How can pet owners optimize their pets' brain health from a young age? Dr. Joli Jarboe, a veterinary neurologist and neurosurgeon, joins the Ag Future podcast to discuss the importance of building and maintaining cognitive health at all stages of your pet's life.

The following is an edited transcript of the Ag Future podcast episode with Dr. Joli Jarboe hosted by Tom Martin. Click below to hear the full audio or listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts.

Tom:            Welcome to Ag Future, presented by Alltech. Join us from the 2022 Alltech ONE Conference as we explore opportunities within agri-food, business and beyond.

                     From brain development in puppies and kittens to staying sharp and maintaining cognitive function in senior pets, a healthy brain is key for a healthy pet. How do we help our pets build and maintain optimal brain health?

                     I'm Tom Martin for the Alltech Ag Future podcast series. I have those questions and a lot more for Dr. Joli Jarboe, a veterinary neurologist and neurosurgeon based in Central Kentucky and serving patients across the United States. Welcome, Dr. Jarboe.

Joli:               Thank you so much for having me.

Tom:            We're here in Kentucky at the annual Alltech ONE Conference. I understand that this is your home state and that you are an Eastern Kentucky University graduate?

Joli:               I am. I had an animal science degree (that I received in), let's see, 1987, I believe, and a minor in biology.

Tom:            You caught the veterinarian bug at an early age. 

Joli:               Oh, yeah, absolutely. Some jobs are more professional; veterinary medicine was really a calling. There wasn't a time in my life I can recall not having a pet or not tending to strays or wounded animals outside (and) dragging it home. My dad always jokes — I nursed a litter of mice, field mice I found in our utility room. I raised those up and then turned them loose in our barn. He was like, "I'm putting out mouse bait, and here you are raising them."

                     But I started to work for a vet when I was 11. There was a general practitioner in my hometown who just graduated, opened up a practice, and he had put himself through school or supplemented his income by raising canaries. So, I ended up cleaning cages for something like 110 canaries. I weaseled my way in and, (in) short order, was going on farm calls with him in the middle of the night, delivering baby pigs, helping with calf exams and things like that, because I had tiny hands at 11 and worked for him forever. There was no going back.

Tom:            It just went from there.

Joli:               Yeah. There was nothing I could have been — nothing else I could be but this.

Tom:            Well, turning to what you do, is brain development and health even on the radar of most pet owners? And why should it be?

Joli:               I think there's a small percentage of people that are more aware of it. The pet owner or pet parent is becoming more and more educated through the internet and Google searches and becoming more informed. I think it should be more on the radar, though. As I've said in my lecture (at the Alltech ONE Conference) earlier today, the medical field — human medicine and veterinary medicine were taught to treat disease states. I think that we need to have a revamping of our education system and (should be) trying to learn how to promote improved cellular function so that we prevent the disease state.

                     There's a lot of things that we can do early on in our core development, from the time mom meets dad, and you have fetal development to the weaning process to (the) growth process in our animals that can delay neurodegeneration. It happens. Then, when we're born, we (can) starve to death. That's a gloom-and-doom mindset, but it's true. If we can do things to be proactive and slowing down those neurodegenerative processes, decreasing just natural inflammation, we'll go a long way in promoting prolonged, improved brain health and cognition.

Tom:            What are the practical benefits of maintaining healthy cognitive function in our pets?

Joli:               Well, I think, to have a happy, stimulated, engaged pet — these pets are, in many instances, (like) a spouse, their spouse spot-holder or a child to owners, to the pet parent. I think, to keep them engaged, I think promoting brain health allows them to be the most interactive (and) have the best effect that they can. So, promoting play, teaching — we know (the benefits of) owning pets. The pet-owning population has less triglycerides and (lower) cholesterol and have less heart disease than non-pet-owning people. They help our health as well and help us be more rounded, balanced people. I think it's a yin-and-yang relationship.

Tom:            What about downsides to that? What if we don't pay attention to our cats’ or our dogs’ brain health?

Joli:               Well, I think you're just going to have someone taking up space.

Tom:            Eating food.

Joli:               Eating food, just having a less of a fulfilled life.

Tom:            What are some typical neurological issues that you encounter and treat? (Let’s look at the case of) the cocker spaniel Casper, for example.

Joli:               Well, Casper came to see me on — we had a blizzard situation in one of the hospitals that I worked at. He came, and it was a race to try to perform surgery on him for a ruptured disc. He was paralyzed, so he needed surgery. The cannabinoids or supplements that I advocate a lot (for), they help to promote mood-stabilizing effects. When these animals that come to me for spinal cord injury, whether it's in the neck or their back or they have nerve injury, a big portion of their rehabilitation is exercise restrictions. We've got to let the body heal and recover. The minute they start feeling better, they're going to jump off the couch, fall off the stairs and do something silly to reinjure themselves.

                     Unfortunately, a lot of these pets aren't crate-trained or aren't trained to be in a confined area. Giving them something like a hemp supplement helps to promote that mood-stabilizing effect, helps them deal with those internal anxieties. They will be a little calmer between their ears, a little happier between their ears. They also are potent — the cannabinoids are also potent pain-modulating systems, so they help affect decreasing pain in our body or our body's perception of it. Following a spinal surgery or inflammation with a disc rupture, those things can be quite beneficial. In addition to traditional anti-pain medicine and muscle relaxants, we can often use less of those with providing cannabinoid support.

Tom:            How did you arrive at that?

Joli:               Probably — gosh, it's probably been about 15 years ago. The general pet-owning population were bringing these supplements to me, and like everyone else in the medical profession, (I thought that) I know more than anyone else. I was very skeptical and poo-pooed this thing. But the great benefit — well, there are two things to touch upon.

                     Being a veterinary neurologist, a neurosurgeon, my pets, my patients can't speak. I'm basically a very skilled voyeur. I have to be very good at observational skills. That's number one in this equation. Number two, my patients don't have a placebo effect. I can tell you if an owner is giving a quality hemp oil or a quality supplement, regardless of what it is — say, CoQ10, B complex, L-carnitine, those kinds of things. I have an animal that I saw and examined that's doing X, Y and Z. (The) owner gives a supplement, or maybe I'm recommending it, and we see it back in two to four weeks. I see a difference in my hands, in my exam room. There's, again, no placebo effects. Animals are so true and pure. They may not be vocal by using words, but their body and how they move and interact is screaming to us if we're just quiet and listen and watch.

                     I think those are the two components: my ability to observe, being open-minded, and my pets showing me that, “Hey, these things are working. They’re beneficial.”

Tom:            We tend to consider our pets members of our families. When they die, we grieve as though we lost a person. We feel like we've lost a family member. How do you help people face end-of-life decisions for their pets?

Joli:               I have a different mindset, I think, than most of my peers. Because I have been in veterinary medicine for so long, I have a keen sense — and I'll try not to get teary-eyed on this, because I do feel so passionately about end-of-life decisions. I talk to owners a lot about this. Whether you have any religious beliefs or not, I think that these animals are the closest thing we have to divine presence on this world. It is our job and our responsibility to be their stewards. When we can't make them better, we can give them the most peaceful, dignified passing. I think that veterinary medicine is so much more humane — and (I) might spark some controversy in this next statement — but I think we are so much more humane in those end-of-life decisions than we are for our fellow (human) brother and sister. I've got several older aunts and uncles (and) friends that are going through some end-of-life diseases that are not having a quality of life and are having to suffer when they would want peace, but (the message from) society is, “We can’t do that.”

                     I think that what I'm talking about — this end-of-life decision for incurable diseases, diseases that aren't responding to pain management — the animals not having an acceptable quality of life is far different than anyone who is just tired of their pet. It's a far different situation, but I think we are so much kinder in veterinary medicine on that aspect. Again, I hold that as an honor, and it's a privilege.

Tom:            Well, personally, I'd have to say that some of the finest individuals I've ever met just happen to be dogs.

Joli:               I believe that. I agree with you.

Tom:            Well, I have to imagine that, just like human neurology, that veterinary neurology is very complex. What does it take to become a veterinary neurologist and a surgeon?

Joli:               Well, how is that? (This) may be a little self-deprecating, I guess. I think it mainly takes perseverance and showing up. That’s what I'm trying to tell my young-adult son going to college: Show up. Show up and do the work. That's 95% of it. Just make an effort.

                     I think the true aspect of what does it take to be a veterinary neurologist or a veterinarian — a veterinarian is usually three to four years of undergrad, some (undergraduate) degree, (taking) prerequisites that had to be fulfilled, and then veterinary school itself. Veterinary college is usually a four-year track. There are some that are three. Then, to be a specialist — in veterinary medicine, a lot of people are unaware of (the fact) that we have specialists, just like humans. We have oncologists. We have dermatologists. We have internists. We have surgeons. We have neurologists. A lot of veterinarians can go on to become specialized. That training usually involves a one-to-two-year internship and then a three-to-four-year residency. You're looking anywhere from 11 to 13 years of instruction and schooling.

Tom:            Are veterinary neurologists in demand?

Joli:               Yeah, they are. The specialists are in demand. Thankfully, there's about 400 of us in the world of veterinary neurology. I'm not worried about my job. I'm in a unique situation, having 25 years of experience, so I'm not straight out of a residency. I’ve still got some more years until retirement, and (I have) a skill set that is hard to match. I think that, yes, that we are in demand. There is a place for us. Usually, (the demand) requires (the population) to have a specialist for a city population of about a million, but it's — yes, I'm in demand.

Tom:            Well, I have a personal pet-owner's question for you, but I'm sure that this is on behalf of legions of cat owners. Can you help me persuade my cat Millie to stop waking me up before the crack of dawn? What is it with cats waking us up?

Joli:               You know what it is? And I'm going to give you a hard time here, Tom. Cats need to be stimulated. (Cat expert) Jackson Galaxy, he always says, “(Cats need to) hunt, catch, kill and eat.” It does revolve around that. If you stimulate these cats, playing with them with the fishing pole toy — cats have a short play duration. It's like five to ten minutes. That doesn’t take much effort of yours, but especially playing with them, probably, (in the) early evening to right before you go to bed, I bet you you're going to get a better sleep at night.

Tom:            I will remember that tonight.

Joli:               Exactly. Exactly.

Tom:            Dr. Joli Jarboe, a veterinary neurologist and neurosurgeon based in Central Kentucky, serving patients across the USA. Thank you so much.

Joli:               Thank you, Tom.

Tom:            For the Alltech Ag Future podcast, I'm Tom Martin. Thank you for joining us. Be sure to subscribe to Ag Future wherever you listen to podcasts

[Dong Nai, Vietnam] – Alltech, a global leader in the agriculture industry, opened its newest Bioplex^®plant today, the first organic mineral production facility in Vietnam. The state-of-the-art manufacturing plant is Alltech’s eighth mineral production facility worldwide. The plant’s production capacity is 7,000 metric tons per year, and it has the potential to create 100 new jobs, while being conveniently located to serve local customers and support import/export activity.

Alltech is one of the world’s largest producers of organic minerals for animal nutrition. The company has committed significant resources into organic trace mineral production, quality control and research, as trace mineral nutrition is essential to animal health.

Alltech’s Bioplex^® range of minerals are supported by more than 21 years of research and offer higher bioavailability to animals than inorganic minerals. The minerals are readily absorbed, stored and utilized by the animal, supporting overall health, immune status and reproductive function. Furthermore, because Alltech’s organic minerals are better utilized by animals, producers are able to achieve more with less. Mineral excretion from animals through manure is also reduced, resulting in less environmental impact.

“Our organic mineral program reflects our focus on sustainability in all aspects, from the health of the animal and the nutrition of the meat, milk and eggs produced to the economic well-being of the producer and the impact we have on our planet’s land and water,” said Dr. Mark Lyons, president and CEO of Alltech. “Our investment in enhancing our mineral production in Asia reflects our confidence in the market’s continued growth and our alignment with our customers’ commitment to better nutrition from farm to market.”

Feed production in Vietnam increased nearly 7% in 2021, according to the Alltech Agri-Food Outlook, the company’s annual global feed production survey. Vietnam’s total feed production in 2021 was 18.5 million metric tons, led by the swine sector with 7.84 million metric tons, an increase of nearly 20% over 2020. Aqua feed production increased 40% in 2021 to 6 million metric tons, broiler feed increased 9% to 2.12 million metric tons, layers feed production increased 11.7% to 2 million metric tons and dairy increased 22% to 520,000 metric tons.

Consistent with Alltech’s purpose of Working Together for a Planet of Plenty™, the production facility in Vietnam was engineered to reduce the environmental impact of production:

• The use of CNG versus fuel oil, a common fuel source in Vietnam, is expected to reduce the mineral plant’s nitrogen dioxide emissions by 80% and carbon monoxide emissions by 87.5%.
• The facility uses high-pressure clean-in-place (CIP) pumps for tank cleaning, reducing wastewater by 50%. Its dust collection system is 99% efficient.
• The use of invertor motors saves electricity consumption by 5% by utilizing variable frequency drive (VFD), which also allows for the control of speed and torque to reduce chances of mechanical failures.
• The production system uses fluid bed drying (FBD) technology, which requires 48% less thermal consumption than conventional spray dryers.
• The facility is certified by ISO 22000:2018, which sets out the requirements for a food safety management system.
• Organic trace minerals are more bioavailable to the animal, contributing to improved animal health. Because more of the minerals are taken up by the animal, mineral excretion through manure is reduced, minimizing environmental impact on land and water.

The new facility also utilizes the Alltech Q+ (Quality Plus) Program, a mineral quality control program unique to Bioplex trace minerals that guarantees quality, safety and performance in every batch. Alltech Q+ sets the industry standard, enabling Alltech to offer a global quality guarantee to customers using Bioplex trace minerals around the world. It forms an integral part of the Alltech Quality System (AQS), which was designed to meet or exceed all global market regulatory standards and ensures that proper approvals and analyses are performed for suppliers, raw materials and finished goods.

For more information about Bioplex and the Alltech Mineral Management program, visit alltech.com/mineral-management.

-Ends-

Photo download: https://creative.alltech.com/share/36CF2D1A-3FDC-47B7-98D853CD784A0048/

Photo caption: Dr. Mark Lyons, president and CEO of Alltech, at the opening of the new Bioplex^® plant today, the first organic mineral production facility in Vietnam.

Photo download: https://creative.alltech.com/share/FAB039AC-F890-485D-AE3D6B4762348D17/

Photo caption: Alltech opens Vietnam’s first organic mineral production facility.

Left to right: Mr. Lai Xuan Sam, Deputy Director, Sonadezi; Dr. Mark Lyons, President and CEO, Alltech; Mr. Duong Tat Thang, General Director of the Livestock Production Department, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development; Mr. Jonathan Wilson, President, Alltech Asia Pacific; and Mr. Keith Gribbins, Director of Operations, Alltech Asia Pacific.

What role does diet play in the performance of highly active sporting, military and other working canines? Ian Donovan, former Green Beret and national channel manager for Kinetic Performance Dog Food, joins Ag Future to discuss the importance of supporting both the physical and mental readiness of these high-energy dogs.

The following is an edited transcript of the Ag Future podcast episode with Ian Donovan hosted by Tom Martin. Click below to hear the full audio or listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts.

Tom:                      I’m Tom Martin for Ag Future.

                               Question: How does diet affect the capabilities, the recovery and energy of a working dog?

                               Kinetic Dog Food, working in partnership with Alltech, is addressing that question and responding with a food formulated to deliver optimal nutritional benefits to military and other working canines.

                               Joining us from Kinetic Performance Dog Food, where he is national channel manager, is Ian Donovan, a former Green Beret and multi-purpose canine handler and kennel master. Ian has invested years in raising, training and hunting with high-drive, highly intelligent and highly athletic gun dogs.

                               Welcome to Ag Future, Ian.

Ian:                         Hey, thanks, Tom. It’s good to be with you.

Tom:                      So, I just offered the briefest of sketches of your background. If you could, tell us more about the experience that you bring to the development of Kinetic Performance Dog Food and your role as national channel manager.

Ian:                         Yes. So, as a dog handler for U.S. Special Operations, we were — we were kind of bound to one certain food, and that was a contract that, you know, we really had nothing to do with on our level.

                               But eventually, we kind of convinced the higher powers that, you know, performance actually does begin with nutrition; you know, we preach that to ourselves on the team. We’re only as good as our bodies are. Making a living on how well your body performs under stress, you know, could be the difference between life and death, and it was no different (for) our canine counterparts.

                               So, we went out and searched for a better fuel for those dogs — something that would help their mental stimulation, you know, their physical endurance, their physical drive and energy, and we found that in Kinetic Dog Food.

                               After making the switch, as a handler, I was able to move into the kennel master position and work closer, hand-in-hand, with those guys over at Kinetic and kind of tweaking a few things and helping them understand exactly what we needed on our side of the fence when it came — when it came to the fuel that we were using to fuel these animals.

                               So, after I was done with my time in the military and left, I jumped on board with those guys, because working with dogs is something, you know, that I’m always doing. It’s something — it’s a different passion of mine. And, you know, I was fortunate enough and blessed enough to do it.

                               That’s probably the highest level that I could think of, you know — if your dog fails (in combat), then you don’t come home to your family, right? So, I really enjoyed working with dogs in that aspect: you know, the pressure of it all, but also, seeing the benefits of when you really fuel that dog properly — what it can do for you, what it can do for your team, what it can do for your country.

                               So, it’s kind of a short synopsis of how I came to the Kinetic family. And now that I’m here, we’re just going to continue benefitting all these working dogs — all these dogs that, you know, you’ve got to fuel that are under extreme amounts of stress.

                               And I think I’m just fortunate enough to have a background that allowed me bring some experience to that aspect of things and really be able to communicate well with military and police departments, SWAT teams and things of that nature (for) all (of the) dogs that we feed.      

Tom:                      Well, Ian, I know that you’ve attended many training, decoy (and) behavior-focused events, as well as a lot of police and military working dog competitions.

                               What were some important lessons that you took away from those events?

Ian:                         Yeah. So, competition breeds excellence, right? It breeds confidence. One thing that I really took away from it was, as good as I try to be, as much as I try to work on myself, you know, I’ve really got to work on my canine counterpart, because he doesn’t have the cognitive reasoning skills that human beings do, right? So, he doesn’t know how important this competition is to me.

                               Part of being a good trainer and good handler is being able to manipulate an animal into thinking that what he’s doing at that time is the most fun thing on the planet for him to do but, at the same time, having him accomplish your goals and objectives.

                               So, that was probably the biggest thing that I could take away from these events and competitions, is having the ability to kind of manipulate the dog into thinking that what he’s doing at that time is the most fun thing on the planet for him while, at the same time, accomplishing my goals and objectives.

                               And that’s been very beneficial for me in the past and will continue to be in the future when it comes to training these high-drive, highly, highly intelligent dogs that are really just trying to outsmart you to do the least amount of work to get paid. So, it’s a challenge every day, but it’s a fun challenge.

                               These decoy seminars, you know, a lot of people don’t understand that when you decoy for a dog — meaning you put bite suit on and you allow the dog to bite you — the guy in the suit is the one training the dog. In my line of work, we have to have exceptional bite dogs, because when it came down to it, there are a lot of times we can’t just pull the trigger and kill someone.

                               We do (need to) capture that guy; he’s got very valuable intelligence, so we need to use the dog as a less-than-lethal means of enemy acquisition. And having a dog that’s a really, really sound bite dog — so a dog that knows how to use his mouth along with his brain and then the rest of his body and grappling and really, you know, imposing himself with a force on who you’re trying to capture — is huge, and being able to train that as a decoy is everything in creating that for these dogs.

                               So, (I’m) having a good a time, and it’s, you know — I’m only 35, so fortunately for me, I get to have a lot more fun with it in the future.

Tom:                      That’s great.

                               And you said something there that really strikes me as so true: that dogs really — well, to play on the old song, dogs just want to have fun.

Ian:                         [laughs] That’s it. That’s it. And I mean, you know, you and I, we’ve got a lot of things in our daily lives that take up our time and our attention. But a dog, you know — a dog is just a portion of your life. You are his entire life. So, everything that he does all day is focused around, centered around you.

                               And these really intelligent dogs, you know, they get a bad rap for being misbehavers, or yeah, they kind of — they cause a lot of ruckus. But any working dog has got to have a job. And primarily, you know, the dog is going to be happiest when he’s doing the job that he was actually bred to do, because he is genetically predisposed to do that certain act.

                               You know, it’s common across the working dog world that you get these high-drive working dogs and people take them in as a family pets, and it’s just, you know, a debacle. But these dogs — these dogs are made to work, and that’s when they’re happiest, because they’re actually doing what they were bred to do.

Tom:                      It may seem like splitting hairs, but I’m sure you’re going to tell me it’s not. I’m wondering: How did military dogs that you encountered compare with the canine athletes that you’ve worked with for pleasure?

Ian:                         Well, they’re the same beast, in a way. I do a lot of work with upland hunting dogs — so pointers and setters — and then even waterfowl dogs and labs.

And I took a lot of my knowledge of those dogs and my experience working with them and training them to the military side of things. So, one thing that we like to do with our dogs — and our dogs do three things in the military: they find bombs, they track enemy personnel, and then they can apprehend them, and they obviously bite them whenever they do find them.

                               So, one thing that we really like to do is have enough stand-off when they do tell us that there’s (an) explosive odor present (so we can) not be anywhere near around it if it actually does go off, right? If the bomb detonates.

                               So, I was able to take my experience with these retrievers — and then directionals and stopping a dog on a whistle, even hand signals to cast them left, right, back, come to me. To put the dog, you know, the military working dog in a productive area of the battlefield — you know, maybe downwind is an objective, or look at the topography the same way you do in a field trial, right? You need to direct this lab towards the downed bird, (just like you need to know) how to direct this bomb dog towards a potential explosive device that, you know, either our partner forces found or, you know, one of my teammates would come up and told me that he thinks there’s something out there. So, just, you know, intelligence from the area.

                               Another thing that really helps us and is very similar between all of these dogs is just the endurance that they have to have, both mentally — the mental stamina — and the physical stamina that they’ve got to have.

A lot of people just think it’s all physical, but anytime a dog is using his nose, he’s using his brain as well. A lot of these herding dogs, you know, (that) a lot of these farmers and ranchers use — that (requires), you know, an incredible amount of mental aptitude and stamina to be able to, you know, outsmart a lot more animals than just him, right? So, it’s just one against maybe 30 or 40 cows or sheep or goats or whatever they’re trying to herd.

So, the mental stamina and the (love of the) game is true on both sides of the aisle — (for) both, you know, the sporting dogs and the military working dogs. It’s just, at the end of the day, some of us do it for sports and it’s fun. Some of us do it for a living and it’s a little more serious. But both dogs are very, very similar in those ways, in those aspects.

Tom:                      You mentioned earlier that you and your colleagues lobbied for improved fuel or better food for the performance dogs that you were working with in the military.

                               And I know that Kinetic offers a line of foods and supplements formulated for performance dogs. What’s required? What are the optimal requirements for hard-working dogs — in particular, those military and police dogs who are working under stress?

Ian:                         Well, the biggest thing is you’ve got to have an extremely digestible food. A lot of these foods have a ton of fillers on them and, you know, it really just doesn’t do well for the composition of the makeup of the body. You need to have a very nutrient-dense food; that’s what we’re looking for.

                               Nutrient density is key, because we feed a lot less of it that way. Working dogs have got to — they’ve got to have fuel, but they can’t have a stomach that’s full with a bunch of fillers, right? Because they’re moving constantly by perpetual motion.

                               So, having a very nutrient-dense food allows us to feed a lot less of that food. At the same time, the digestibility rate of that food is astronomical, right? And that — that’s really where Alltech has helped Kinetics in a big way.

                               The mineral profiles in the food, the chelated minerals that allow the absorption of all of the nutrients of the dog food, because of Alltech’s mineral profiles, has been a game changer for that food and for the animals that it feeds.

                               So, you can have all the nutrients in the food that you want, but if there’s a really poor absorption rate of these nutrients, then, you know, it’s just going in one end and out of the other.

                               And that was something that we experienced with some dog foods. Another thing, like I said, was the massive amounts of fillers that a lot of those dogs’ food had. Kinetic has none of that. It’s really a nutrient-dense food with very namable protein and fat sources.

That’s another big thing: They don’t try to play the market and put the cheapest ingredients in the food. They are feeding dogs that would often get me back home, get my buddies back home to our families.

It’s pretty personal for these guys and for the company, and that’s why I, you know — it’s really a no-brainer; I want to jump on board with them. But you really want to — you know, at the end of the day, (with) a nutrient-dense food, (you will) feed a lot of less of it. The absorption rate of all those nutrients, you know, it’s extremely highly digestible.

So, those are the big things that we’re looking for when we’re feeding the performance animal a performance food.

Tom:  That’s really something to think about as a consumer, isn’t it? When you’re in the store and you’re trying to choose the best possible food for your animal, be it a dog or a cat or whatever — and while the pricing on the high-performance food may be higher, you feed much less of it.

Ian:                         Oh, yeah. Yeah. I mean, it really works out to be the same price or sometimes even cheaper than what you’re getting with some of these other feeds that are just full of fillers (in) larger bags. We’re feeding much, much less of it.

                               And, again, let’s take — for instance, prior to a mission. Say I’m going on a three-day mission with a dog. Overseas, I’m carrying all his food and my food and all my ammunition and everything else that I need on my back, right? So, there’s no way that I (could) take a bag of dog food with me, you know.

                               We feed minimal amounts, and that’s why it’s got to be so nutrient-dense. We (soldiers) feed ourselves the same way. So, it’s pretty simple. When you think about what we’re doing to ourselves, (we) really need to do the same things to the dogs that, you know, are fighting right there next to us.

                               We want nutrient density. We want high absorption rates. We want a ton of energy and fuel from our food. The dogs need the same exact things.

Tom:                      Well, Ian, among the dogs that you’ve worked with, do any stand out in your mind as really special in some way?

Ian:                         Oh, sure. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, there’s a ton of stories about, you know, the incredible things that they’ve done overseas that you really wouldn’t believe until you — unless you’ve seen it.

                               But there are dogs here as well. The dogs overseas that I’ve worked with have gotten me back home to enjoy, you know, the dogs that I work with here. So, it’s kind of unfair to say that they don’t mean a little more to me or that they haven’t done a little more for me.

                               But yeah, on the military side of things, I’ve worked with some exceptional dogs that have done some incredible things — and, you know, they do it because it’s their job, just like we do it because it’s our job. And you know, because they’ve done those things and save a ton of lives, it really — it helps myself and the guys that I’m working with to know that the dogs are at our disposal, right?

We’re going to feel a lot more confident going on an objective, going in that target, knowing that that dog has gone before us and cleared the way, you know. He allowed us to understand, you know, there’s no explosive threat on this particular objective, because he would have identified that threat prior to going in.

                               So, if you can put that to rest in the corner of your brain or your mind and just make it about the humans at that point, you know, it takes a lot of weight off your shoulders and clears your mind to look for other things.

                               So, they do some exceptional things for us over there. Like I said, (they) allowed me to get back here and have fun with all the other dogs that I get to train and play with on this side of the pond.

Tom:                      I think some of the finest individuals I’ve ever met just happen to be dogs.

Ian:                         Oh, sure. Yeah. I mean, (they are) the most selfless beings on the planet, I think.

Tom:                      Yeah.

                               That’s Ian Donovan, national channel manager at Kinetic Performance Dog Food.

                               Thank you so much, Ian.

Ian:                         Absolutely, Tom. Great to be with you.

Tom:                      And for Ag Future, I’m Tom Martin.

                               This has been Ag Future, presented by Alltech. Thank you for joining us. Be sure to subscribe to Ag Future wherever you listen to podcasts.

As U.S. consumers become increasingly focused on health and nutrition, they are now bringing their pets along for the ride. More and more, consumers are looking to pet supplements to boost their pets’ dietary nutrition or to support a particular need, such as joint health.

Pet supplementation is a diverse category that includes well-established products and ingredients such as fish oil for skin and coat health, and new and emerging formulations, like CBD for calming. It’s no surprise, then, that with a growing amount of attention being paid to product labels, many ingredients that appear in human supplementation have crossed over to pet categories.

We wanted to find out more about this intriguing market segment. In June 2022, as part of our ongoing research into pet supplement consumers, MarketPlace, a brand strategy agency focused on the pet and wellness spaces, conducted an online survey of 737 pet parents in the U.S. to ask them about their knowledge and experiences with supplements. Forty percent of them reported that they had purchased pet supplements in the past year.

We hypothesized that pet supplement consumers may have certain tendencies and preferences that are stronger or more pronounced than the average pet parent. This appears to be the case. Let’s dig more into what the data tells us about the people who buy supplements for their pets.

Health-minded information seekers buy supplements

Data from the survey shows that many consumers who buy supplements for their pets are also likely to seek out information proactively about nutrition. Among that subset of pet supplement consumers, 46% report having spent more than one hour in the past 12 months researching vitamins and/or minerals.

Veterinarians are an authoritative source of information on nutrition and wellness to both the average pet parent and the pet supplement shopper. Nearly three-out-of-five pet supplement consumers (59%) said they seek inspiration or information on their pets’ health and wellness from their veterinarian. Consumers are also somewhat more likely than average to report seeking pet health information via online search, through friends and family, and from posts on social media such as YouTube and Facebook.

Tellingly, preferences for certain information sources on pet nutrition strongly parallel preferences in human nutrition. Like veterinarians for pet nutrition, the personal physician is considered a top authoritative source of information on the personal nutrition of both pet parents and the companion animal supplement audience. According to our survey, 61% of pet supplement consumers seek inspiration or information on their personal health and wellness from their personal physician, compared to 55% for the average pet parent.

Pet supplement consumers are likewise turning to social sources – friends, family and social media –to inform their research into human nutrition. These findings suggest a multichannel approach to media and advertising strategy may be effective in creating meaningful touchpoints for the target pet supplement consumer segment and breaking through the ever-growing clutter of brand messaging found online and in retail stores.

Buyers prioritize need states and specific benefits

When shopping for supplements, need state drives purchase intent. Pet supplement consumers said they tend to seek a specific benefit first when shopping for such a product. According to the survey, those who buy supplements for their pets are likely to report having purchased skin and coat, joint health, or daily wellness applications in the past 12 months.

Calming occasions are also driving supplement purchases, especially for vet visits or inclement weather. Other top reasons for giving calming/anxiety-reducing supplements include travel, time at home alone, and outside noises such as fireworks.

The survey data also shows that people who give their pets supplements are also more likely than average to:

• Agree that “organic” claims indicate high quality in food, treats, or supplements for pets.
• Have bought pet dental care products or treats that promote health in the past 12 months.
• Have heard of the microbiome and to have looked up information about the microbiome.

Target customers shop across channels, read reviews

To be successful in breaking through to their target market, brands must gain insights into how pet supplement consumers shop in-store and online, and better understand how they use media to get information that informs those shopping decisions. Our data suggests that pet supplement consumers have stronger-than-average tendencies when it comes to researching and shopping for their companion animals.

For example, those who buy pet supplements, on average, said they rely more on reviews before making a first-time purchase online or in-store. In fact, the data shows that pet supplement consumers use a variety of shopping channels and are much more likely than the average pet parent to report shopping on Amazon or Chewy.com. Additionally, mass retail stores, pet specialty stores and pet specialty websites are important channels to this segment of pet parents.   

Consumers practice intentionality and health-oriented lifestyles

Finally, brands will find value in looking at the psychographic profile and everyday lifestyles of pet supplement consumers. The pet supplement audience is highly likely to place importance on self-respect, positive relationships, security, a sense of accomplishment, self-fulfillment, and fun and enjoyment, the data demonstrates. Moreover, pet supplement consumers are more likely than average pet parents to dedicate time to their physical, mental and spiritual health.  

Getting to know the pet supplement consumer is an ongoing conversation. In many ways, the supplement consumer is very much like the average pet parent, but with a stronger tendency to seek out information on health and wellness from a variety of sources. Oftentimes, they know the specific benefit they want, but also want to be knowledgeable about what they are giving their pets.

Without a doubt, the pet supplement consumer audience presents a compelling opportunity. Brands that make the effort to cultivate insights into this group will be well positioned to go to market with compelling pet supplement offerings and capture market share.

I want to learn more about pet nutrition.

Alltech, a global leader in animal health and nutrition, has appointed Tara McCarthy as its global vice president of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG). McCarthy will support the advancement of Alltech’s vision of Working Together for a Planet of Plenty™, which underscores the ability of the agri-food sector to provide enough nutritious food for all while revitalizing local communities and replenishing the Earth’s natural resources.

“Agriculture is the sector most integral to planetary health, from its role in the nourishment and well-being of humans and animals, to the capabilities it has to not only safeguard but benefit our Earth’s environment,” said Dr. Mark Lyons, president and CEO of Alltech. “We have well-founded optimism about the future of agri-food and our planet, yet it is a moment for bold action and collective courage. Tara’s strategic approach, relationship focus and vast experience within the agri-food sector will add firepower to the advancement of our Planet of Plenty vision. In addition to furthering the alignment of our vision throughout our business, Tara will be working closely with our customers and partners on the environmental and social issues that we believe businesses within agriculture and food can positively impact.”

Prior to joining Alltech in June, McCarthy had served as the chief executive officer of Bord Bia, the Irish Food Board, since 2017. Her 25 years’ experience in the food industry also includes serving as chief executive officer for Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM), Ireland's seafood development agency.

McCarthy is passionate about the opportunities that can be found within sustainably produced food and has worked across the supply chain to develop insights and industry partnerships. She has led numerous capability initiatives and developmental support programs for students, early career executives and entrepreneurs within the food industry for more than a decade, forming successful partnerships both nationally and internationally. In 2019, McCarthy co-founded Agdif, an industry initiative championing diversity in the Irish food industry. She has also represented Ireland’s food industry globally, speaking on Origin Green, Ireland’s unique national sustainability program. In 2021, McCarthy led the establishment of the Origin Green Global Council.

“Our world is changing, and the role that agriculture can play in the future is, in many ways and places, being reset,” said McCarthy. “I am delighted to have the opportunity to join Alltech in this new role at this pivotal time. It has never been more important to build networks across the supply chain, to start new conversations and to understand different perspectives. Supported by the ambition of Alltech’s Planet of Plenty vision and their global reach, I look forward to supporting and working alongside Alltech colleagues and customers.”

McCarthy received a bachelor’s degree in commerce from National University of Ireland, Galway (UCG) and a master’s degree in business studies with an emphasis on marketing from the University College Dublin (UCD) Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School. She is an affiliate of the IMD Business School in Switzerland. McCarthy has been recognized with several awards, including UCG Alumna of the Year for Business and Commerce in 2017; a Fellow of the Marketing Institute of Ireland, as well as Ireland’s Top 25 Most Powerful Women Public Sector Leaders Award in 2018; and UCD Smurfit School Alumna of the Year in 2019.

The newly established role of global vice president of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) represents another exciting milestone in Alltech’s longstanding mission to develop sustainable solutions for agriculture. In the early 1980s, Dr. Pearse Lyons, the late founder of Alltech, established the ACE Principle, which guided the company’s efforts toward providing nutritional solutions that promote the health and well-being of animals, consumers and the environment. In 2019, Dr. Mark Lyons, Pearse’s son, carried that principle forward with the announcement of his vision for Working Together for a Planet of Plenty^TM.

Are human health trends carrying over to the pet food industry? Nicole Hill, executive director of strategy at MarketPlace, joins the Ag Future podcast to discuss how trends in human nutrition related to issues like gut health, immunity, fiber and cognitive health are making their way to pet store shelves as the line between pet and family member blurs.

The following is an edited transcript of the Ag Future podcast episode with Nicole Hill hosted by Tom Martin. Click below to hear the full audio or listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts.

Tom:            Welcome to Ag Future, presented by Alltech. Join us from the 2022 Alltech ONE Conference as we explore opportunities within agri-food, business and beyond.

                     Nicole Hill is the executive director of strategy at Marketplace, a business consultancy and brand firm. In this role, she is taking the lead and mapping out strategies for business-to-business and consumer packaged goods for pet, animal and human nutrition and wellness brands.

                     I'm Tom Martin for the Alltech Ag Future podcast series, here with Nicole to talk about pet and human crossover trends and insights. Welcome, Nicole.

Nicole:          Thanks so much for having me, Tom.

Tom:            If I understand correctly, you engage in the design and research and analysis.

Nicole:          Yes. In my role as executive director of strategy at Marketplace, I touch the innovation pipelines of a lot of pet brands, both on the B2B and consumer side. Part of driving innovation means doing consumer insights research as well as actually developing the brands or rebranding an existing brand in the marketplace that needs to reposition to better connect with the pet parent of today.

Tom:            What sort of basic building blocks have to be in place before your work begins?

Nicole:          Well, we start with, obviously, getting to know the product or the brand that exists. But quickly after that, we go through a design thinking process. The first step in that process is empathy. To really empathize with that pet parent, with that audience, we want to make sure we're not just projecting our own perceptions of what they might want, value, feel (or) think but to really reality-test our hypotheses and build on our existing knowledge of the space with custom research. We're actually surveying 500, 600, 700 pet parents across the U.S. to really capture what it is they think, feel, value (and) desire to understand their personal relationships with their pets. Then we go from there, applying different lenses to tap into the specific audience for the product or brand that we're working with.

Tom:            This is a really sensitive corner of the general consumer market, isn't it? I mean, we're talking about something here (that is) secondary only to family, human family — our dogs and cats and even the other critters that we share our lives with become family, and they underscore that pet-to-human relationship. How does your recognition of that special crossover influence the advice that you share with client companies?

Nicole:          Sure. Well, as you mentioned, for so many people, pets are considered a member of the family. We recently did some research and discovered a pocket of those pet parents who actually think, “My pet themselves think they are human.” There is this persistent humanization of pets that's been going on for some time and really has continued to increase. When we look at the crossover trends between pet and human nutrition spaces — because at Marketplace, we serve both pet brands and human nutrition brands — we really see a lot of corollary evidence that the things that people want for themselves, they also want for their pets. When we're talking about things like gut health, immunity (and) fiber, those are drivers in the human nutrition space. Likewise, we're seeing those same trends track in the pet nutrition space. That's really coming into play when we look at, of course, things like fiber in general, but prebiotics and even postbiotics, along — following the trend in probiotics — a lot of that, in terms of gut and immune health, the trend in human toward those need states is really aligning with what we're seeing in pet as well.

Tom:            Everybody's talking about sustainability these days. It's so important. I'm just wondering how it plays a role in your strategic thinking.

Nicole:          Absolutely. I mean, I think we all recognize that we are stewards of our planet, stewards of what we leave behind for the next generation. Companies, brands and categories in the pet and human nutrition industries are highly aware that every action that they take leaves a lasting mark. As we're seeing brands and businesses invest in sustainability efforts in the ingredients they source, in their packaging, in their manufacturing processes, we want to make sure that we're telling that story so that the consumers that are purchasing their products understand the impact that their individual purchase decision ultimately makes — that lasting effect, that ripple effect — as volume and other things are considered in purchase choices, what that connection is to environmental concerns.

Tom:            What are some leading current trends in pet food, and what potential future trends are you watching (or) keeping an eye on?

Nicole:          Yes. Immunity and gut health are definitely two top trends. People want their pets to live as long as possible. I think we can all recognize that moment where we feel like, “Ah, dogs just don't live long enough. I wish my dog lived as long as I did.” Immunity is definitely that proactive measure. With the crossover between human and pet nutrition also comes that crossover awareness — the awareness that the gut and mind are connected and that gut health is an important component of overall health. People are really seeing how gut health plays a role in both their nutritional wellness and in their pets’ (wellness). We're seeing those trends continue to build.

                     I also think the past two years have driven a higher awareness of both immunity and gut health but also anti-anxiety and calming issues for pets, especially for those pet parents who have had the opportunity to work from home for a period of time with their pet or adopted their pet during that time and may now be returning to in-person in the office. Their pet now might be dealing with some separation anxiety, things like that. Looking for products that are (produced) in a safe and healthy way (will) also help their pet with mood regulation so they don't have that stress and anxiety of being apart from their pet parent.

Tom:            It's really interesting that you mentioned that connection between mind and nutrition. We've been talking to a lot of people here about neurogastronomy, of course, in a human context, but I never really imagined that we would take it over into a pet context. But it makes perfect sense.

Nicole:          It really does. Even certain subsets of pet and pet parent relationships — those people who look at their pet and think, “This pet is my best friend, a member of my family; my pet thinks that they're human” — among those subsets, we're actually seeing an over-indexing on the desire for cognitive health benefits for their pet. Again, I think part of that is we think of our pets as people. We think of them as having these unique and amazing distinct personalities. So much of our personality is obviously controlled by our brains. We want our pet to be their healthiest, best version of themselves in all facets for as long as humanly possible, or as long as canine-ly or felinely possible.

Tom:            I think many of us wish they could talk but then worry about what they would say if they could.

Nicole:          Exactly.

Tom:            There's a lot of discussion today about functional ingredients, the microbiome and antibiotics. Let's look at each of these. First, functional ingredients. What does that mean, and why is it a hot topic?

Nicole:          Of course. When we're talking about functional ingredients, we're talking about things that provide a benefit. They perform a function in the body, such as supporting hip and joint health, skin and coat health, mobility, cognitive function, gut health immunity, things like that. Functional benefits are important because that's really how pet parents shop for things like supplements or other functional nutrition, even foods. When we talk about a specific functional benefit, like mobility, let's say, (or) hip and joint health, you want your pet to be able to get around, climb the stairs, go on long walks, hikes, whatever the case may be.

                     That is why so many pet parents shop for functional benefits, first, in the supplement space, specifically. They look for not ingredients first but benefits first — benefits, one, for many pet parents aligned with that quality of life that they seek for their pet. Then, also, it really helps personalize the nutrition for their pet, even when we're looking at foods. So, foods that might support hip and joint health or mobility — that would be perhaps a food that someone might be more inclined to purchase for their dog that may be getting up in years and may be having a little bit more trouble getting around, or perhaps the dog is just a breed that is known to potentially have mobility issues as they age and they want to be proactive about their pet's health.

Tom:            What about microbiomes — the microbiomes that occupy our pets’ digestive systems? 

Nicole:          The mysterious and interesting microbiome. I think it's something that, as much as we continue to know more and more about it, there’s still so much more to know. As folks consider not just the unique fingerprints, basically, of our individual microbiomes and those of our pets, we're also considering how we might best help our pets balance their internal biology and makeup so that, again, they can live the longest, healthiest, happiest lives they can. When we're looking at things like prebiotics, postbiotics — really, all of the biotics — probiotics, that's really what consumers are looking toward to help maintain a modulated, a well-modulated microbiome for their pet.

Tom:            Antibiotics have gotten a lot of attention in recent years — resistance to them and their impact on the microbiome in particular. How do these concerns figure into discussions you have with the pet food industry?

Nicole:          In the pet food industry, what we're seeing is a high desire for naturalness. What “all-natural” means from a consumer-demand standpoint versus a regulatory standpoint are two different things. One of the things that we do from a research standpoint is try to understand what consumers mean when they say certain things. Even things that might be good for one's pet or good or necessary at times, it can also be something that people aren't necessarily comfortable with or have a full level of awareness or education about. With that in mind, there are some perceptions of, “Okay, how can I have less of certain things in my pet's diet or less of certain things in my pet's life, and antibiotics being one of them?” I think people recognize that there's a time and a place but maybe aren't wanting to rely too heavily (on these products).

                     That's where — what we see as pet parents say, “I want to be proactive with my pet's nutrition and health to mitigate potential needs for other sources of treatment down the road that are more reactive.” They're making nutrition decisions to proactively manage health and wellness in ways that, as pet parents, they perceive to be natural. “All-natural,” “made in the USA,” those are top trends among us pet parents right now that are not necessarily going to be a key differentiator for product in the space, but there's something that almost has become table stakes in a lot of the pet nutrition categories.

Tom:            Many of us are engaging in a lot of guesswork when we shop for pets, for food. We want to provide what they need to be healthy and happy, the things that you've been talking about. Most of us, though, are not nutritionists. How can we become better informed?

Nicole:          I like to say there's always more to know. Just being curious and always seeking new information from reliable sources (is important). There are regulatory bodies like AAFCO that are resources for not just consumers but also the makers of a lot of pet nutrition products. I think, you know, there are always folks that are going to consult with their veterinarian. When we're talking about companion pets, obviously, that's going to be a key resource for our pets, just like our medical professionals and healthcare providers are for ourselves.

                     So, making sure that information is coming from reliable sources. Also, recognizing that good science often changes. As we get more information, recommendations might shift. That's not a bad thing; that's good. That means we're learning more. We're getting more data. We're building new hypotheses and testing them. Not just looking to reliable, credible resources but also resources that have proactively continued to seek further understanding, seek new information. I think those solid resources are great.

                     Also, just being aware of your own personal pet. Like you mentioned, we all have our own microbiome, and what works for your pet might be slightly different than what works for someone else, for (their) specific needs state. That said, there are great standards that we all can rely on for the nutritional completeness of our pet's diet. Pet foods in the U.S. specifically have specific standards they have to meet. While we can all make decisions based on what we feel is best for our pet, there's a lot of confidence knowing that the products that are on the market have met a certain regulatory expectation.

Tom:            That's Nicole Hill. She is executive director of strategy at the business consultancy and brand for Marketplace. Thanks, Nicole.

Nicole:          Thank you so much. It was a pleasure.

Tom:            For the Alltech Ag Future podcast, I'm Tom Martin. Thank you for joining us. Be sure to subscribe to Ag Future wherever you listen to podcasts.

In this uncertain economic climate, investors are seeking solace in the growing pet food industry. Carol Frank, author of “Do As I Say, Not As I Did: Gaining Wisdom in Business Through the Mistakes of Highly Successful People” and managing director of BirdsEye Advisory Group, joins the Ag Future podcast to discuss pet food industry trends and how to learn from mistakes.

The following is an edited transcript of the Ag Future podcast episode with Carol Frank hosted by Tom Martin. Click below to hear the full audio or listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts.

Tom:              Welcome to Ag Future, presented by Alltech. Join us from the 2022 Alltech ONE Conference as we explore opportunities within agri-food, business and beyond.

                        We all make mistakes. It's a human thing, and it can be invaluable if we're open to learning from what went wrong. I'm Tom Martin with another Alltech Ag Future podcast.

                        That pearl of wisdom is the message of the book “Do As I Say, Not As I Did! Gaining Wisdom in Business Through the Mistakes of Highly Successful People”. It's by Carol Frank. You may have read about her in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Entrepreneur, USA Today, Businessweek, or the Dallas Morning News. Carol has been named among Pet Age's Women of Influence, in addition to being recognized as a Pet Age icon. She's a trustee at the University of Colorado Foundation, a member of the Leadership Council at the Denver Zoo, and a member of the Herb Kelleher Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Texas in Austin. She is also the founder and managing director at BirdsEye Advisory Group, based in Boulder, Colorado. As a certified mergers and acquisitions advisor, major and very recent transformations of the pet industry landscape have kept her very busy. Welcome, Carol.

Carol:             Thank you, Tom. Super excited to be here today.

Tom:              2021 is going down in pet food industry history as one to remember — (it was) a year that saw a record level of mergers and acquisitions. I wondered if you would share with us that background that has equipped you with such an informed perspective on what's happening in this industry.

Carol:             Well, I have a very unusual background for an investment banker. I started my career as a CPA, but then I went on to start and sell four different tech companies over about 20 years. Then I decided to use my background as a CPA — I have an MBA — and then as an entrepreneur in the pet industry to help other entrepreneurs and founders realize their dreams when they're ready to sell their businesses. I've been doing that for 13 years.

                        We all were scared to death in the spring of 2020 when the pandemic shut just about everything down, and we were all wondering what was next for us. But then people decided to start bringing home more pets and started traveling less and spending more on their pets. Over the next two years, the pet industry has just exploded, even more so than it already had been.

                        2021 was a year that a lot of entrepreneurs said, “You know what? I've kind of had enough. The market is really strong. Maybe it's time for me to think about exiting.” (At) the same time, there are investors out there that are looking at the pet industry (and) going, “Wow, this is a recession-resistant, even a recession-proof industry. I'd like to get in on it.” There are record valuations out there and record numbers of transactions happening.

Tom:              It turns out that the pet industry may be one of those that was actually vastly improved by the calamity of the pandemic.

Carol:             That would absolutely be the truth. Yeah.

Tom:              I mentioned your book about learning from our mistakes. Boy, we all could do that. It contains the accounts of business leaders, who bear their souls about how they stumbled at some point in their careers and lived to tell about it. You have founded and owned a variety of pet companies, as you mentioned. You worked as an auditor at a big CPA firm, Ernst & Young, and served on the boards of more than a dozen nonprofit and business organizations. Did those experiences as an entrepreneur and a businesswoman, as well as all of that board service, provide ample opportunities to learn from your own mistakes?

Carol:             Well, I had a chance to make a lot of mistakes as I was entrepreneuring along. It started when I was in my mid-20s. Like a lot of us then, we thought we knew a lot more than we really did. The idea for the book came from when I got sued by a competitor. It almost put my business out. It almost put me into bankruptcy. What I did was, after some soul searching, I realized that I had made some pretty significant mistakes that were based on me being naive and me being trusting and just not executing as well as I could have that resulted in this lawsuit and me almost losing my company.

                        So, I started talking to other entrepreneurs and realized they were like, “Oh, yeah, I totally messed that up, and that happened.” Then I also realized that people like learning from other people's mistakes, almost more so than they like learning from their successes. People love a good story, a good horror story. So, I decided to put together a book. It's a little bit like (the) “Chicken Soup” format, where there are 29 chapters where I interviewed entrepreneurs who are willing to share their mistakes and their war stories and their setbacks and then the lessons that they learned from those. That's how that came about.

Tom:              What about that process of realizing that, “Okay, I really did make a mistake here, and I'm going to own it. I'm going to own it. I'm going to be honest about it.” That's difficult, isn't it?

Carol:             It really is, except for — I just feel like it's a little bit cathartic to do that. It's also, for me, I like to give back when I can. When I share my own mistakes, where I tell people, “You need to get things in writing. You can't just take people for their word.” It's something super important — like a manufacturing contract, which is one of the things I did. I didn't get a patent on my product, which ended up really being a huge mistake. When I learned those things, I might as well save all those other people from the costly errors they could make by sharing with them what can happen. That was kind of a combination of wanting to give back and also just really realizing how valuable sharing these mistakes were.

Tom:              Well, you mentioned catharsis. Do we need to give ourselves a break here and say, “You know what? It’s okay. We all make mistakes. We just do it.”

Carol:             Oh, absolutely. I think there's a gazillion slogans out there about how important it is to make mistakes and how much we can learn from making mistakes and how failures are just one more step toward success.

Tom:              How has the insight gained from chronicling stories of others who have made the most of failure come into play as you've helped clients who are navigating the dynamics of, say, mergers and acquisitions?

Carol:             Well, I've learned a lot about that in the 13 years (on the job) as well. One of the things — I'm giving a speech this afternoon at the Alltech (ONE) Conference, and one of my slides is all about what the top deal-killers are. Some of those are around how people hide their skeletons and aren't transparent and aren't authentic with their advisors. I've experienced firsthand deals completely falling apart because my clients weren't completely honest with me. I ask a lot more questions than I ever used to. I also am a lot pickier on the types of companies that we want to sell, because we've learned over the years just what it takes to be a really great client and how to sell a really great company.

Tom:              In service to that transparency that you're talking about, is it best to just in a presentation say, “I made these mistakes, and here's what we did about them”?

Carol:             I think so. I think there is something completely disarming when somebody looks at you and says, “You know what? I made a mistake. I'm going to own up to it. Here's what we're doing about it. Here's what I can do about it in the future. Here's what you can learn from this.” I think that's so much better than someone trying to cover it up and dance around it and do a shuffle when, really, in reality, most people can see right through that.

Tom:              In your mind, what are the qualities and assets of a premium-value company that you're looking at?

Carol:             Well, I like to use the analogy of a three-legged stool. When you have all three legs of the stool, then you will get premium valuation. One of those legs is having a strong brand, having a well-known brand, one that resonates with your clients, with consumers. That's one leg. Another leg is having good gross margins, if we get into financial speak here. But the gross margin is such an important aspect of a company's financial health, so having strong gross margins — and that depends on the industry you're in. But if you're in the pet food or trade industry, that usually means somewhere around 40% to 50%.

                        Then third is how fast are you growing as a company. If you are growing at a double-digit rate, 10% or above, then you're in that solid growth territory. Fortunately, most companies in the pet industry are growing at that rate now. If you're not, there's probably something wrong. Now, I do see that slowing as we move into 2022 and things are getting a little crazy with the economy. But if you have a strong brand, good margins, good growth, then you're going to realize premium valuation.

Tom:              We were talking about mergers and acquisitions earlier and about 2021 in particular being a really robust year — a record year, I believe, in the pet industry — driven by private equity. What do you think captured the attention of private equity? Why is the pet industry so attractive, beyond the fact that we all went out and purchased pets?

Carol:             Private equity has been very interested in the pet industry ever since I've been — I joined investment banking in 2009. I started realizing pretty quickly when I was getting all these calls, because we specialize exclusively in the pet industry. We're the only investment bank in the country that does that. Private equity groups would find out about us, and I would get call after call. “Can I have a talk with you? We want to get into the pet industry.” That's been going on for 13 years. I'm wondering if and when it's going to slow down.

                        But the primary drivers of that interest are (that) it's sticky. People rarely get a pet and then don't have a pet later. They usually are loyal pet owners. The millennials in particular are driving the growth in premium foods, natural, organic, those sorts of things. That is not expected to slow down at all. But it all really started with baby boomers. Once upon a time in the '60s, the dogs were sleeping in the barn. Then they moved in the backyard. Then they moved onto the porch (and) into the house. Now they're sleeping in our beds. Well, that's caused a growth in the pet industry of about ten billion (dollars) in the '80s to 120 billion last year. That growth definitely attracts investment capital.

Tom:              Well, how has this wave of mergers and acquisitions also been characterized by strategic moves within the industry?

Carol:             Well, there are two types of buyers. A strategic buyer — which is, for example, if Alltech were to purchase a company in the industry, then that would be a strategic buy. Strategic buyers have a lot of money on their balance sheet. They need to deploy that capital. Acquisitions is one way that they're definitely looking to do that and to grow vertically or horizontally within their companies.

Tom:              There was a pretty big leap in pet food and product sales when COVID was keeping everybody home in 2020, '21. Do you regard that as a temporary response to the pandemic or an indicator of something more sustained, more long-term?

Carol:             Well, nobody is expecting there to be any contraction in terms of the growth in the pet food business. Now, what we are seeing is a shift in the type of foods that people are buying for their pets, and particularly with the millennials and Gen Z's. The dog kibble, which we call brown and round, the ultra-processed foods, I believe they're — well, they're not, I don't believe — I know they're slowing down. If you look at the categories of what's growing in the pet food space, it's the alternatives. It's wet. It's frozen. It's freeze-dried. It might be air-dried. But kibble is definitely slowing down and not seeing the type of growth that the other types of foods are. But I do think that the pet foods category in general will continue to grow.

Tom:              Again, we've been talking about mergers and acquisitions, but I wonder: What does all of that activity mean for retailers and for the consumer?

Carol:             Well, in most cases, it’s really a good thing, because when you have a sophisticated buyer with a lot of resources that puts their name behind a brand, that means, usually, that they're going to do more research. It's going to be available in more places. They're going to make sure they keep the quality up. But usually — not always, but usually — (there’s) a lot of upside when a company does get acquired. For example, we sold a company called Bocce's Bakery last fall. They were owned by two ladies in the West Village of New York. They'd done a great job in the 11 years (after) they bought it, since they started it. But in the fall, a company called Alpine Investors acquired it. They are a two-and-a-half-billion-dollar private equity firm, but they've committed $200 million in capital to grow not only Bocce's but to add some additional brands and really increase the authenticity, the transparency, the messaging and the quality of the product.

Tom:              If you don't mind, Carol, I'd like to tap into your experience as a businesswoman, if I could. From what you have seen and experienced, is it fair to say that women are now more widely recognized and respected as equals among leaders in the industry?

Carol:             Boy, that's a good question. (It’s) funny; I was thinking about this this morning. When I joined the pet industry back in the late '80s, I was one of very few women. There are more now, but I am often the only woman in the room when it comes to — like, I was on the board of the Pet Industry Distributors Association. There usually weren't very many of us. Here at the (Alltech ONE) Conference, I'd say there might be about 30% women. That's probably significantly higher than it used to be. But I've never thought of myself as, “Okay, I'm a woman, so I have to be different, act different; things are different.” I just am a human being who's smart and capable and really excited about being in the industry. I do believe that most women are feeling that way. There are amazing women in the pet industry. The last two of the last four companies we've sold have been female-owned. I just don't see that slowing down at all.

Tom:              Well, these certainly are challenging times that we're in. Life is always a challenge, but the events we're living through these days seem pretty extraordinary. What advice would you offer to visionaries in the startup phase as they strive to gain that toehold in this marketplace?

Carol:             I love that question, Tom, because I've been answering that now since I'd graduated (with) my MBA 30 years ago, and I speak to classes and I speak to a lot of entrepreneurs that have ideas. I tell them, “First of all, how can you be differentiated? If your product or idea isn't better or different than your competitor, then you're going to waste a lot of time and resources, and you're going to have a bloody head, because you're going to be (banging it) against the wall. Be differentiated. Try to find a way that, if you can, protect your idea with intellectual property — even better, build a moat around your product so that it can’t be just knocked off because, unfortunately, there’s a lot of people out there that like to copy ideas. Then get consumer buy-in or customer buy-in. If you’re a B2B, you’re going to get your customer buy-in. Do they want your product, or does your consumer want your product? Just because you think it’s a good idea doesn’t necessarily mean the market is going to think it’s a good idea. Before you launch, do a bunch of market research, and make sure there’s buy-in for whatever it is that you have to offer.”

Tom:              Well, currently, the lion's share of pet treats sold on the market are for dogs, but cat treat sales have been growing at a faster rate than dog treats since about 2016. Carol, is this an indicator that we cat owners are finally caving to the persistent, the unrelenting and often vocalized demands of our feline friends?

Carol:             Are you a cat owner?

Tom:              I am a cat owner who seems to have a watch. It's time for treats now.

Carol:             Well, cats have been underserved, and we don't really know why, because cat owners are crazy for their animals just like dog owners. I happen to also have a bird. I'm a crazy bird lady. We're not really sure why that has been neglected, but the market is catching up. Cats are definitely not like — they don't sit at your feet and beg for a treat. But, boy, they love their treats. I do see it being one of the fastest-growing categories right now. I don't see that changing or slowing down. I mean, don't you want a great treat to give your cat?

Tom:              Sure, and she makes sure that I do. Carol Frank, founder and managing director at BirdsEye Advisory Group (and) author of “Do As I Say, Not As I Did! Gaining Wisdom in Business Through the Mistakes of Highly Successful People,” which can be found on Amazon. Thank you for the conversation, Carol.

Carol:             You're very welcome, Tom. Thank you.

Tom:              For the Alltech Ag Future podcast, I'm Tom Martin. Thank you for joining us. Be sure to subscribe to Ag Future wherever you listen to podcasts.

During the 38^th annual Alltech ONE Conference (ONE) in Lexington, Kentucky, Alltech was pleased to host 65 journalists from approximately 20 countries. Another 213 were in attendance virtually, representing nearly 35 countries. In a presentation on Monday, several awards were presented to honor a few of those international agricultural journalists for their excellence and leadership in sharing the stories of agriculture.

“Compelling, fact-based communication has never been more important for society, and that holds especially true for agriculture,” said Dr. Mark Lyons, president and CEO of Alltech. “No other business sector is as integral to planetary health. The stories of agriculture production, industry innovations and sustainability efforts must not only be told, but told well, which underscores the importance of the work of agricultural media.”

In partnership with the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ), Alltech is pleased to announce Lindi Botha of South Africa as the recipient of the 2022 IFAJ–Alltech International Award for Leadership in Agricultural Journalism. This recognition honors Alltech’s late founder, Dr. Pearse Lyons, who was a passionate storyteller with a great respect for agricultural journalists.

Botha is an agricultural journalist and communications specialist and serves as the deputy chairperson of Agricultural Writers South Africa. She has an unrelenting passion for agriculture and for writing stories that serve to enhance the sector and arm farmers with the knowledge they need to succeed in these times of political, climatic and economic uncertainty. The fast pace at which the agricultural landscape is changing necessitates an increased awareness to ensure that journalists are up to date with the latest trends and technology, and Botha prides herself on effectively and timeously communicating these advancements to farmers. A core focus of her work is communicating success stories within agriculture and ensuring that the sector is seen as a positive contributor to social change and economic upliftment.

Alltech is also proud to partner with the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Agricultural Communicators (Red CALC). The ninth annual Innovation and Quality Awards in Agricultural Journalism were presented to Sofia Neumann of Chile and Nicolás Gómez Bernal of Ecuador.

Neumann’s winning article, entitled “5 Chilean innovations that will impact the agricultural industry,” was published in Chile’s Financial Journal and addressed the impact of the adoption of research and development in the fruit sector of Chile.  Neumann highlights how the country has positioned itself as the main fruit exporter in the Southern Hemisphere with advances in areas such as breeding technologies, the automation of labor and fruit processing. Today’s biggest challenge is the transfer of knowledge to medium and smallholder farmers.

Gómez Bernal’s award-winning report, “RAZA 4 joins Latin American countries in defense of their plantations,” published in the newspaper El Productor de Ecuador, focuses on the banana industry as the first export area of many Latin American countries. However, the new Fusarium fungus, known as Tropical Race 4, could directly affect this sector. As such, different regional agencies and governments have begun taking proactive steps to help prevent the spread of this plague.

The IFAJ–Alltech International Award for Leadership in Agricultural Journalism and the Red CALC Innovation and Quality Award in Agricultural Journalism align with Alltech's vision of Working Together for a Planet of Plenty^TM, in which a world of abundance is made possible through the adoption of new technologies, better farm management practices and human ingenuity within agriculture. Alltech is proud to partner with these organizations and to support the mentorship and education of these communicators, who connect agriculture to a global audience and share the stories of agriculture through balanced, independent, evidence-based information.

“IFAJ and Red CALC share our commitment to supporting journalists who give a voice to the farmers and producers, the innovators and change-makers, and the scientists and scholars all working toward a Planet of Plenty,” said Lyons. “On behalf of Alltech, I congratulate Lindi Botha, Sofia Neumann and Nicolás Gómez Bernal as the well-deserving recipients of these awards.”

For more information about the IFAJ–Alltech International Award for Leadership in Agricultural Journalism or the Red CALC awards, contact press@alltech.com.

-Ends-

Contact: press@alltech.com

Jenn Norrie

Communications Manager, North America and Europe

jnorrie@alltech.com; (403) 863-8547

Video download: https://bcove.video/3kM8Sct

Image download: https://photos.alltech.com/pf.tlx/w2dw2cXwdGbR5

Image caption: Lindi Botha of South Africa is the recipient of the 2022 IFAJ–Alltech International Award for Leadership in Agricultural Journalism.

Image download: https://photos.alltech.com/pf.tlx/5wM5I2v5oabsc

Image caption: Steve Werblow (left), vice-president of the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists, accepted the 2022 IFAJ–Alltech International Award for Leadership in Agricultural Journalism on behalf of Lindi Botha of South Africa from Dr. Mark Lyons (right), president and CEO of Alltech at the 2022 Alltech ONE Conference.

Image download: https://photos.alltech.com/pf.tlx/2W2yDd2yI4jf6

Image caption: Sofia Neumann of Chile was recognized by Alltech and the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Agricultural Communicators (Red CALC) with an Innovation and Quality Award in Agricultural Journalism.

Image download: https://photos.alltech.com/pf.tlx/H3EH84MH8PQs2Z

Image caption: Nicolás Gómez Bernal of Ecuador was recognized by Alltech and the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Agricultural Communicators (Red CALC) with an Innovation and Quality Award in Agricultural Journalism.

Image download: https://photos.alltech.com/pf.tlx/yDEycYdyi9zoN

Image caption: Dr. Mark Lyons (left), president and CEO of Alltech, presented the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Agricultural Communicators (Red CALC) Innovation and Quality Awards in Agricultural Journalism to Sofia Neumann (right) of Chile and Marlene Bernal Munoz (middle), accepting on behalf of Nicolás Gómez Bernal of Ecuador, at the 2022 Alltech ONE Conference.

Image download: https://photos.alltech.com/pf.tlx/vwvZcvXIhnod

Image Caption: Alltech is proud to partner with the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ) to recognize excellence and leadership by young journalists with the IFAJ–Alltech International Award for Leadership in Agricultural Journalism.

Image download: https://photos.alltech.com/pf.tlx/VzGVtfVfnjMD

Image Caption: Alltech is pleased to partner with the Network of Agricultural Communicators of Latin America and the Caribbean (Red CALC) to recognize the winners of the Innovation and Quality Award in Agricultural Journalism.

About Alltech:

Founded in 1980 by Irish entrepreneur and scientist Dr. Pearse Lyons, Alltech delivers smarter, more sustainable solutions for agriculture. Our products improve the health and performance of plants and animals, resulting in better nutrition for consumers and a decreased environmental impact.

We are a global leader in the animal health industry, producing specialty ingredients, premix supplements, feed and complete feed. Strengthened by more than 40 years of scientific research, we carry forward a legacy of innovation and a unique culture that views challenges through an entrepreneurial lens.

Our more than 5,000 talented team members worldwide share our vision for a Planet of Plenty™. We believe agriculture has the greatest potential to shape the future of our planet, but it will take all of us working together, led by science, technology and a shared will to make a difference.

Alltech is a private, family-owned company, which allows us to adapt quickly to our customers’ needs and maintain focus on advanced innovation. Headquartered just outside of Lexington, Kentucky, USA, Alltech has a strong presence in all regions of the world. For more information, visit alltech.com, or join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

[Ciudad de Serdán, Mexico] – On April 5, Alltech took steps to advance its leadership in sustainability through the company’s first global renewable energy project, a photovoltaic solar energy system, located in its production plant in Serdán, Mexico. The plant also presented its new source of compressed natural gas, which will help to considerably mitigate its environmental impact.

During the event, which was attended by local authorities, industry representatives and Alltech’s president and CEO, Dr. Mark Lyons, it was highlighted that this new energy system — designed by the company Iberdrola — will cover 46% of the Alltech Serdán plant’s energy needs. This will result in an energy savings of 22% in the first year, and an annual reduction of 20% of its CO₂-eq emissions (665 fewer tons of CO₂-eq emissions).

 “Alltech strives to have a positive impact in the 350 global communities in which we live and work, and our team in Serdán has long been exemplary in this regard,” said Dr. Mark Lyons. “Today, they have taken a tremendous step forward in advancing our efforts to reduce the environmental impact of our operations.

“The milestone completion of these energy projects was also a celebration of this team’s long-standing spirit of ‘making a difference.’ The products produced at this facility are at the core of our Planet of Plenty™ vision, which aims to improve animal welfare and feed efficiency, while ensuring nutrition for all and reducing environmental impact. For example, the Serdán team is committed to replanting yucca plants — three for each one harvested in the production of our De-Odorase® product — and they consistently put the community at the forefront of their endeavors. This facility and our local team members are truly a testament to our vision of Working Together for a Planet of Plenty™.”

Alltech Serdán also inaugurated a new system for the use of compressed natural gas, a more environmentally friendly fuel, which will further contribute to a reduction in its environmental impact. Designed with the company Enepres, this new energy source, unlike liquified petroleum gas, emits 30% less carbon dioxide (CO₂) and 65% less carbon monoxide (CO). The result is an annual reduction of 17% of its CO₂-eq emissions (570 fewer tons of CO₂-eq).

"These projects readily demonstrate Alltech's interest in investing significantly in energy efficiency and renewable energy," said Paul Kilgallen, Alltech Serdán plant manager. "The initiatives support our efforts to offer sustainable solutions that optimize the productivity of livestock producers, and at the same time, uphold the social responsibility we have as a business and as an industry."

Alltech Serdán’s new energy system and transition to natural compressed gas are also representative of Alltech’s efforts to achieve its emission reduction goals by 2030, deliver on its commitment to several UN Sustainable Development Goals, and achieve its vision of a Planet of Plenty™.

The Alltech ONE Conference (ONE) will feature tracks that will uncover the challenges and opportunities in agriculture, business, health and wellness, and professional development. Now in its 38^th year, Alltech’s global agri-food conference continues to be an invaluable resource, uniting thought leaders and changemakers in an exploration of the power of science, sustainability and storytelling. This annual flagship event will be held May 22–24, both in person in Lexington, Kentucky, and virtually on a first-class platform, with live-streaming keynote and select on-demand track presentations available to ensure accessibility to everyone, everywhere.

Many topics* are slated for discussion at ONE, including:    

Aqua

• Holistic Gut Health: The Latest Improvements in Fish Nutrition
• Inside Out: Developing Healthy Skin, Guts and Gills
• Wave of the Future: Exciting New Developments in Aqua-Tech
• Aqua Investors: The Big Bad Wolves — or Our Rescuers?
• Aqua On Top: Building on Aquaculture's Unfair (Sustainable) Advantage

Beef

• Beef and Global Food Security: Resource-Use Efficiency for Protein Production
• Looking Ahead: Consumer Trends and Beef Production Systems
• Beef x Dairy: A Growing Link in the Supply Chain
• Beef and Global Food Security: Resource-Use Efficiency for Protein Production
• Better Connection: Why This Telecommunications Company Invests in Beef
• Better Beef: Exploring the Need for Innovation in the Beef Industry
• A New Day for Beef: Turning Sustainability Challenges Into Opportunities
• A Blueprint for Success: Getting Team Buy-In for New Products
• Organic Trace Minerals and Their Impact on Fetal Programming

Crop Science

• Little Bugs, Big Impact: Soil Microbes and Fertility
• Planting the Seed: Growing Through Strategic Partnerships
• The Growing Field of Crop Science: Performance, Sustainability and Innovation
• Bridging the Gap: Merging Conventional and Biological Innovations to Drive Crop Productivity
• Soil Biological Analysis: A Simple Tool for On-Farm Soil Health Assessments

Dairy

• Dairy Market Trends: Making Predictions During a Pandemic
• Dairy Gone Digital: Sustainability and On-Farm Technologies
• Planning for Success: Animal and Human Welfare on Dairy Operations
• Crème de la Crème: Large Herd Management in the Desert
• Predictions and Positioning for the Next 10 Years
• Chewing the Cud: Transparency and Communication in the Dairy Industry
• Sharing the Plate: Exploring Byproduct Utilization
• Bringing Data to Sustainability: Alltech E-CO₂
• Lessons Learned: Sustainability Goals for the Dairy Industry
• Transition to a Successful Lactation Cycle

Equine

• Exceptional Equines: All About Regenerative Medicine for Horses
• Taking Flight: Finding a Niche in the Horse Business
• Forage Quality: How Is It Measured, and Why Is It Important for Your Horse?
• Recipe for Success: How Mrs. Pastures Became the Top Horse Treat in America
• Achieving Greatness: Olympic Dreams — and A Lot of Hard Work
• Start 'Em Young: Building the Equine Bone Matrix
• Not Just a One-Trick Pony: 10 Great Social Media Strategies
• The Significance of Selenium: Exploring A Decade of Research

Pet

• The Golden Years: Strategies for Senior Pet Health
• Your Pet and You: Pet and Human Crossover Trends and Insights
• Brain Power: Supporting Our Pets' Cognitive Health at All Life Stages
• The Truth About Pet Food Mergers and Acquisitions: Revelations from an Industry Insider
• Planet-Friendly Pets: Sustainability Hot Topics in the Pet Industry

Pig

• The Zinc Oxide Ban: Nutritional Ramifications and Global Implications
• Caring for Disease-Challenged Pigs: Can Changing Nutrient Sources Affect Their Performance?
• The Buzz About Xylanase: Is It Here to Stay?
• Transformational Trends: How Can the Swine Industry Meet Consumers' Demands?
• Pork Producer Panel: The Challenges and Long-Term Effects of COVID-19
• Long Live the Sow: Protecting Your Herd
• Sustainability in Pork Production: The New Normal
• Developing a Productive Gilt: How Nutrition Affects Lactation
• Sow Mortality: Addressing an Industry-Wide Issue
• Smart Farms: Integrating AI and IoT Into Commercial Pig Operations

Poultry

• Protection Through Immunity: A Holistic Approach to Poultry Production
• Leveling Up: Improving Sustainability at Each Stage of Poultry Production
• Knowing Poultry Consumers and Delivering What They Want
• Antibiotic Resistance: A Hidden Problem for Poultry Production
• We're All in This Together: How COVID-19 Impacted the Poultry Industry
• Poultry Innovations: Where Are We Now, and Where Are We Going?
• Driving Demands: Shifting the Focus to Poultry Welfare
• Efficient, Sustainable Performance: The Impact of Organic Trace Minerals
• Balancing Animal Welfare and Sustainability: A Global Panel Discussion
• Understanding Coccidiosis: A Proactive Approach to a Major Poultry Challenge

Business

• The Power of Why: Aligning Business With Purpose
• Price Pressure: Doing Business During a Pandemic
• Business as (Un)usual: Embracing New Models
• From the Great Resignation to the Great Re-Engagement
• From Soil to Slainté: Making Irish Whiskey
• Echoes of War: The Global Impact of Conflict
• Making Moves: Turning a Vision Into Reality
• Partnering for Success: Why Business is Better Together

Health and Wellness

• The Science of Happiness: How to Make it Work for You
• Eating for Health and the Planet: A Guide to a Sustainable Diet
• Managing Stress and Overcoming Burnout: How to Live With Intention and Purpose
• It's Not Just Your Genes: Understanding the Equation That Drives Your Health
• Migraines and the Diet: The Myths vs. the Facts
• The Promise of Health Through Agriculture

Neurogastronomy

• Neurogastronomy: A Road to Global Health and a Planet of Plenty
• The Neuroscience of Flavor and Flavor Manipulation
• Extraordinary Eating: Enhancing Food Health and Flavor Through Neurogastronomy
• Food, Farming and You: What Neurogastronomy Can Teach Us About the World
• How We Eat is Who We Are: Gastronomy as a Shared Destiny

Stay Curious

• Redefining Resilience: Know Your Achilles Heel
• Crossed Wires: Culture and Communication
• Pitch With a Purpose: Innovation Driven by Compassion
• If I Can: Limitless Potential In Practice
• Pulling Up a Chair: Inclusion as a Key to Success
• Safety First: The Non-Negotiable of Psychological Security
• Do Things, Tell People: The Power of Personal Branding and Social Media Storytelling
• The Power of Purpose
• Meaningful Career Connections
• XYZ: Leading the Alphabet Soup of Generations
• Winning Body Language for a Successful Career

*Topics are subject to change. Some track topics are virtual or in-person only. Check the agenda for details.  

In addition to the many track topics, ONE attendees will be inspired by keynote speakers who have unleashed the power of innovation and courageous leadership to make a positive impact, including:

• Mick Ebeling, founder and CEO of Not Impossible Labs and author of “Not Impossible: The Art and Joy of Doing What Couldn’t Be Done,” will take the ONE mainstage in person, and his presentation will also be live-streamed for those joining virtually.
• Paul Polman, presenting virtually at ONE, has been described by the Financial Times as “a standout CEO of the past decade”. While serving as the CEO of Unilever, he stopped reporting quarterly earnings to focus on a long-term strategy that would successfully double revenues while reducing the company’s environmental impact by half.   
• Heather White, author, founder and CEO of “OneGreenThing,” will present on the mainstage at ONE, and her presentation will also be live-streamed for those joining virtually. She brings two decades of environmental advocacy work and national nonprofit leadership to life with her joyful and practical book, "One Green Thing: Discover Your Hidden Power to Help Save the Planet".
• Dr. Mark Lyons, president and CEO of Alltech, will welcome all ONE attendees, both in-person and virtually. Based on Alltech’s belief that agriculture has the greatest potential to shape our world’s future, he launched the company’s vision of Working Together for a Planet of Plenty™ in 2019. He has called for collaboration to improve nutrition, human and animal well-being, and the replenishment of natural resources.
• Nikki Putnam Badding, will present in-person and virtually during ONE about the crucial importance of making nutrition accessible to all. As a registered dietitian nutritionist, she brings human health expertise to her role as managing director and chief dietitian of Acutia, Inc., an Alltech company.

• Dr. Karl Dawson, scientific advisor with Alltech, will join the keynote lineup in person and virtually to discuss how animal agriculture can be part of the solution to improving sustainability.

As the Alltech ONE Conference returns live to Lexington, Kentucky, after being a virtual-only event for the past two years, it will also feature a weekend of fun-filled activities for all. For more details about the ONE Weekend activities and tours, visit one.alltech.com/one-weekend.

Registration for the Alltech ONE Conference is open at one.alltech.com. Join the conversation across social media with #AlltechONE.