Page 26 - Farm and Food Policy Strategies for 2040 Series

Seeing U.S. and Brazilian ag production as complementary rather than in competition, Summit
also has 20,000 acres on its two farms in Brazil, with 10,000 acres of cropland rented out and the
other 10,000 under native forest. As well, Summit is more than doubling capacity to 140 million
gallons at its first corn-ethanol plant in Brazil. It also broke ground on its second 140 million-
gallon plant in the South American country last fall, and will launch a third plant this summer.

Rastetter also sees “a place for more organic
production” and other specialty crop operations to
cater to people “in the urban areas on the coasts”
who “want more all-natural, all-organic” and
“want to know where their food was produced,
how it was produced, and how (a food animal) was
cared for.”

At the same time, Rastetter says he believes that
large-scale modern production using GMOs is
sustainable.

Bruce Rastetter, Summit Agricultural Group “If you are going to be in large-scale
production, you have to be a low-cost producer”
and “you’ll have to be a good marketer.” Low-
cost, he adds, “means you’re utilizing the best
technology, proven technology, you’re having
maximum yields, and you’re an innovator at

pushing forward with proven genetics and modern
production technology.”

Rastetter says he’s “made a small investment” in developing driverless tractors, although he’s

always concerned about maintaining profitability. He says he’s sticking with “proven
technology” in Summit’s own operations because “there just isn’t the profitability to try things,
to be a test farm” and because it’s hard to figure out “what technology that we can put to work
that actually delivers lower cost or greater production.”

Rastetter also concludes that to succeed in 2040 and beyond, large-scale producers will need to
“be involved in protein production in one form or another, to help diversify the operation.”

Dan Albert – Returning to his ag roots

After growing up in an upstate New York farming community, Dan Albert had no intention of

pursuing a career in agriculture. He earned a graduate degree in Landscape Architecture and

became interested in the field of sustainable design. Shortly after graduating, he worked on a
project called the Eco-Laboratory which “brought me back to my ag-roots,” Albert says.

In 2011, he and his wife, Lindsay Sidlauskas, started Farmbox Greens - a small farm in a
converted office space which was about 200 square feet. When they bought a house in 2014, they
moved the business into the garage with about 400 square feet of growing room. Equipped with
LED lights, vertically stacked trays and a hydroponic growing system, they started growing
arugula, radishes and other microgreens

24 www.Agri-Pulse.com