AgCulture Podcast

This episode is a masterclass in what real innovation in agriculture actually looks like.
In this conversation, Marcel Kringe — founder of Bushel Plus — walks through how a simple, frustrating, and overlooked problem on the farm turned into a global business serving farmers in over 45 countries. What started as trying to figure out grain loss behind a combine became a system that is now influencing how some of the largest equipment manufacturers in the world think about data, automation, and efficiency.
Marcel doesn’t come at this from theory or Silicon Valley thinking. This is built from the ground up — from working in the dust, seeing real losses, and asking a simple question: there has to be a better way.
The result is a business rooted in first principles: measure what matters, solve a real problem, and create immediate value for the farmer.
If you care about agtech, innovation, or building something that actually works in the field — this one is worth your time.

MEET THE GUEST
Marcel Kringe is the Founder and CEO of Bushel Plus (Soon to be BranValt), a globally recognized ag-tech company specializing in harvest optimization. With over 20 years of hands-on experience in large-scale farming operations, Marcel has built a reputation for bridging the gap between field-level realities and cutting-edge agricultural innovation. His work has taken him across the globe, where he’s collaborated with farmers, agronomists, and equipment manufacturers to improve harvest outcomes. 
 
Marcel’s passion for helping farmers stems from his own background in agriculture and a deep respect for the challenges producers face every season. He believes that every farmer deserves access to tools and knowledge that can make their work more efficient, profitable, and sustainable. Through Bushel Plus, Marcel is committed to empowering growers with practical solutions that reduce loss, increase yield, and support long-term success in the field.

ABOUT THE PODCAST
Discover the world of agriculture with the "Ag Culture Podcast".This podcast will be a gateway for those passionate about agriculture to explore its global perspectives and innovative practices.
Join Paul as he shares his experiences in the agricultural industry, his travels and encounters with important figures around the world.
Available on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts.Subscribe at http://www.agculturepodcast.com and keep an eye out for future episodes, bringing insights and stories from the vibrant world of agriculture.

Sustainability gets talked about a lot in agriculture—but what does it actually look like at scale?
In this episode of the AgCulture Podcast, Paul sits down with Jeremy Buchman, Director of Agronomy & Sustainability at McCain Foods, to break down how one of the largest food processors in the world is working directly with growers to drive real change.
From regenerative agriculture adoption to the growing burden of data collection, Jeremy shares what it takes to align farmers, processors, and customers across the value chain. He explains how McCain is measuring sustainability, why data is both essential and challenging, and how their role is increasingly shifting into something that looks a lot like modern-day extension services.
This conversation gives a real look at what happens between the farm and the consumer—and where the future of agriculture is actually being shaped.
Listen to the episode now!

MEET THE GUEST
Jeremy Buchman
Jeremy Buchman is the Director of Agronomy & Sustainability at McCain Foods, one of the largest potato processors in the world, responsible for approximately one out of every four French fries consumed globally.
In his role, Jeremy works directly with growers across North America to implement regenerative agriculture practices, improve soil health, and support long-term farm sustainability. His work sits at the intersection of agronomy, data, and supply chain coordination—helping align farm-level practices with processor requirements and consumer expectations.
With a background as a grower himself, Jeremy brings a practical, on-the-ground perspective to challenges like data collection, technology adoption, and profitability. He also plays a key role in supporting growers through agronomic guidance, effectively helping fill the gap left by declining public extension services.

ABOUT THE PODCAST
Discover the world of agriculture with the "Ag Culture Podcast".This podcast will be a gateway for those passionate about agriculture to explore its global perspectives and innovative practices.
Join Paul as he shares his experiences in the agricultural industry, his travels and encounters with important figures around the world.
Available on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts.Subscribe at http://www.agculturepodcast.com and keep an eye out for future episodes, bringing insights and stories from the vibrant world of agriculture.

Most companies talk about values. Very few actually use them.
In this episode, Barrett Ersek breaks down how Holganix built a culture where values aren’t just words on a wall—they’re used to make real decisions, guide hiring, and shape the direction of the business.
From gratitude and resilience to the concept of “flow,” this conversation dives into a different way of thinking about leadership—one that’s driven by purpose, not just pressure.

MEET THE GUEST
Barrett Ersek is the Founder and CEO of Holganix. With a deep commitment to soil health and a long-term vision for regenerative agriculture, Barrett has been a driving force behind building biologically based solutions that are good for growers, the planet, and the bottom line.
At Holganix, Barrett leads company strategy with a focus on market creation, commercialization, and scale. His work spans building teams and advancing go-to-market execution across both Holganix Ag and HGX, the company’s environmental assets platform.
He holds three patents and is widely recognized as an expert on innovation and organizational leadership.

ABOUT THE PODCAST
Discover the world of agriculture with the "Ag Culture Podcast".This podcast will be a gateway for those passionate about agriculture to explore its global perspectives and innovative practices.
Join Paul as he shares his experiences in the agricultural industry, his travels and encounters with important figures around the world.
Available on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts.Subscribe at http://www.agculturepodcast.com and keep an eye out for future episodes, bringing insights and stories from the vibrant world of agriculture.

Most businesses don’t start with a perfect plan—some start with a crisis.In this episode, Barrett Ersek shares the story behind Holganix, from building and selling a successful lawn care company to a turning point that changed everything—a warehouse fire that forced a completely new way of thinking.What followed wasn’t just a new business, but a new direction: from chemicals to biology, from lawn care to agriculture, and from making money to building something that actually matters.This is a raw look at entrepreneurship, risk, and what it takes to build something from the ground up in agriculture.

MEET THE GUEST
Barrett Ersek is the Founder and CEO of Holganix. With a deep commitment to soil health and a long-term vision for regenerative agriculture, Barrett has been a driving force behind building biologically based solutions that are good for growers, the planet, and the bottom line.At Holganix, Barrett leads company strategy with a focus on market creation, commercialization, and scale. His work spans building teams and advancing go-to-market execution across both Holganix Ag and HGX, the company’s environmental assets platform.He holds three patents and is widely recognized as an expert on innovation and organizational leadership, with work featured in Harvard Business Review and The London School of Business’ Think.

ABOUT THE PODCAST
Discover the world of agriculture with the "Ag Culture Podcast".This podcast will be a gateway for those passionate about agriculture to explore its global perspectives and innovative practices.Join Paul as he shares his experiences in the agricultural industry, his travels and encounters with important figures around the world.Available on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts.Subscribe at http://www.agculturepodcast.com and keep an eye out for future episodes, bringing insights and stories from the vibrant world of agriculture.

For decades, agriculture has followed one simple rule: bigger machines, more acres, more efficiency.
But what if that model is starting to break?
In this episode of the AgCulture Podcast, Paul sits down with Andrew Bate, co-founder of SwarmFarm Robotics, to explore a radically different vision for the future of farming — autonomous swarm robotics.
Built by farmers in the field, not engineers in an office, SwarmFarm challenges the assumption that scale equals success. Instead of one massive machine, Andrew and his team are deploying fleets of small, autonomous robots designed to farm more precisely, more efficiently, and ultimately — better.
This conversation dives into the tension between precision agriculture and large-scale machinery, the rise of micro-targeted farming systems, and how new technologies like AI, computer vision, and connectivity are finally making autonomous farming viable.
If you’ve ever wondered whether agriculture should keep scaling up — or rethink the system entirely — this episode will challenge your assumptions.

MEET THE GUEST
Andrew Bate
Andrew Bate is the founder and CEO of SwarmFarm Robotics, an Australian agtech company based in Queensland that develops autonomous farming robots. A farmer himself, Bate co-founded the company with his wife, Jocie, building it from their family farm after becoming frustrated with the increasing size and limitations of traditional agricultural machinery.
Initially bootstrapped, SwarmFarm introduced a new model of farming based on smaller, autonomous machines working collaboratively. Bate’s work focuses on enabling more precise, efficient, and adaptable farming systems, challenging the long-held assumption that bigger equipment leads to better productivity.

ABOUT THE PODCAST
Discover the world of agriculture with the "Ag Culture Podcast".This podcast will be a gateway for those passionate about agriculture to explore its global perspectives and innovative practices.
Join Paul as he shares his experiences in the agricultural industry, his travels and encounters with important figures around the world.
Available on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts.Subscribe at http://www.agculturepodcast.com and keep an eye out for future episodes, bringing insights and stories from the vibrant world of agriculture.