Welcome to the final episode of Greener Pastures, a Midstory podcast on the future of farming in the Midwest. In this episode, we’re talking about eggs and the chickens that lay them, and how they have become one of the most resilient commodities within the agricultural industry. Profits and productivity are climbing even as other sectors struggle to stay afloat. How does the poultry industry stay winning, and how does it affect what the future farms and farmers of America will look like?

Welcome to episode five of Greener Pastures, a Midstory podcast on the future of farming in the Midwest. In this episode, dive into Michigan’s fishery, an industry that put the state on the map, but has since begun to flounder. In response to rampant overfishing in the mid-20th century, the state’s Department of Natural Resources limited what commercial fishing operations could catch, and gave more freedom to recreational fishers to access and steward the resource. Today, only a handful of licensed fishing businesses remain in operation. What exactly are they up against, and is there a future for commercial catch in the Great Lakes State?

Welcome to episode four of Greener Pastures, a Midstory podcast on the future of farming in the Midwest. In this episode, we pay a visit to the Stateler farm to see what life and business looks like at a CAFO. Anthony Stateler believes that large-scale animal farms like his have been unfairly blamed for the water quality issues that have afflicted Lake Erie for the last decade. What he wants is for farmers to focus on growing their storytelling capabilities, because he feels they have nothing to hide — and everything to gain.