Episode 178: Reducing Inputs and Reclaiming Independence with Alex Udermann

Regenerative Agriculture Podcast

AEA Marketing

Earth Sciences, Science, Natural Sciences

4.7 • 546 Ratings

🗓️ 23 April 2026

⏱️ 49 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Alex Udermann is a fifth-generation farmer from Minnesota who operates a dairy farm alongside his brother, parents, and wife. He began his career farming full-time immediately after high school and currently manages a diverse operation that includes milk cows, steers, and row crops. Facing significant financial struggles and equity erosion in 2016, Alex transitioned the farm toward regenerative practices to ensure the operation's future survival and profitability.

Today, the farm is 100% no-till and incorporates cover crops, nutrient management plans, and large-scale composting. Alex uses advanced technology like drones for interseeding and foliar feeding to mimic natural processes he cannot achieve through traditional grazing. Driven by a passion to help others avoid the costly mistakes he encountered, he serves as a mentor for the Minnesota Soil Health Coalition, where he shares his experiences with other producers through field days and educational panels.

In this episode, John and Alex discuss:

The financial challenges and equity erosion that forced the farm to change its management style
Alex's experiences dealing with unsupportive banks and traditional agronomy managers during his transition
How the farm successfully moved to no-till soybeans using a small investment in existing equipment
The dramatic reduction in veterinary expenses and improvements in livestock health following soil health changes
Observing massive improvements in water infiltration compared to neighboring conventional fields after heavy rains
The use of drones and compost extracts to increase fungal levels and biological diversity in the soil

Additional Resources
To learn more about Alex and his farm, please visit: https://www.facebook.com/al.and.krissy/

To learn more about the work of the Minnesota Soil Health Coalition, please visit: https://www.mnsoilhealth.org/

About John Kempf
John Kempf is the founder of Advancing Eco Agriculture (AEA). A top expert in biological and regenerative farming, John founded AEA in 2006 to help fellow farmers by providing the education, tools, and strategies that will have a global effect on the food supply and those who grow it.

Through intense study and the knowledge gleaned from many industry leaders, John is building a comprehensive systems-based approach to plant nutrition – a system solidly based on the sciences of plant physiology, mineral nutrition, and soil microbiology.

Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
Since 2006, AEA has been on a mission to help growers become more resilient, efficient, and profitable with regenerative agriculture.

AEA works directly with growers to apply its unique line of liquid mineral crop nutrition products and biological inoculants. Informed by cutting-edge plant and soil data-gathering techniques, AEA's science-based programs empower farm operations to meet the crop quality markers that matter the most.

AEA has created real and lasting change on millions of acres with its products and data-driven services by working hand-in-hand with growers to produce healthier soil, stronger crops, and higher profits.

Beyond working on the ground with growers, AEA leads in regenerative agriculture media and education, producing and distributing the popular and highly-regarded Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, inspiring webinars, and other educational content that serve as go-to resources for growers worldwide.

Learn more about AEA's regenerative programs and products: https://www.advancingecoag.com

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, friends. This is John. Welcome back to the regenerative agriculture podcast where we have all kinds of fun
0:05.4	conversations related to regenerating our soils, regenerating our public health, livestock health, and regenerating farm profitability.
0:13.6	There's lots of room for improvement in all of those areas. The profitability piece is often the pain point that's catching most attention nowadays, but it's just an expression of everything that comes before that.
0:23.8	I'm honored to be here today with Alex Uderman.
0:26.1	You can share your story and background much better than I can, but one of the things
0:32.0	that is intriguing, there are many growers who are on this pathway of regeneration who are building on 20 or 30 or 40 years of experience.
0:43.8	And you are starting off from a much younger, fresher perspective.
0:47.5	So I'd love for you to tell us about your farm's history, the context, the scope of the things that you're working on today, and where you started from?
0:54.6	Yeah, so a little story about our farm is on fifth generation.
0:59.3	I farm full-time, graduated high school, started farming after high school, skipped out on
1:04.1	college, just knew at a very young age that farming was something I really wanted to do and
1:08.8	kind of just dove into farming head first.
1:11.8	And I said I grew up farming my whole life here, far with my brother Jake and my wife,
1:16.4	Kirsten, and my parents, John and Mary Lou. We're in a dairy operation. We feed out our steers,
1:23.8	roll crop. We also do some custom work. We do custom interhalling, liquid and solid. And then we've also
1:29.5	gotten to the custom no-till planning and cover crop seating. We just added a drone to our farm.
1:37.5	We're also a revolution drone dealer. And I've also became a mentor and a contractor to the Minnesota Soil Health Coalition.
1:46.7	I guess I just have a strong passion, I guess, for regenerative farming or conservation
1:50.8	or just helping heal the planet or doing the right thing farming.
1:54.8	It sounds to me like you need a thing or two more to get done.
1:59.3	I got kids, so that fills the rest of the bucket up.
2:05.2	Yeah, we got four kids.
	...

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