Barn2Door partners with ACRES USA for Eco-Ag 2021
In this episode of the Direct Farm Podcast, we're excited to host Ryan from ACRES USA for the first in-person podcast at Barn2Door HQ. James and Ryan will discuss what will be in store for the attendees of the upcoming Eco-Ag conference in Cincinnati, Ohio this December.
ACRES USA
Eco-Ag Conference Details
Barn2Door Resources for Farmers
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James: 0:26
Hey welcome everyone to the Direct Farm Podcast. I'm your host James Maiocco, COO over at Barn2Door. We've got a great conversation for you today. With ACRES USA. ACRES is North America's oldest publisher on production scale organic and sustainable farming. They're celebrating 50 years this year, a dedicated providing farmers ranchers in industry professionals with the information and resources to build healthy and resilient operations. This December ACRES is hosting their annual conference and trade show, Eco-Ag. And I'm super excited that Barn2Door gets to join them this year. Today, we're joined by Ryan from ACRES. Who's traveled all the way here to Seattle where we'll get to meet in person face to face my first face-to-face podcast since the pandemic. And so we're talking to you from the Barn2Door headquarters. So anyways, Ryan, great to see you. How are you doing today?
Ryan: 1:18
Good. It is amazing to be here even more amazing than it ever would be based on what you just said.
James: 1:24
And now for one, I understand for the last five years you've been General Manager and a publisher over at ACRES?
Ryan: 1:30
That is correct, started in 2016.
James: 1:32
Wow. That's pretty amazing. So how many of those print and web publications have you put out under your leadership?
Ryan: 1:38
Boy. Not enough. I think it would probably be what most people say. Ah, but no, we're we put out 12 magazines a year and 3 or 4 new books a year and a couple events a year. So we're busy, but we've also done a lot in the five years to help the previous ownership with the Walters family. Who were an amazing family helped us get started, but they needed some help modernizing it overall. So that's what we've been trying to do. And that's where our partnership with Barn2Door comes in as well.
James: 1:59
Well, that's awesome. Books never get old. I absolutely love to have the feel of a book in my hands. I read an actual a hard copy book every night. And it's also so fantastic for taking notes, right? And especially when you're out in the barn, you want to be able to look at something very quickly acres, a great resource to get those books that you need to, to guide you. Hey, for our listeners for joining us today wanting to share that Barn2Door and ACRES USA have been partnering for the past year and a half. And we've been really excited about where this partnership is heading. We've attended many ACRES USA conferences in the past. And this year we're excited to work more closely with Eco-Ag. So really excited. We'll dive into that in a minute. But before we get started, Ryan, can you share just a little bit about ACRES USA and it kind of a little bit like what your business looks like between being a publisher and hosting events?
Ryan: 2:44
You mentioned that it was our 50th anniversary, so it's our birthday all year long, but in 1971, we were started by a guy named Charles Walters. He was an economist by trade who worked with and helped start the National Farmers Union to really bring them to a national stage, to really advocate for family Farmers at the time the model that was chosen by the USDA and, you know, many countries around the world was the massive farm model where you have one farm per county, the USDA would then fund that farm. And generally it would turn family Farmers into workers on the farm are not owners of the land. Charles struggled with that on an economic model, both for how do we save the family Farmer, but also he fundamentally felt like that was a really bad direction for us to go for national sovereignty as well.
James: 3:24
Yeah, it sounds like an economic theory from someone's classroom rather than real life.
Ryan: 3:27
It was, and they had to, you know, there were a couple of tests. Farms that came out in the sixties that failed miserably. Because you know, when you try to grow a monoculture crop over an entire county, they just learned that ecologically that was fundamentally impossible to do in a, in a way that the point of the diminishing return happened pretty quickly. When you, when you tried to scale up at that level, so he helped he read Rachel Carson's silent spring in 1966, for those who haven't read that book, the premise was Rachel had grown up in the, in the Midwest and was used to hearing the birds and the bees. And one day just noticed they were gone. And that was related to the massive exposure to pesticides, especially toxic pesticides that were out in the environment at the time. And that, so Charles kind of put two and two together and then thought about an ecological model that would support family farmers based, you know, focused on soil health. He didn't have the base level of science or knowledge at the time. And that's when he connected with Dr. William Albrecht at the University of Missouri. William Albrecht was famous for his dental study, where he was basically able the link calcium in the soil back to world war II, dental records and show where cavities came from. Or where their calcium was least in the soil. And at the time that was a big breakthrough. The first time that we were able to connect, you know, living environment and ecosystems to fundamental human health at some point. So William Albrecht ended up giving ACRES USA his research catalog to publish. And that launched us into what we are today. And we still, a lot of our authors are now updating the Albrecht science. And that's really what we're challenged to do is to, continue updating what William Albrecht put on paper in the 1930s and 1940s.
James: 4:52
Wow. It's amazing that those truths still are evident today and they are just as relevant to the work that Farmers are doing with their land. It has been the bedrock I should say, really has been the underpinnings of the good soil for farmers. Right. And you mentioned the importance of just having that diversity, ecological diversity. Boy, I can't tell you that's so well aligned with our vision here at Barn2Door too. And we're delighted to partner with you guys, especially given that you guys have strong history and your guys's ongoing commitment to sustainable practices. That's fantastic. Well, let's talk a little bit about, you know, you guys have all these great authors. I've read several of your authors. We had Paul Dorrance here last year, working with us, who I know is one of your authors as well. Great people, lots of great knowledge, great publications. But for everyone who's not reading a book. You guys also have conferences where they get to meet these types of Farmers in person, right? tell me a little bit about that before we shift over to Eco-Ag, but just thinking about conferences, you know, what, what prompted that shift from just being a publisher to being also, you know, a conference organization
Ryan: 5:53
Good question. Cause I think it's fundamental to the movement that happened. When Charles in the mid seventies realized he didn't have a choir at the time and there really wasn't a connected network of soil health farmers, organic farmers, or sustainable farmers, whatever word you want to use. There wasn't a word for it at the time. So he invented the term Eco-Agriculture at the time to help connect to these folks. And as he traveled around the country, he noticed that there were a lot of them. And you know, what, from the Amish and Mennonite communities to Southern plantation farmers, resisting the BT crop systems that they were being to the, you know, anti you know, really at the time it was 24d and DDT products that were, you know, around. And it was kind of a common sense point to a lot of the community that he was looking at. That just didn't want anything to do with that. So he brought them together in 1976 for the first time. And Kansas city and called the Eco-Ag conference. And that really became the first regular group of people to attend and start to share these best practices and out of that. Guy named Neal Kinsey came out of that. He was one of the early authors who was also one of the last students of Dr. William Albrecht. And he started at a agronomy company at our conference into the eighties, when you had . Dr. Elaine Ingham talking about her first biology in the soil was so chemistry driven before that people walked out of our conference. Cause I just didn't want to believe it, you know? And then into the nineties you had the first talk of Lee Fryer standing up at our conference and going, what if we created a certification for you guys and we called it the organic certification for US. And that was in 1996 announced that our conference and in 2000 we adopted the first organic certification rules in the US so, we always like to think we've been helping lead the movement along, and it's really comes from those family farmers who just think differently and want to farm differently.
James: 7:24
Wow. And I think I read the other day that a 20% of farms now in California are organic, which is amazing to think that this was just an idea 20 years ago. And here we are thinking about that the downstream impact that's having in terms of health, in terms of our climate, in terms of, you know, just our society. It's just, it's just huge. So really well done to ACRES. For me, learning more about that just makes me even more committed to working with you guys as partners given our shared vision for improving the lives of people and improving the life of our planet too. Let's talk a little bit about Eco-Ag specifically, right? So you just shared with us a little bit about the history behind getting started with conferences. This year is obviously super exciting cause everybody's coming out of lockdown. So for our listeners who would be very keen on attending, getting back out, you know, and meeting people face to face hearing about all these great ideas share the details about Eco-Ag for 2021.
Ryan: 8:19
Well, thank you. We really miss not having the last year during the pandemic. It was the first year ever since we started that we weren't able to have it. So we are officially overdue for the first time for a conference and we are excited to see everybody. So we can't share enthusiasm enough and you really want to make sure that we get as many people as there to celebrate the community, and the networking, as well as the learning and education. That's at the core of the mission. But this year, especially, it's going to be about seeing our friends again, seeing our peers again, and one of the takeaways from our conferences is always to re-energize the movement that we really want to send the farmers back with a, with an understanding or a reconfirmation of why they're doing it. Cause it's not easier to grow these ways and to use these tactics. And it does take a sense of community and a sense of why to get there. And that's what we're hoping to bring back this year with as much enthusiasm as we can. We'll be in Cincinnati, Ohio, December 6th through 9th. You can learn more at EcoAg.acresusa.com you can go there and we'll be continuing updating. We'll have a lot of our core authors. Paul Dorrance. Will be speaking again. You mentioned him, we're actually releasing his new book at our conferences this year. So we're really excited about that we'll have a new book from a guy named W. Joe Lewis there who's a longtime entomologist down in Georgia who really proved he was the first one to prove how boll weevils and wasps work together and share signals and boils actually call wasps and to help and wasps will learn to kill the boll weevil on a plant. Very interesting researcher that we'll have, and we'll have his book there. And we'll also have a some amazing farmers Will Harris and Jenny Harris from White Oak Pastures is going to be keynoting our conference this year. We're going to have Rick Clark. Who's a really pragmatic former conventional farmer who's transitioned and is still transitioning. And he gives a really compelling presentation on that. One of our keynotes is going to be Fred Provenza, he's pretty common in our audience and just a wonderful human being all the way around and really to connect the nourishment side of the equation. And a lot of the research he's been doing is on really the, the energy feedback that we get as human beings and how to create healthy humans and food's a part of that, but I think people might be able to learn how food is connected to other things like happiness and energy levels and communities, and even national security at some level.
James: 10:20
I absolutely believe it. Right. I'm a fun, fundamental believer in everything you just said. It's just so important. You are what you eat at the end of the day. And I'm excited that whole lineup sounds incredibly exciting. I think the one that the one speaker you mentioned that gets me excited is Will and Jenny Harris, right from White Oak Pastures. Talk about somebody who has been committed for a lifetime to fantastic practices, but also somebody who's shown that you can build an incredible business by, you know, again, helping to educate the market about the value of their product and how well it's going to make them. Talk to me a little bit about like, you know, when you think about the attendees coming to this conference for somebody who's never been what should they expect when they arrive? I've been at the conference and the Eco-Ag conference is a little different than what most people would think of another farming conference. Let's talk about the, you know, what it looks like to be at an ACRES USA conference.
Ryan: 11:10
That's an interesting question. We have a very unique audience overall, like you said you know, in the end it really starts with that diverse mentality that they bring. And so we will have young folks who are really revolutionary is trying to change the world through soil health. And we will have Amish and Mennonites who are doing it because God called on them to farm this way. And those groups are able to have really logical, common sense conversations about chemistry and biology in the soil and farming practices. That is the energy that we love. If you see me at the conference. you might see me in the corner, just with my arms crossed across my chest, smiling for a second. And that's probably me just taking it in the buzz that's there. And that's really how we measure the experiences that the networking and the energy that's going on in the hallways between our, sessions. And we know our speakers have a lot to do with energizing that but it really is the people that attend that make our show and why it's so important that we get everybody there this year.
James: 12:01
Yeah, it's a really special experience for those of you who have not attended an ACRES USA conference. I highly recommend this one. I will be there personally in attendance as well, along with many of my colleagues from Barn2Door and farms that we work with. Cause you know, this is a conference that I think brings together the best in everybody in terms of their commitment to soil health, and to good farming practices, but also people who are also bringing a willingness to share those best practices, to share that information and pass it on or pay it forward. You know, prior to, to getting set up for recording, talking about how it may not be uncommon to see somebody who's standing there with dreadlocks standing next to, you know, a Mennonite with their children in tow. And how cool is it to just see that type of diverse audience, you know, again, geeking out about soil health and caring about it so passionately, but also just building a bond out of that experience.
Ryan: 12:54
I mean, I just think of we got some new speakers coming in this year, Kamal Bell is coming in this year from the Carolinas and he runs a very small community farm, but he does amazing things to impact his neighborhood. And then we'll also have folks like Nicole Masters who travels the world and works with large, you know massive Farmers. And I can't wait to see those two having a conversation, you know, because I think. They're just amazing advocates and world travelers who we're also really understand the measurables behind what they're doing.
James: 13:17
So, it sounds like, again, it's going to be a fully packed conference. You know, this year and we're delighted have a chance to partner with you guys at this event, you know, for, for those of you who are listening Barn2Door's been again, a partner with ACRES USA for the last year and a half. This year, we're going to have a chance to sponsor the pre-conference and bringing together some farmers. Who have had some great success building a resilient farm business by bringing the high quality products that they've been producing by employing many of the practices, Ryan, which you're sharing, but then also building a really strong business so they can provide for their family and their communities. And no matter what happens in the economy or in politics or what have you, they're going to be able to again, have consistency of income, which has really great. So anyways, we're really delighted have that chance. Thank you so much for the opportunity to partner with you guys on this upcoming event. Any last words or suggestions or feedback for folks who might be thinking about attending or any other resources they should look at before, before, you know, stepping up and making commitment to attend the acres USA Eco-Ag conference?
Ryan: 14:20
That's a good question. I mean, certainly, check us out. There's a lot of wonderful people in the soil health space. If you're wondering how you can build your board of directors for your farm, or if you're looking to make a major change and you need some resources and people to really be your partners you will find them at our conference. And that is the nature and the spirit of it. And it will be some of the speakers, you know, that our speakers make themselves available after they talk, we do consulting rooms where they just sit in a room with anybody who wants to and talk and work with them. A lot of that continues well beyond our conference once they leave at that point. So that's when I know we're being successful is we're not just giving somebody an hour lesson. We're actually connecting them with the right people for the rest of their life to help them manage their farm and make the make smarter decisions and learn generation to generation and do the things that get hard during a pandemic, but we really want to bring that back and get, get harder as we get isolated with technology. And so that's one of the things that we really appreciate about the in-person event is is putting the phones down for a second, looking at each other in the eye and sharing really good information at that point. And that's the two things, you know, probably if you don't get that at our conference, call me and I'll be worried and I really will work with you to make sure we happen. And that's the pledge I'll make to anybody that shows to our conferences. If you don't get what you want, we are, we really are concerned about it and we want to help you. And at that note, before I go, I really need to thank the team back in Greeley. You know, Sarah and Rachel and Jorge who is sitting next to me here and Jessica and Chad, and the whole group back at ACRES USA that makes things happen. We just want to say thank you for them because they care as well. So if you find anybody at ACRES at our conference, let us help you if we can.
James: 15:45
Yeah, you guys have a fantastic team and I can certainly attest to the quality of work that they, that they produce. And to the, the outcomes of that conference. I'll I won't forget a few years back when Joel Salatin had gotten done speaking and sure enough, there he is sitting, on the side, having conversations with people, granted the line was a little long for Joel, but that said all the farmers are really willing to share their feedback and their honest opinions about things with anybody who's an attendee. Stay tuned for more announcements coming from Barn2Door regarding the upcoming ACRES USA Eco-Ag conference in December. We're excited to partners with the ACRES USA team to sponsor this event where Bran2Door will also bring you the first three hours of content at the Eco-Ag in a pre-conference event. Thousands of farmers will be in attendance this December in Cincinnati whether you're livestock, dairy produce operations, Farmers just like you will be there to learn tactics and best practices to grow and manage their business. You'll hear some of the farmers that we highlight consistently Barn2Door too who will be there in person as well. Like Ryan said, there'll be there to answer your questions, share their feedback, what worked, what didn't work, give you the honest truth about what it takes to build a director direct to market farm business. And you too, can then gauge what's best for you. What's right for you in terms of how you want to proceed going forward. I want to extend my thanks again to Ryan and Jorge here and the entire staff at ACRES USA at Barn2Door we're delighted to serve farms in all 50 states, helping them grow and manage their direct business, and we're proud to be partners with ACRES USA, and excited to see you all at Eco-Ag. For more information on ACRES USA, please go to www.AcresUSA.com and to learn more about Barn2Door including access to numerous free resources. Please go to www.barn2door.com/resources. Thank you for joining me today and for tuning in. We'll see you next time on the Direct Farm Podcast.