The Soybean Pod

25X’25 Pursues Renewable Fuels Goals Yet to Reach by SD Soybean

Soybean demand rises and falls with export prospects and domestic uses. On this edition of The Soybean Pod, South Dakota soybean growers talk about what is driving demand and where they think demand is headed. Those growers also talked about how the Soybean Checkoff contributes to demand for the crop domestically and overseas. These conversations with farmer/leaders Bruce Haines, Drew Peterson and Blake Foxley happened before the late-2025 trade framework agreed upon with China. They made their comments at Dakotafest, near the High Plains soybean processing plant at about the time of its long-anticipated opening, which is expected to make a positive contribution to domestic crush numbers and soybean demand.

Cole Sonne is the fourth generation on his family’s Mount Vernon, South Dakota farm. Cole’s days are spent alongside his father raising corn, soybeans and Black Angus cattle, but there’s more. “We also have a YouTube channel called Sonne Farms,” said Sonne, “which I believe is the biggest YouTube channel in South Dakota.” It’s big to the tune of tens of thousands of viewers per episode, seen all over the United States as well as in other countries. We caught up with Sonne just before he spoke at the 2025 AgOutlook Conference and Trade Show in Sioux Falls this past December. At the conference he talked about the importance of the next generation getting a solid foothold on the farm, which you’ll hear about on this edition of The Soybean Pod. But you’ll also hear about the Sonne Farms YouTube channel, hugely popular among farmers and others.

Tanner Hento’s name is becoming more familiar, especially among soybean farmers in South Dakota. But now that familiarity is growing on a wider scope. The 36-year-old Avon, South Dakota producer was one of four winners of the National Outstanding Young Farmer award for 2026. Hento accepted the award during a ceremony in Hershey, Pennsylvania, 11 days after being elected president of the South Dakota Soybean Association. I happened to be master of ceremonies of the NOYF awards program on a cold February 7th in Hershey. I interviewed Tanner right after the evening’s festivities concluded. That conversation is this edition of The Soybean Pod.

A fermentation process in Volga, South Dakota, is amping up the nutritional specs on soybean meal. Years ago, Dr. William Gibbons and Dr. Mike Brown, both professors at South Dakota State University, developed a method of bio-transformation resulting in a high-protein feed for aquaculture. Expansion into feeds for swine, poultry and pets led to a name change. Dustin Gibbons, the son of the company’s co-founder, is general manager of what is now Houdek. In this edition of The Soybean Pod, the younger Gibbons explains how this feed improves aquaculture, livestock and pet diets while building demand for soybean meal.

The guard is changing in more ways than one. Kevin Scott is the new assistant executive director for the South Dakota Soybean Association and the South Dakota Soybean Research and Promotion Council. Scott, a farmer from Valley Springs, South Dakota, was brought aboard in anticipation of the retirement later this year of current executive director Jerry Schmitz. Kevin Scott’s leadership experience runs deep. In this edition of The Soybean Pod, he talks about preparing for the position during the last quarter-century without even knowing it. He also brings up life-change opportunities presented by having accepted this position.

It is increasingly difficult to successfully pass a farm to the next generation. South Dakota State University Extension is addressing what it takes to navigate this succession with a series of Sustaining the Legacy conferences on what it takes to plan for passing the farm down. From estate planning to retirement to long-term care, on this edition of The Soybean Pod, we talk to Heather Gessner, South Dakota State University Extension’s interim Agriculture and Natural Resources program director and SDSU’s Livestock Business Management Field Specialist. Gessner discusses farmers’ need to plan for when they’re no longer in charge of that next crop. Planning on that passage can seem daunting, and it often requires help from professionals.

A late-October 2025 agreement between President Trump and Chinese President Xi was that China would resume importing soybeans from the U.S. after they suspended U.S. soybean buys this past spring. Two-and-a-half weeks after the announced agreement, agricultural cooperative Wheaton Dumont Coop, which serves farmers in South Dakota, North Dakota and Minnesota, said it would move at least four unit trains of soybeans destined for China, Mexico and St. Louis in late December and early January. In this edition of the Soybean Pod, Mount Vernon farmer and South Dakota Soybean Association President Kevin Deinert reacts with “a sigh of relief” to the original long-awaited deal between the two trade superpowers.

Soybean farmers are struggling without China among the list of U.S. export customers. To maintain soybean demand, growers are heavily dependent on exports, particularly exports to China. The world’s largest soybean importer has backed away from buying U.S. soybeans, which is hurting farmers’ bottom line. On this edition of The Soybean Pod, from South Dakota soybean farmers and their checkoff, Tregg Cronin, a farmer and market analyst from Gettysburg, South Dakota, says there are no easy answers, and there is no quick resolution on the horizon.

There’s been a lot of noise about seed oils, including soybean oil. Some of it, specifically from U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Junior is critical, blaming the oils for inflammation and chronic diseases like type II diabetes and obesity. Dr. Mark Messina could not disagree more. On this edition of The Soybean Pod, Dr. Messina, director of nutrition science and research at Soy Nutrition Institute Global, cites evidence of a much different story.

A bio-adjuvant being developed with support from the South Dakota Soybean Checkoff at Dakota BioWorx in Brookings, South Dakota, will enhance the efficacy of crop protection sprays while yielding a dry material that shows promise in treating white mold and other crop ailments. “The beautiful thing about it is this is derived from soybean,” says Dr. Matthew Cole, founder and CEO of Pioneer Biotech. “We’re fermenting bio-adjuvants from soybean.”

Dakota BioWorx is housed in the new POET Bioproducts Center at the South Dakota State University Research Park. The firm is home to a bunch of bioprocessing labs, bioreactors and processing facilities that help scale up bioproduct ideas that are getting closer to commercial launch and success. In this edition of the Soybean Pod from South Dakota soybean farmers and their checkoff, we’ll talk to Dakota BioWorx CEO Neal Connors about what goes on at The Soybean Checkoff-supported pilot facility.

Research and experience point to the conclusion that reducing tillage is a good farm production practice. On this edition of The Soybean Pod from South Dakota soybean farmers and their checkoff, our guest is Peter Kovacs, an associate professor in the Department of Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science at South Dakota State University. Kovacs talks about Soybean Checkoff-supported research on reduced tillage, and how it conserves soil, water, time, energy and money. Kovacs also tells the story of what brought him to South Dakota from his native Hungary.

Zach Smith went from an upbringing in the shadow of Disney World to doing soybean feeding trials on South Dakota beef cattle. On this edition of The Soybean Pod from South Dakota soybean farmers and their checkoff, we’ll talk to the central Florida native about that checkoff-supported research being conducted at South Dakota State University. With a calculator at the ready, Smith, an associate professor in animal science, lays out what’s possible, and how feeding soybeans to cattle might eventually pencil out.

Biobased diesel fuels – many of them sourced from soybeans – are breaking records. Numbers associated with these liquid fuels are impressive and continue to rise. On this edition of The Soybean Pod from South Dakota soybean farmers and their checkoff, Kate Shenk, director of regulatory affairs for Clean Fuels Alliance America, talks about those numbers and what they mean for soybean farmers and rural communities.

The soybean market is hurting compared to its high-water mark. The robust markets soybean growers enjoyed in 2012 and 2022 seem a distant memory. In this edition of The Soybean Pod from South Dakota soybean growers and their checkoff, agriculture economist Ben Brown at the Food and Agricultural Policy Institute offers insights into why the markets are soft, as well as where they might go and how to navigate them.

A South Dakota State University study indicates the adoption of conservation practices like reduced or no-tillage contributes to yield increases and improvements in soil health. In this edition of The Soybean Pod from South Dakota soybean farmers and their checkoff, Dr. David Clay, Distinguished Professor of soil science at SDSU, explains how that has happened and how conservation farming can improve productivity.

During the spring of 2025, South Dakota farmers experienced and endured all manner of weather through the planting and early growing seasons. On this edition of the Soybean Pod, American Soybean Association Corteva Young Leader Program alumnus and current SDSA board member Jeff Kloucek talks about his satisfaction with the season in the short time since planting and about his approach to crop consulting, his “main job.” Kloucek also reveals his secret desire to satisfy appetites with the best smoked pulled pork possible.

It’s difficult to get groups to agree, but AgUnited for South Dakota has successfully brought several commodity and farm advocacy organizations together in agreement. Don Norton, a former CEO of South Dakota Agriculture and Rural Leadership, is its executive director. On this edition of the Soybean Pod, Norton explains how an organization becomes more than the sum of its parts by speaking with a unified voice on those issues where the groups – seven of them – share common ground.

It’s a tall order to guess which weeds will cause problems in any given year, but the guest on this edition of The Soybean Pod dives in. Weed Management Specialist Eric Jones at South Dakota State University hedges his bets, however, pointing out that weed seeds from wet and dry years are viable. He also discusses the ongoing threat of weeds developing resistance. It’s making managing weeds more difficult with each passing year. One after another, weeds are becoming resistant to management chemistry, leaving very few effective herbicides.

A Salem, South Dakota farmer was honored by the American Soybean Association for his attention to conservation in his farming operation. Kurt Stiefvater was one of four regional honorees for The Conservation Legacy Award program and was recognized at the 2025 Commodity Classic in Denver. On this edition of the Soybean Pod, Kurt talks about what his conservation practices are and why he incorporates them into his farming operation. He also reveals what farming methods are the least stressful.

One of the more daunting financial threats to the family farm, according to attorney Jayna Voss at Legacy Law Firm, is long-term nursing care, especially when that care is unplanned. It’s expensive emotionally and financially. But if farmers and their families plan, says Voss, on this edition of The Soybean Pod, there’s a much greater chance that these and other burdens can be withstood with the family farm intact.

It’s an interesting path that led Indiana native Damian Mason to his current gig as an independent agriculture commentator and analyst. The public speaker keynoted South Dakota AgOutlook and spent some time after that giving his opinions on the current state of affairs for farmers and what he sees as their future. It was an insurance settlement for an unfortunate amputation involving Damian’s father that helped fund the purchase of his family’s dairy farm. That farm was Mason’s beginning in agriculture.

2025 brought a lot of change to the federal policy landscape. Those changes have meant economic uncertainty for farmers. Among the speakers and experts that the South Dakota Soybean Association invited to present at the 2024 AgOutlook Conference and Tradeshow last December was Matt Erickson, the Ag Economic and Policy Advisor for Farm Credit Services of America. On this edition of the Soybean Pod featuring Erickson, we address economic uncertainty and what might be expected on the agriculture horizon.

Varying skills and backgrounds bring a diverse array of perspectives to the South Dakota Soybean Association (SDSA) board. Director Dan Nigg of Sisseton, South Dakota, is active on the SDSA board as well as on the board of his local cooperative elevator. That provides insights into what it takes to ship millions of bushels of soybeans from South Dakota to Pacific Northwest ports from which they’re exported to China and Southeast Asia. On this edition of the Soybean Pod, Nigg talks about what being on the SDSA board has taught him, and what he can share with other soybean growers about his knowledge of railroad logistics.

Ross Tschetter is not afraid to put himself out there. He likes people, resulting in his involvement in more than one program that promotes self-improvement and leadership skills. He puts those skills to use in his community, as part of a local USDA committee and among soybean growers. In this edition of the Soybean Pod, we talk to Tschetter about what motivates him, about his farm, and about his take on soybean demand and dealing with a soft soybean market.

Northern Soy Marketing exists because of the history of soybean export purchases based on crude protein content. Soybeans grown at the latitude of South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin don’t have the oil and protein concentration of soybeans produced in more southerly climates. On this edition of the Soybean Pod, we’ll talk to Mike McCranie of Claremont, South Dakota, a member of the Northern Soy Marketing board, about research that shows northern-grown soybeans to have unique attributes making the meal from these soybeans attractive as livestock feed.

Researchers at South Dakota State University (SDSU) have been working to improve nitrogen-fixing capabilities in soybeans. The hoped-for outcome, according to Sen Subramanian, plant scientist and agronomy professor at SDSU, is an increase in soybean yields while at the same time preserving soil health. On this edition of the Soybean Pod, we talk to Subramanian about his hypothesis that natural biological nitrogen fixation can meet the soybean plant's nutrient needs later in the growth cycle. This would ensure high yields without applying synthetic fertilizers.

Todd Hanten will miss getting first-hand information on how Soybean Checkoff dollars are being invested. The farmer from Goodwin, South Dakota, not far from Watertown, retired from the checkoff board after three terms, nine years, as a director. He’s proud of what he, along with fellow board members, accomplished. On this edition of The Soybean Pod, among other subjects, we talk with Todd about his favorite part of serving on the checkoff board, as well as how he got into farming.

Drew Peterson focuses on the positive: “I’m so blessed,” is what comes to the Salem farmer’s mind when he talks about his son Michael, who just turned a year old, the first quarter of which was spent in a neonatal intensive care unit after entering the world earlier than expected. Among other things, Peterson is also grateful for the opportunity to have been in the Corteva Agriscience Young Leader Program, which opened the door to being a South Dakota Soybean leader and a South Dakota lawmaker. On this edition of The Soybean Pod, Drew talks about the lasting benefits of that leadership training, his dream for Michael’s future, and how that shapes the future of the Peterson farm. That decision will be Michael’s and future siblings’, says Drew, adding, “I want to be [the kind of] farmer with my wife and my dad, that [Michael] thinks that looks like a pretty cool deal.”

Soybean oil-based fuels have been a huge demand builder for the commodity. Biodiesel and renewable diesel have depended on soybean oil as a primary feedstock. Now, add to that sustainable aviation fuel, and while it’s no panacea, it will eventually mean even greater demand for soybean oil. In this edition of The Soybean Pod, Tom Verry, outreach and development director for Clean Fuels Alliance America, talks about what might be expected for future growth in soybean oil demand from sustainable aviation fuel and also from renewable diesel and biodiesel.

A couple of South Dakota soybean growers who double as volunteer firefighters have seen demonstrations of a fire suppressant that comes minus the health risks of suppressants that have been in use. They’ve been featured in prior editions of The Soybean Pod. SoyFoam is made from soy flour by a company in Georgia. Cross Plains Solutions CEO Alan Snipes shares some insights as to how SoyFoam became a reality and how a third-party certifying agency proclaimed SoyFoam to be the real “green” deal.

Soybean meal has a history with beef cattle. And with more soybean crush capacity coming online, it’s not a stretch to see soybean meal coming back to the feedlot. South Dakota State University (SDSU) is paying attention to soybean meal, examining its potential as a viable feedlot ration. SDSU assistant professor and Extension beef feedlot specialist Warren Rusche has taken a close look at soybean meal for beef feedlots with positive results. That’s good for cattle feeders and it’s good for soybean growers wondering what will become of all the soybean meal resulting from greater soybean oil-based fuel production.

There is a list of attributes that apply to one of the 2024 South Dakota Soybean Checkoff board retirees. She’s in demand for her advice, leadership, and instruction. As a farmer, Heather Beaner refers to herself as a “unicorn,” being the daughter who took over her father’s farm. That came after earning a law degree and after two decades of service as a judge advocate general in the U.S. Air Force. Beaner retired from the Air Force at an impressive rank that comes in handy for leaders. Agriculture is better because of it.

What’s in a name? For Prairie Aquatech, it’s plenty. The firm was founded in Brookings by two South Dakota State University professors who discovered a way to amp up protein in soybean meal-based fish food through a fermenting process. Fast forward a few years, and Prairie Aquatech has hit Fast Forward to include pet foods and swine rations. So now the company is known as Houdek, a nod to Eastern South Dakota’s native soil type, with a test bed “Back Forty” in Brookings, South Dakota, and a processing plant seven miles down the road in the compact town of Volga, South Dakota.

Four undergraduate students from South Dakota State University competed in Nairobi, Kenya, for the Hult Prize, which was considered by many to be the Nobel Prize among college students. The four and an SDSU professor developed a method to turn soybean hulls, which have little value, into biodegradable plastic bags. The idea fits nicely into the Hult Prize goal of solving global issues through social entrepreneurship. Unfortunately, the SDSU team did not advance to the final round in London, where the $1 million prize is to be awarded, but in this edition of the Soybean Pod, the high-achieving SDSU team members have a story that soybean farmers should hear.

The Soy Transportation Coalition (STC) is partnering with trucking companies to keep rigs rolling sustainably. The organization is providing free samples of soy-based Gear Head Fifth Wheel Lubricant Pads. “Soybean oil is one of the most effective ways of displacing petroleum-based products,” said Mike Steenhoek, executive director of the coalition, in this edition of the Soybean Pod. Indeed, the 3-inch-by-3-inch pads (picture a square hockey puck), are listed on USDA’s BioPreferred product program. The pads are easy to use, clean, affordable and come with the added benefit of a marketing assist for soybean farmers, according to Steenhoek. While probably not a home run for soybean demand, such as exports to China, for instance, the pads are among the “base hits” that Steenhoek says are necessary for success.

A farmer from Clear Lake, South Dakota, has become well-known through his personal outreach. Adam Krause, the president of the South Dakota Pork Producers Council, is an influencer on various social media platforms that he uses to shine a light on what it takes to raise pigs. For this edition of the Soybean Pod, we took our microphones to the Krause farm, where we talked to Adam about how and why he demystified pork, corn, and soybean production. We also discuss his efforts to reach the public through his own social media cooking show.

There’s another use for soybean oil that’s proving to be sustainable from more than one perspective. A product called Roof Maxx is made from a non-toxic soybean oil base with the purpose of extending the life of asphalt shingle roofs. USDA Bio Preferred, Roof Maxx is sustainable because of its ingredients and because it can result in an additional 15 years in the life of asphalt shingles. As Roof Maxx representative AJ Nelson of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, points out in this edition of The Soybean Pod, 15 years of extended roof life lengthens the time between hauling spent shingles to the landfill.

Mitchell farmer Bruce Haines is amazed at what he witnesses every day on the horizon. “I see something that is the most exciting thing I’ve ever seen in my lifetime,” said Haines, excited about progress toward completion of South Dakota’s latest soybean crush facility. The structure represents what Haines says is an opportunity to build soybean demand. Haines decided against following his grandfather and father into veterinary medicine, venturing instead into ownership of McDonald’s restaurants. His first love, however, is turning soil every spring. “Is this Heaven?” he asks. “No, it’s just a farm field in South Dakota.”

“We absolutely need aquaculture in the world.” A South Dakota company important to soybean demand was born to serve the aquaculture market. That company – Prairie Aquatech – expanded its mission to include pet food and is now Houdek. John Mollison, who does communications for the company, explains in this edition of The Soybean Pod why the company is now known by the name of eastern South Dakota’s native soil and why aquaculture is so important to the protein needs of Earth’s growing population. We also get personal with a dive into the beginnings of my and Mollison’s decades-old friendship, which began in a recording studio promoting pizza.

There are no counties in eastern South Dakota that are untouched by soybean cyst nematode, a pest that’s become well-known for reducing soybean yields wherever there is an infestation. Dr. Madalyn Shires, a plant pathologist at South Dakota State University talks on this episode of The Soybean Pod about making that important determination of whether, and to what degree, a field is infested. Dr. Shires talks about when and how to test, and that the South Dakota Soybean Research and Promotion Council foots the bill for testing.

In his young life, Tregg Cronin has seen plenty of change to the supply and demand landscape and has developed a keen insight and perspective about commodity markets and direction in the global farm economy. Cronin, who farms in Gettysburg, South Dakota, has a history in market analysis that gets attention all over the country. He’s in demand to share his thoughts about where markets are headed and what’s pushing them. He offers as much in this edition of The Soybean Pod.

One of the newest members of the South Dakota Soybean Association Board of Directors is an Edmunds County farmer who also happens to be the assistant chief of the Roscoe, South Dakota Volunteer Fire Department. In this episode of The South Dakota Soybean Pod we hear from Andy Weisser how he began farming and how he became a South Dakota Soybean Association board member. Andy also talks about how his interest in fighting fires resulted in a trip to Georgia to visit a plant that makes a fire suppressant out of soybeans.

The South Dakota Soybean Yield Contest is much more than a friendly competition for yield bragging rights. The contestants are, after all, South Dakotans, so there’s not much outward bragging even for those with the best yields. The real value of the annual contest is in the data collected each year that, with expert analysis, helps improve yields in following years, according to Cheryl Reese, a senior lecturer at South Dakota State University who teaches soybean production. In this edition of The Soybean Pod, we’ll hear from Ms. Reese what agronomic traits most contribute to improvements in yield.

As much as there is a strategy for building soybean demand domestically and globally, there is a strategy for filling that demand. We live in a hungry world, a world also in need of environmentally friendly, sustainable products, which take a huge supply of soybeans. In this episode of The Soybean Pod, United Soybean Board Supply Action Team Chair Matt Gast, from southeastern North Dakota, gives a clearer picture of the United Soybean Board’s plan for maintaining soybean supply.

U.S.-grown soybeans provide the world with a huge amount of essential protein, from feed for livestock and aquaculture to directly feeding people. The United Soybean Board’s mission is to maintain global demand for soy nutrition as well as demand for sustainable, environmentally friendly industrial products from lubricants to ink to tires to artificial turf and more. In this episode of The Soybean Pod, April Hemmes, United Soybean Board Demand Action Team Chair, talks about USB’s strategy for maintaining high demand for U.S.-grown soybeans.

“What we’ve got here is failure to communicate.” The line worked in the movie Cool Hand Luke, but a failure to communicate is what South Dakota soybean growers were trying to avoid a decade ago when a handful of farmers at the core of South Dakota Soybean created Hungry for Truth. That initiative is aimed at reasoned conversation between farmers and people who aren’t farmers. Successful communication is a key part of the South Dakota Soybean Checkoff mission, and in this episode of The Soybean Pod, John Horter talks about how Hungry for Truth completes the connection between food, the people who produce it and everyone who enjoys healthy eating.

Soybean growers provide checkoff support for promoting U.S. poultry and egg exports. It makes sense since poultry accounts for more than half the disappearance of U.S.-produced soybean meal. Another way to look at this: What’s good for the export of U.S. poultry and eggs is good for U.S. soybean growers. In this episode of The Soybean Pod, Mike McCranie, South Dakota Soybean’s representative on the USA Poultry and Egg Export Council, puts into clearer focus the importance of soybean checkoff investment in foreign promotion of U.S. poultry and eggs.

A short course is being offered periodically to potential foreign soybean buyers. The Introduction to Soybean Course, shortened to INTSOY, provides an overview of many aspects of the soybean industry. It explores new ideas for soy-based foods and snack foods, soy as a supplement to fortify foods, soy as animal nutrition, and an overview of soy production in the U.S. Those who attend the week-long course learn from industry professionals about the potential uses of soy in food products, beverages, feeds and more. They also participate in the hands-on processing of soy foods and feeds. Our guest on this episode of The Soybean Pod is Brian Sorenson, the program manager at the Fargo, North Dakota-based Northern Crops Institute, where the course is taught.