Agbioscience

421. Dave Fischer on soil health, regenerative ag + Fischer Farms leveraging AI + automation for direct-to-consumer meat delivery

From the land to the animals, Dave Fischer has taken a committed approach to the family business. He joins us this week to talk Southern Indiana’s Fischer Farms, his rapid growing natural meat delivery business, the criticality of consumer voice, soil health and beyond.  Highlights include:  The history of Fischer Farms, Dave’s approach to leading the family operation and their scope of service today Regenerative agriculture, soil health and creating an environment where cows are a net positive for sustainability What innovation looks like in practice at Fischer Farms and their differentiated approach across the portfolio  Fischer Farms’ growth story and how Dave has balanced scaling while maintaining innovative and sustainable practices The consumer voice and what Dave believes to be the role of the farmer and food brands in this space when it comes to food’s impact on health Fischer Farms’ retail business, focus on tight supply chain and direct to consumer approach How they’ve designed their retail operation for efficiency to guarantee quality products – while also maintaining their commitment to sustainability What technologies – from AI to automation – are transforming how Fischer Farms is operating their processing and packaging business The pursuit to innovate and find the next opportunity, finding great partners along the way and which organizations make sense for their collaborative approach Fischer Farms’ participation in the Beef Research Project with USDA and what they are aiming to accomplish What is happening this year – and it’s a big facility that cranks out a lot of burgers – and beyond 

420. American Autonomy’s Mariah Scott on the US drone market, better data access for improved tech adoption + farmers defining the future of innovation

From tightening margins to shifts in the regulatory landscape, growers face a series of headwinds that challenge the success of their operations every year. One constant? Data on the farm. This week, American Autonomy CEO Mariah Scott joins us to talk data as a differentiator and unlocking access in a new American market for drones.  Highlights include: The work American Autonomy is leading to bring drone software to dealers and farmers that sets their businesses apart AcreConnect as the company’s first software platform designed to assist during the spray season, the gaps in the market that led to its creation and how it enables farmer success What’s happening with drones in the current market landscape and how Mariah sees the future changing Regulatory shifts and their impact on technological adoption on farms right now How American Autonomy defines success in this environment and how this evolution in the industry has created new opportunities Leveraging farmer relationships to refine and improve technologies; and the farmer’s role in defining the future of innovation in this space What innovations Mariah sees playing the biggest role in drone imagery and spraying in the future — from AI to automation, sensing technologies and regulatory advancements — and how might they reshape both farm operations and the broader agtech landscape Momentum for the American Autonomy team over the last year and how that’s enabled them to grow and scale in new ways Integrations as a critical driver for the American Autonomy team’s success and how partnerships have created high-quality tech adoption in the field Mariah’s non-traditional ag background and how that’s positioned her to lead in the space thus far How she sees talent evolving and reshaping the agbioscience industry over the next decade What’s ahead for the American Autonomy team in 2026 

419. AgriNovus' Christy Wright recaps March, talks Velocity launch, Indiana's $1B investment in One Health, CICP's Catalyst Scholars Fund, Cal-Maine Foods' acquisition + Corteva Catalyst's investment in Tropic

Our March recap is here and it's a busy one! Highlights include: The launch of AgriNovus research and 2026 Velocity. Apply to participate in this year's cohort here: https://agrinovusindiana.com/velocity/Indiana's announcement of a $1B investment in agriculture and bioscience to position the state as a global leader in One Health innovationCICP's launch of the Catalyst Scholars fund focused on advanced chemistry talent, research and commercialization in IndianaCal-Maine Foods' acquisition of Creighton BrothersCorteva Catalysts's investment in gene editing company TropicJoin us for Quadrant on 5/13 in Indianapolis! Register here: https://agrinovusindiana.com/quadrant/

418. Arrowpoint Lab’s Tayo Sanders on agbioscience areas ripe for innovation, connecting industry problems with startup opportunity + the launch of AgriNovus’ Velocity

AgriNovus will release new research today identifying critical challenges ripe for innovation that will serve as the foundation for the 2026 Velocity Accelerator, a six-month program that awards entrepreneurs three separate $25,000 cash prizes for their technology solutions in bioinnovation, farmer-focused innovation and food is health. Joining us on the podcast is Tayo Sanders from Arrowpoint Labs, authors of the study that shape the foundation for this year’s accelerator.  Are you interested in participating in this year's Velocity? Ten teams will be accepted for each track, so space is limited! Apply to participate today: https://agrinovusindiana.com/velocity/ Highlights include:   Tayo’s work at Arrowpoint Labs and who they serve through insights and research The report that his team did for AgriNovus tied to 2026 Velocity, its findings and how it shaped this year’s challenge statements Indiana’s “right to win” across the agricultural value chain, the state’s strongest advantage right now and biggest opportunities to grow A theme in the report that emerges – bridging the gap in innovation among farmer-focused innovation, bioinnovation and food is health Engaging with local, state and national stakeholders to gain insights for this study and how their input provided support or opposition to what had been gathered as existing research The challenges that exist within the food is health space and gaps they identified in the report that could serve as opportunities for startups to innovate for in this year’s accelerator Priorities that were shaped through insights and research on a growing bioeconomy and how entrepreneurs can tackle the challenge being presented in that track for Velocity The value of connecting innovators at the farmgate to create new technologies that impact ROI and help develop new companies that can grow and scale through a program like Velocity What excites Tayo the most about this report and its potential to inform and inspire new innovation 

417. Ourobio’s Alec Brewer on the journey of a startup, bioinnovation’s opportunity to reshape traditional industries + contributing to a circular economy

The demand for biobased materials is growing on a global scale, with no signals of that pace slowing any time soon. One startup has leveraged the power of synthetic biology to turn industrial byproducts into biomaterials. This week, Ourobio CEO Alec Brewer joins us to talk the company’s founding, contributing to a circular economy and their innovation process – end-to-end.  Highlights include:  The company’s origin story out of the University of Virginia and how it has evolved Ourobio’s innovation process, end-to-end, that produces bio-based materials Pivoting as an entrepreneur and knowing when they needed to tilt their business model to capture and offer value The Ourobio differentiation, which includes safety, color of pigmentation of polymer and affordability Alec’s perspective on the regulatory environment, what needs to be defined and how this conversation should evolve as this market continues to grow Biggest headwinds Ourobio has faced as a startup and how they’ve navigated their challenges in the early stage  Feedback from companies that are moving to more bio-based materials  Where Alec sees the biggest opportunity for bioinnovation reshape traditional industries in the coming decade  Tools and technologies that have had the greatest impact on accelerating innovation for Ourobio’s scale and precision  How partnerships and collaboration have paved the way for Alec and the Ourobio team’s entrepreneurial success  What success looks like at this stage for the company and what’s ahead for Ourobio that has Alec most excited