lakes. “Our first season highlighted conversations with Land O’Lakes leaders sharing their excitement about the work they do each day, from ag tech innovation, to support for rural communities, to discussion on the issues that are critically important to the ag community.”
As a conversation about the business of ag and dairy retail, each episode featured voices of the cooperative’s leaders, interviewed by Olson as series host. The interviews cover topics such as marketing, sustainability and the cooperative business model — connecting each topic to the issues and technology top-of-mind for farmers today.
Season 1 launched in December 2018 with a joint appearance by President and CEO Beth Ford, and Autumn Price, vice president of government relations. In the midst of high-profile policy debates in Washington on the 2018 Farm Bill, trade and beyond, they discussed Land O’Lakes’ advocacy in Washington on behalf of farmers and, more broadly, their mission to educate the public and policymakers about modern agriculture.
Throughout the six episodes, and one bonus episode, guests included a range of Land O’Lakes leaders representing the cooperative’s technology and sustainability businesses, WinField United and Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN.
The final episode, “Innovation from the Ground Up: Animal Nutrition,” is a departure from the series’ straightforward interview format, featuring on-farm storytelling by several experts across practices at Purina Animal Nutrition.
The podcast reached listeners across more than 500 municipalities, spanning urban and rural areas.
Olson added, “We’re going to keep telling the real stories of our members in new ways. We want to offer anyone who’s interested in the innovation going on in science and in business to take a look at modern agriculture.”
Land O’Lakes is planning for a second season of “Something Greater,” slated to begin production in Fall 2019.
Episode lineup:
Episode one: Legislative advocacy
Episode two: Member engagement
Episode three: All Together Better and Marketing the Cooperative
Episode four: Ag Tech and e-business
Bonus episode: Land O’Lakes, our co-op soul
Episode six: How we measure sustainability: What it looks like on-farm
Episode seven: Cooperative strength: Combining national scale with local community impact
Episode eight: Innovating with animal nutrition: The problems worth solving
About Land O'Lakes, Inc.
Land O'Lakes, Inc., one of America's premier agribusiness and food companies, is a member-owned cooperative with industry-leading operations that span the spectrum from agricultural production to consumer foods. With 2018 annual sales of $15 billion, Land O'Lakes is one of the nation's largest cooperatives, ranking 212 on the Fortune 500. Building on a legacy of more than 98 years of operation, Land O'Lakes today operates some of the most respected brands in agribusiness and food production including LAND O LAKES® Dairy Foods, Purina Animal Nutrition, WinField® United and Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN. The company does business in all 50 states and more than 60 countries. Land O'Lakes, Inc. corporate headquarters are located in Arden Hills, Minn.
