Feedstuffs in Focus

Feedstuffs in Focus is a weekly look at the hot issues in the livestock, poultry, grain and feed industries. Join us as we talk with industry influencers, experts and leaders about trends and more. Feedstuffs in Focus is produced by the team at Feedstuffs.

Feedstuffs in Focus is a news podcast hosted by Feedstuffs, with 335 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Feedstuffs hosts Feedstuffs in Focus, a news show with 335 episodes published.

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  Feedstuffs in Focus

  Dairy policy flashpoints include labor, trade, chocolate milk

  Oct 2, 202611 min

  Dairy policy can feel like Washington noise until it hits the farm gate. From the World Dairy Expo, we sit down with Gregg Doud, CEO and president of the National Milk Producers Federation, to name the pressure points dairy producers are facing and what could realistically change in 2026 and 2027. We start with immigration reform and the uncomfortable truth dairy lives with every day: the work is year-round, but U.S. immigration policy has not kept up. Doud explains why H-2A does not fit dairy, what a new visa program could look like, and why the “amnesty” label misses the fine print around temporary renewals and required re-entries. We also talk strategy, because even a strong bipartisan report does not pass itself. With major turnover expected on Capitol Hill, we discuss what it takes to educate new members and staffers when fewer of them come from farm communities, and why we are going to be “looking for friends” in both parties. Then we pivot to trade and dairy exports, where the mood brightens. Doud shares why the US is headed toward a record year in dairy exports, how products like cheese and butter are competing globally, and why Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, looks like a critical next frontier as China demand changes. We close with a long-term heated nutrition debate: school lunch rules and the fight over chocolate milk, including the sugar context and the real-world question of whether kids will drink milk at all if it loses appeal. If you care about dairy farming, agricultural policy, dairy exports, or school nutrition standards, this conversation connects the dots. Subscribe, share this episode with someone in ag, and leave a review so more listeners can find the show.

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  Feedstuffs in Focus

  National Pork Board turns producer priorities into action

  Sep 24, 202611 min

  Producer dollars power the pork checkoff, so the big question is simple: how do we make sure those dollars solve real problems on real farms? We dig into the National Pork Board’s producer-led advisory committee model and why the shift to “advice only” is meant to tighten focus, improve accountability, and keep decisions grounded in daily barn realities. Jamie Burr, Chief Sustainability Officer, and Chad Herring, a NPB board member and advisory committee chair, walk us through the We Care advisory committee and what it is designed to deliver: practical resources and tools producers can actually use, plus a clearer way to document progress in animal care, environmental stewardship, community responsibility, and workforce care. We also talk about farm impact reports and why better measurement matters not just for the pork industry, but for customers and consumers who expect credible sustainability proof. A standout theme is data trust. We unpack how voluntarily collected, blinded and aggregated on-farm information fits into the “principles times practices times proof equals public trust” framework, including how programs become tangible proof points. Just as important, we explore why producer input has to happen early, because if a program sounds good in a meeting but fails on farm, it does not deliver value or protect freedom to operate. If you care about practical sustainability, producer leadership, and the future of pork production, listen now, share this with a producer who should have a seat at the table, and subscribe, rate, and review so more people can find the show.

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  Feedstuffs in Focus

  The regen ag learning curve

  Sep 18, 202613 min

  Regenerative agriculture sounds simple until you’re the one changing practices, sharing field data, and taking the risk on yield and cost. We sit down with Paul Scheetz, Director of Regenerative Agriculture at ADM, to get specific about what they’ve learned since launching regenerative ag efforts and why the hardest part is often not the agronomy, but the trust. Farmers routinely ask, “Why do you want this data?” and we break down how that concern gets answered in real life through incentives, transparency, and feedback that actually improves the bottom line. We also zoom out to the part of the story most people miss: consumer understanding. Paul compares regenerative ag awareness to the long road organic and non-GMO traveled, and explains why it may take a decade for shoppers to truly get what soil health practices mean for water quality, climate impact, and resilience. That’s where big brands and retailers can help, and we recap a standout collaboration with Farmers First, ADM, General Mills, and Walmart focused on regenerative wheat across three states. On the farm side, we cover what adoption can look like when it’s done well: starting small, leaning on partner groups for technical support, and learning from other farmers who have already made the shift. We talk cover crops, reduced tillage, no-till, fertilizer efficiency, and the “light bulb moment” tools like rainfall simulators that make erosion and infiltration visible in seconds. Finally, we dig into ADM’s business case: creating value from measurable environmental improvements and sharing that value across the supply chain so farmers, processors, brands, and retailers can all stay profitable. If you care about sustainable agriculture, soil health, and practical pathways to scale regenerative practices, listen now. Subscribe, share the episode with a farmer or food industry friend, and leave a review with your biggest question about regenerative agriculture.

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  Feedstuffs in Focus

  Business reality behind today's beef headlines

  Aug 27, 202620 min

  The U.S. cattle industry can handle a lot, but the New World screwworm situation has forced hard, practical decisions across the supply chain, especially in Texas feedyard country. Our Clint Peck sits down with Laphe LaRoe, Chairman of the Texas Cattle Feeders Association, to get a clear-eyed look at what’s actually happening as the border reopens to Mexican feeder cattle and why the return to “normal” volumes may be slower than many expect. We talk through the business reality behind today’s headlines: record fat cattle prices paired with record replacement costs, tripled capital requirements, and the kind of risk that can shrink your appetite to keep yards full. LaRoe also explains how a hot, dry Texas Panhandle summer pressures grazing, hay, silage, and corn yields, tightening inputs right when supplies are already scarce. If you care about cattle market outlook, margins, and how border policy affects cattle numbers, you’ll hear the details that connect those dots. From there, we dig into biosecurity and confidence: inspection protocols, putting eyes on cattle, and why additional treatment steps can matter when cattle start moving again. We also zoom out to the bigger system, including relationships with cow-calf producers, retained ownership and performance feedback, and downstream packing capacity shifts tied to historically low cattle inventories. We end with what’s keeping beef demand strong, and how Beef Quality Assurance, genetics, and consistency have helped build a premium product consumers still choose. If this helped you understand what’s next for cross-border cattle flow and U.S. beef supply, subscribe, share the episode with a colleague, and leave us a review.

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  Feedstuffs in Focus

  Supply chain collaboration to drive regenerative agriculture

  Aug 7, 202621 min

  Four organizations can sit in the same supply chain and still act like they live on different planets. We wanted to see what changes when they stop acting alone. Sarah Muirhead talks with Paul Scheetz, Director of Regenerative Agriculture at ADM, about a new collaboration with General Mills and Walmart designed to accelerate regenerative agriculture on 40,000 wheat acres across Illinois, Indiana, and Missouri. We dig into why this cross-industry partnership matters for scaling regenerative farming, and why “local” is not a buzzword when you are dealing with soil types, weather swings, and field-by-field management. Paul explains how ADM works as the on-the-ground facilitator, what it means to move beyond simply buying grain, and how technical assistance partners like Practical Farmers of Iowa, American Farmland Trust, and Ducks Unlimited help farmers pressure-test practices in the real world. We also get practical about incentives, risk, and measurement. You will hear why financial payments are often necessary for long-term adoption, how data collection and verification are handled, and which practices this wheat program prioritizes: no-till, cover crops, and fertilizer efficiency, including nutrient stewardship and outcome-based nitrogen use efficiency. Along the way, we talk about what success looks like for farmers’ bottom lines, for resilient sourcing, and for a regenerative agriculture business case that can actually scale. Subscribe for more conversations like this, share the episode with someone in agriculture or food, and leave a review with your biggest question about regenerative agriculture so we can tackle it next.

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