For Amanda Egler, the drive to do more with every acre is motivated by a rich family history, and a piece of it rests in her home. A top her mantle is a yield trophy from 1960 that her grandfather won, and she uses that as encouragement to always do more with the resources available. On this podcast farmer Amanda Egler visits with Brandon Lovett, Co-Alliance, on the benefits and competitive advantage of the Harvest Elite yield competition. 

Interested in learning more about Harvest Elite? Visit: 

Co-Alliance just announced we will be paying 57 million dollars in patronage to eligible farmer-members who did business with our cooperative in 2023. It is also projected that $80 million will be reinvested into our cooperative’s assets to ensure Co-Alliance is prepared to service today’s member owners and the next generation of farm families.  

Those are some big numbers and big news. Joining us on Cultivated this month are two Co-Alliance Board members, Tom Tucker and Kim Ames, who talk through this patronage return with us to better understand these Local Decisions, Local Values and Local Return.

It’s National FFA Convention Week! The streets of downtown Indianapolis are flooded with thousands of students getting the experience of a lifetime as they navigate through The Convention Center. 

Co-Alliance is opening our doors to FFA chapters this week who want to learn more about our farmer-owned cooperative and the work we do on behalf of American Agriculture and Energy. On top of that, we’ve committed to getting kids to convention who may not have the chance otherwise. We’ve sponsored students to attend the National FFA Convention from North White FFA and Tri-High FFA. Our hope is that this trip opens doors for them and continues to fuel that fire to want to learn and do more in the agriculture industry. 

Co-Alliance's support of the FFA organization has grown tremendously in the last 3 years and much of that growth has to do with the persistence and passion of one of our agronomy employees, Doug Quear. Doug works at our Indian Trails location in Boone County. He was instrumental in getting the Hamilton Heights FFA Chapter off the ground and he still pours many, many hours to the organization.  

This month on the podcast, we invite you to learn more about Doug and why he believes so strongly in National Blue & Corn Gold. 

We are in the heart of internship season. The value of an internship is to gain valuable hands-on experience in the field one may – or may not! - want to go into. We have so many internship opportunities available, for various talents and skill sets. Our Mission to LEAD, GROW, GIVE and REMEMBER continues to direct our day-to-day work. We of course want to LEAD with people and technology. That’s why we’re on a mission to find, hire and retain the very best in the field. Three of the best were guests on the September podcast. 

We visited with three individuals who began their Co-Alliance experience as an intern and now they’re on our team as full-time employees bringing remarkable value to our business. Listen now to hear what Hannah, Kyle & Cassie had to say!

The lights. The competition. The nerves. The food. The exhaustion. The Indiana State Fair, Week Two:

Sometimes in the middle of the rush, you just need to sit down for a fulfilling conversation.

Recently at the Indiana State Fair we had the remarkable opportunity to sit down with two individuals who have boundless, and very different, responsibilities during the greatest 18 days of summer.

Mr. Joe Rule sits on the Indiana State Fair Board, the decision-making body to ensure improvements are made annually to ensure the longevity and enjoyment of the State Fair. He is also a Co-Alliance employee, manager of our Michigantown Agronomy location.

Miss Claire Bishop is the 2023 Indiana State Fair Queen and is the ambassador for the 3-week event. Claire is a highly involved 10-year 4-H member, sister, daughter and role model for so many.

We invite you to join us as we learn how these two work to make our State Fair, and 4-H, better. 

Caleb Smith is the Director of Sustainability at Co-Alliance and his role, though fairly recently created, is wildly important. Not only to our business but especially critical to the farmer-members we serve. Caleb’s role is to help farmers understand the new technologies, solutions and practices that promote even higher sustainability to ensure the family farm is around for generations to come. We invite you to listen to Cultivated to hear about the passionate work Caleb does.

In late April Co-Alliance partnered with Land O’Lakes to make a massive donation of 40,000 lbs. Of macaroni and cheese to Second Harvest Food Bank of East Central Indiana. That macaroni and cheese will go on to be distributed to 164 partner agencies in 8 Indiana counties. This donation is part of our Planting The Seeds For Food Security campaign which was created to support food security in our rural communities. This month on the podcast we sat down with Robby Tompkins, Director of Philanthropy for Second Harvest Food Bank of East Central Indiana, to learn more about the organization and the work they do to serve thousands. His work entails more than feeding people. He strives to address the root cause of hunger and find ways to alleviate that issue. This was a very enlightening conversation. We invite you to learn more about service in action with Robby Tompkins.  

Co-Alliance was on Purdue's campus recently for Ag Week and while there we couldn't pass up the opportunity to visit with a handful of students on the podcast. The five we interviewed come from diverse backgrounds, unique experiences, and lofty aspirations. But one thing unites them: The drive to do great things for the future of agriculture.