2026 Midwest Grazing & Soil Health Summit Sessions & Presenters
Schedule At-A-Glance (full details below)
Tuesday, March 3
1:00pm - Opening Session Introductions
- Keith Berns, Carbonomics - The Amazing Economy of the Soil
2:15pm Break and Exhibits
2:45pm - Breakouts
Bryan Simon, Silvopasture 101: An Introduction to Pastures with Trees
Patrick Toomey, Pastured Pork: Increase Farm Diversity with A Hog Wild Enterprise
Ben Boo, Cover Crop Roundtable
3:45pm Break and exhibits
4:00pm - Breakouts
Jason Cavadini, Practical Forage Chains: Annual Forages & Cover Crops That Fit Your Grazing Operation
Caitlin Word, Rooted in Profit: The Business Case for Better Grazing
Keith Berns, Soil Health Makes Sense - But Does It Make Dollars?
5:00pm Social Hour, Exhibits, Booksigning with Keith Berns
6:00pm Supper on your own
7:00pm An Open Door Documentary
Wednesday, March 4
7:30am - Breakfast, Exhibits, Networking Time
8:30am - Dr. Temple Grandin, Great Minds are Not all The Same
9:30am - Break and Exhibits
10:00am - Breakout Sessions
Jared Luhman, Lessons Learned from 250+ Interviews with Successful Ranchers
Jason Cavadini, Intentional Grazing: Enterprise Selection & Budgeting to Fit Your Farm & Life
Keith Berns, Soil Health Makes Sense - But Does It Make Dollars?
11:00am Break, Exhibits
11:30am - Breakout Sessions
Jordan Meyer, Scaling Regeneration: Grazing, Genetics, and People
Todd Churchill, Next-Generation Farm Transition: Governance, Decisions, and Estate Planning
Troy Salzer, Liver Flukes are Bad, Bad, Bad.
12:30am - Lunch, Discussion Tables, Exhibitors
1:45pm - Breakouts
Caitlin Word, Rooted in Profit: The Business Case for Better Grazing
Jason Cavadini,Practical Forage Chains: Annual Forages & Cover Crops That Fit Your Grazing Operation
Josh Gaskamp, Grazing that Promotes Wildlife and Boosts Profitability
2:45pm - Break, Exhibitors
3:00pm - Dr. Temple Grandin, The Importance of Good Stockmanship
See the Presenter Bios HERE.
Tuesday, March 3: Full Descriptions
1:00pm Opening Session
Keith Berns
Carbonomics - The Amazing Economy of the Soil
Sometimes the best way to understand a complex system is to compare it to other systems that we already understand. Green Cover Seed co-founder, Keith Berns, does just that in his Carbonomics presentation where he compares the economy of a country to the underground economy of the soil. Learn how principles like supply, demand, currency, capital and infrastructure all apply to the soils under our feet and how a properly functioning soil system is a powerful and robust economic system. After this presentation you will have a better understanding of how carbon is the currency that plants use to purchase goods and services from the biological community.
2:15pm Break & Exhibits
2:45pm Breakouts
Bryan Simon
Silvopasture 101: An Introduction to Pastures with Trees.
This session will explore the basics of silvopasture, an integrated land-use practice that merges forestry and grazing. We will discuss the benefits for both livestock and the landscape, and outline the primary approaches to establishment (planting trees in pasture vs. thinning woodlots). Come learn how this dynamic system can diversify farm income, enhance wildlife habitat, create climate resilience, as well as common challenges and what to consider before getting started.
Patrick Toomey
Pastured Pork: Increase Farm Diversity with A Hog Wild Enterprise
Everyone loves bacon. How that bacon is raised is a different story. In this presentation, I will break down my pastured hog enterprise explaining how to use hogs' natural behavior to your benefit, how (an more importantly how NOT) to manage hogs for maximum minimal disturbance, and how to integrate pastured hogs as a profitable enterprise for the farm.
Cover Crop Roundtable
Cover Crop Roundtable
3:45pm Break & Exhibitors
4:00pm Breakouts
Jason Cavadini
Practical Forage Chains: Annual Forages & Cover Crops That Fit Your Grazing Operation
Cover crops and annual forages provide the perfect opportunity for the synergistic integration of crops and livestock, reducing feed and fertility costs while providing the positive impact of forage crops and livestock grazing on soil health. Grazing of these forages makes sense where farms are already growing them and also have livestock. But what about farms that dont already have livestock? And what about grazing operations with all their acres under perennial forage? Are there opportunities for annual forages and cover crops that make sense? This presentation will go through the process of identifying opportunities for annual forages and cover crops for every farm and will then walk the audience through selecting planting methods, species, planting rates, and grazing goals. An Extension publication was developed for this process in 2025, and this presentation will follow the template of that publication and will demonstrate to the audience how to use the resource.
Caitlin Word
Rooted in Profit: The Business Case for Better Grazing
Caitlin Word of Noble Research Institute makes the case that regeneration and profitability are not opposing forces but rather work synergistically to create whole business resilience. This session connects soil health, grazing management and ranch profitability through a practical, systems-based lens. Learn how regenerative principles translate into real economic outcomes, and connect the dots between better stewardship and better business.
Keith Berns
Soil Health Makes Sense - But Does It Make Dollars?
Preventing erosion, breaking compaction, increasing infiltration, increasing nutrient cycling and availability, nitrogen fixation and supplemental grazing are all well documented cover crop benefits. It makes good agronomic sense to use cover crops to address any of these issues, but does it make financial sense to use them? Keith Berns, one of the cover crop pioneers over the past 15 years, will lay out the case and show the research on how cover crops affect the bottom line profitability of a farming operation. Short term and long term benefits will be considered and both direct and indirect financial impacts will be presented. Come find out if cover crops make both dollars and sense!
5:00pm
Booksigning with Keith Berns
Social Hour
Exhibits
6:00pm Supper on your own
7:00pm
An Open Door
AN OPEN DOOR is a documentary reflecting on the influential life and work of Dr. Temple Grandin as a champion of the humane treatment of livestock, autism rights and inclusive neurodiversity by employing her gifted insights from her personal experience with autism and visual thinking. The film speaks with Dr. Grandin, her colleagues, industry professionals and those she has influenced to celebrate her groundbreaking life, lessons learned and lasting legacy. AN OPEN DOOR is directed by award-winning filmmaker John Barnhardt and presented by Colorado State University.
This event will be at the BRAU PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
2701 30TH ST NE, Willmar, MN 56201.
Enter through the main doors (#36) to the school. The theatre is just inside on the left.
FREE ADMISSION
7:00pm Book signing with Dr. Temple Grandin
8:00pm "An Open Door" screening
Q&A with Dr. Grandin and John Festervand, executive producer
Wednesday, March 4
7:30am Breakfast, Exhibitors
8:30am Keynote Dr. Temple Grandin, Great Minds are Not all The Same
Temple Grandin explores how people think in fundamentally different ways—and why those differences matter in agriculture, business, and problem-solving. She describes three primary types of thinkers: visual or photo thinkers, who excel at seeing details and patterns and often are excellent at livestock husbandry; mathematical or linear thinkers, who thrive on logic, systems, and sequential problem-solving; and verbal thinkers, who process the world through words and language. Understanding these thinking styles helps teams work better together, improves communication, and allows individuals to recognize and build on their own strengths. This session will help participants appreciate cognitive diversity and learn how different kinds of minds contribute to innovation, animal care, and practical decision-making on the farm and beyond.
9:30am Break & Exhibitors
10:00am Breakout Sessions
Jared Luhman
Lessons Learned from 250+ Interviews with Successful Ranchers
Through the Ranching Returns podcast, Jared has had the opportunity to sit down with more than 250 successful ranchers, farmers, and graziers from across the United States—and many from around the world. These conversations span a wide range of operations, environments, and management styles, yet clear patterns consistently emerge. In this session, Jared will share the key trends, common principles, and recurring themes he has observed across these interviews. From mindset and management decisions to grazing strategies and business structure, he’ll highlight what successful operators tend to do differently—and what they avoid. Attendees will leave with practical insights and actionable ideas they can apply within their own operations, regardless of size or location, to improve profitability, resilience, and long-term success.
Jason Cavadini
Intentional Grazing: Enterprise Selection & Budgeting to Fit Your Farm & Life
There are many ways for a grazing operation to generate income, and there is no shortage of successful examples across the land. But not every enterprise makes sense for every farm. The allure and intrigue of "diversification" causes many farms to employ multiple enterprises, which often includes at least one that isnt a good fit for their farm or life. This often happens when farms fail to be intentional about identifying the right enterprises and is perpetuated when farms fail to maintain an enterprise budget. This presentation will emphasize the importance of identifying enterprises that fit for the operation and will walk the audience through the process. The presentation will then lead the audience through the basics of developing an enterprise budget and will conclude with a real-life example of how the enterprise budget can be used to make critical business decisions. The presentation is entry-level finances but is applicable to new farmers and experienced farmers.
Keith Berns
Soil Health Makes Sense - But Does It Make Dollars?
Preventing erosion, breaking compaction, increasing infiltration, increasing nutrient cycling and availability, nitrogen fixation and supplemental grazing are all well documented cover crop benefits. It makes good agronomic sense to use cover crops to address any of these issues, but does it make financial sense to use them? Keith Berns, one of the cover crop pioneers over the past 15 years, will lay out the case and show the research on how cover crops affect the bottom line profitability of a farming operation. Short term and long term benefits will be considered and both direct and indirect financial impacts will be presented. Come find out if cover crops make both dollars and sense!
11:00am Break, Exhibitors
11:30am Breakouts
Jordan Meyer, Scaling Regeneration: Grazing, Genetics, and People
In this session, Jordan shares their journey from starting with zero infrastructure and a handful of animals to building a diversified, regenerative grazing operation. We’ll break down the key phases that made growth possible, from grazing management and soil health to selecting genetics that thrive in low-input systems. The session also explores how adding people—through hired grazers and partnerships—allowed us to scale without burnout or excessive equipment. Attendees will leave with a practical framework they can adapt to grow resilient, profitable regenerative farms of their own.
Todd Churchill, Next-Generation Farm Transition: Governance, Decisions, and Estate Planning
Our farms are our heritage and our legacy. And if, as Joel Salatin suggests, we “create a farm so wonderful our children never want to leave,” then what comes next? Bringing the next generation into the operation requires more than good intentions—it takes new enterprises, new revenue streams, and strong skills in collaboration and decision-making. Join Todd Churchill as he shares stories from his work as a Farm Family Facilitator, helping multi-generational families navigate operating and non-operating owners, governance and decision-making structures, legal ownership transitions, funding new enterprises, retirement, and estate planning.
Troy Salzer, Liver Flukes are Bad, Bad, Bad
12:30pm Lunch & Discussion Tables
1:45pm Breakouts
Caitlin Word
Rooted in Profit: The Business Case for Better Grazing
Caitlin Word of Noble Research Institute makes the case that regeneration and profitability are not opposing forces but rather work synergistically to create whole business resilience. This session connects soil health, grazing management and ranch profitability through a practical, systems-based lens. Learn how regenerative principles translate into real economic outcomes, and connect the dots between better stewardship and better business.
Jason Cavadini
Practical Forage Chains: Annual Forages & Cover Crops That Fit Your Grazing Operation
Cover crops and annual forages provide the perfect opportunity for the synergistic integration of crops and livestock, reducing feed and fertility costs while providing the positive impact of forage crops and livestock grazing on soil health. Grazing of these forages makes sense where farms are already growing them and also have livestock. But what about farms that dont already have livestock? And what about grazing operations with all their acres under perennial forage? Are there opportunities for annual forages and cover crops that make sense? This presentation will go through the process of identifying opportunities for annual forages and cover crops for every farm and will then walk the audience through selecting planting methods, species, planting rates, and grazing goals. An Extension publication was developed for this process in 2025, and this presentation will follow the template of that publication and will demonstrate to the audience how to use the resource.
Josh Gaskamp
Grazing that Promotes Wildlife and Boosts Profitability
This presentation will teach the importance of adopting a grazing mindset over a grazing system; a mindset that is adaptive and focused on outcomes for wildlife and rancher profitability rather than a recipe designed solely to allocate forage to livestock. We will highlight real ranchers that are implementing an adaptive grazing mindset today. We will discuss these ranchers’ results as well as other ecological and economic outcomes of using one of Nature’s most powerful disturbances.
2:45pm Break, Exhibitors
3:00pm Dr. Temple Grandin, The Importance of Good Stockmanship
In this session, Temple Grandin will share key principles of low-stress livestock handling based on decades of research and field experience. Topics will include livestock behavior during handling, facility design that supports natural animal movement, and the importance of good stockmanship in reducing stress. The session will highlight how thoughtful handling and well-designed facilities improve animal welfare, handler safety, and livestock performance.