The inaugural season of Map of Ag’s very own podcast, Agri Espresso, is now available on Spotify.
The Agri Espresso podcast brings together conversations with individuals across the industry; including farmers, growers, researchers, processors, brands and industry leaders from around the globe. Hosted by Map of Ag’s Kate Tomlinson and Ben McKenzie, the podcast explores how the information flows from farm to consumer, how it underpins the claims made along the way, how it creates value across the supply chain, and how that value can ultimately be returned to the people producing our food and fibre.
There are seven insightful episodes within the first season.
1. ‘Closing the Loop: Grower, Broker, Brand, with Sarah McDonald and Kerry Harmer
The first episode of the AgriEspresso podcast with Sarah McDonald, Head of Sustainable Impact at Zentera and Lead of the ZQ Plus programme, and Kerry Harmer, ZQ Plus producer and co-owner of Castle Ridge Station. Together, they explore the importance of understanding the “why” behind data collection and how closing the loop between growers, brokers and brands can create value across the wool supply chain.
2. ‘From Carbon to Nature: Measuring What’s Actually on the Land, with Matt Lythe’
An episode with Matt Lythe, founder of Prism Earth, a New Zealand applied science consultancy measuring natural capital across farming landscapes. Matt takes us from satellites and LiDAR to the paddock: how remote sensing underpinned Silver Fern Farms’ net carbon zero range and Fonterra’s emissions work, how New Zealand’s red meat sector traced 10 million hectares and every EID movement to be EUDR-ready, and why the conversation is now shifting from carbon to biodiversity.
3. ‘Throw an Octopus in the Trolley! Digital Passports and the Future of Traceability, with David Lamb’
David explains Food Agility’s Ag Trace programme and the digital product passport: how farmers can share verifiable credentials, such as deforestation-free and HGP-free emissions data, all whilst retaining control of their farm records.
4. ‘Down the Farm Track: Turning Emissions Data Into Farmer Value, with Lily Spencer-Brown’
Lily Spencer-Brown, Senior Agriculture & Sustainability Manager at Myton Food Group, discusses how they turned emissions foot-printing across 200 plus farms into a verified on-pack claim for their elite beef scheme, and why the language you use on farm matters just as much as the data.
5. ‘The Four Levels of Farm Data Value, with Paul Windemuller’
Paul Windemuller is a first-generation Michigan based dairy farmer, Nuffield Scholar and US Dairy’s Communicator of the Year. Paul started farming in 2014 with no farming background and no data. Now he runs robots, collars, AI, and has even built a framework for what farm data is actually worth; from a daily heat alert to industry-level aggregated insight. Plus PIP, his farmer-owned data platform project (named lovingly after his farm dog).
6. ‘A Claim or a Wish? Substantiating Sustainability in Global Dairy, with Andrew Kempson’
Andrew Kempson, Global Climate Strategy lead at Fonterra, the New Zealand co-op owned by 9,000 farmers and handling nearly a third of global dairy exports. Andrew unpacks what’s changed in the claims world, from broad brand storytelling to hard substantiation. Plus, the journey from a 12-page paper booklet and a postage-paid envelope to farm-level data that feeds insight back to farmers, and the honest answer on whether customers will pay for it.
7. ‘Data Travels by Mole Tunnel, with Allie Hesketh’
Allie Hesketh is the Climate Smart Ag UK Coordinator at ADM and leads the re:generations programme across the UK; ADM’s regenerative programme that now spans around 2.8 million acres globally. Allie describes a programme built around farmer choice: a menu of supported practices rather than one prescription, free one-to-one technical support, and API links into the farm software growers already use.
All episodes are available on Spotify, so make sure to take a listen!
