AGPROfessionals

09/05/2026

🍕🧀 Happy National Cheese Pizza Day!

It may look simple, crust + sauce + cheese, but a cheese pizza is basically an agriculture lesson served by the slice. 🌾🍅🐄

Take a closer look 👇

🌾 THE CRUST: Wheat is milled into flour to create the foundation of the pizza.

🍅 THE SAUCE: Tomatoes are an important U.S. specialty crop, and California is the powerhouse of processing tomato production.

🧀 THE CHEESE: Mozzarella starts with milk, connecting your pizza directly to dairy farmers and their cows. 🐄🥛

🌿 THE SEASONINGS: Basil, oregano, garlic, onions, peppers, and other herbs and vegetables add even more agriculture to the recipe.

🫒 THE OIL: Olive oil is another agricultural product commonly used in pizza dough, sauce, or as a finishing touch.

And then comes value-added agriculture. 💰🌱

🌾 Wheat ➡️ Flour ➡️ Dough
🐄 Milk ➡️ Cheese ➡️ Mozzarella
🍅 Tomatoes ➡️ Sauce
🌱 Crops + livestock ➡️ 🍕 PIZZA!

Growing, harvesting, milling, processing, cheesemaking, transportation, restaurants, grocery stores, and food service all add value along the way.

So that "simple" cheese pizza?

There's an entire agricultural supply chain underneath all that melted mozzarella. 🐄🌾🍅🧀

Now for the important question...

🍕 Thin crust
🍕 Hand tossed
🍕 Deep dish
🍕 Stuffed crust

What's your pick?

09/05/2026

🚨 $1.07 BILLION annually — and animal agriculture needs to pay attention to what is happening behind that number.

According to updated research from the Animal Agriculture Alliance, the animal-rights organizations highlighted in its network collectively generate more than $1.07 billion in annual revenue, while coordinated activity increasingly focuses on legislation, retailers, restaurants and livestock-production practices.

But activism doesn't always stop with campaigns and lobbying.

The Alliance's 2025 Radical Vegan Activism report documented:

🚨 41 incidents of vandalism
🐄 36 cases of animal theft and/or release
🚫 23 trespassing incidents

And nearly one in four animal-rights extremist attacks reportedly targeted farmers and food workers.

Think about what unauthorized entry into a livestock facility can mean.

Biosecurity protocols exist for a reason. They help protect animals and agricultural operations from the introduction and spread of disease. Trespassing, disrupting operations or removing animals can compromise those protocols and create risks extending beyond the individuals involved.

That's not simply expressing an opinion about food.

There is room in the marketplace for personal choice. But personal choice and imposing those beliefs on others are two very different things.

🤔 So when does advocating for your own beliefs cross the line into trying to dictate someone else's?

Farmers and ranchers shouldn't have to defend their right to responsibly raise livestock against people willing to trespass, steal animals or disrupt production to advance an ideology.

🐄 Support animal welfare.

🥩 Support consumer choice.

🌾 And understand the difference between advocating for your beliefs and forcing those beliefs onto the people producing — and consuming — our food.

Knowledge is one of agriculture's best defenses. That's why the Animal Agriculture Alliance remains an important resource for understanding the organizations, funding and tactics directed at animal agriculture.

🔗 Read the full AgDaily article:
https://www.agdaily.com/livestock/animal-rights-groups-bring-in-more-than-1-billion-annually/

09/04/2026

🍷🇮🇹 Happy National Chianti Day!

Before there is a bottle of Chianti on the table, there are vineyards, growers, soil, sunshine, rainfall, harvest crews, and a grape with centuries of history behind it. 🍇🌱

Fun Facts 👇

🍇 Sangiovese is the star. Chianti wines must be built around Sangiovese, the red grape variety that defines much of Tuscany's wine identity.

🇮🇹 Chianti is a PLACE, not simply a type of wine. Authentic Chianti comes from a legally defined production area in Tuscany, Italy.

🏰 Chianti has serious history. In 1716, Grand Duke Cosimo III de' Medici formally defined boundaries for Chianti and several other Tuscan wine-producing areas, making this one of the world's historic examples of geographically defined wine production.

🌱 Soil makes a difference. Tuscany's Chianti vineyards include soils rich in limestone and clay, along with famous local soil types such as galestro, a crumbly shale-like soil, and alberese, a hard limestone-based soil.

⛰️ Elevation matters. Many vineyards grow across Tuscany's rolling hills, where elevation, slope, sun exposure, drainage, and differences between daytime and nighttime temperatures can influence grape development.

☀️ Sangiovese likes a long growing season. The variety buds relatively early and ripens later, giving growers plenty to manage between spring growth and fall harvest.

🍷 And then agriculture becomes value-added agriculture.

🍇 Grapes
➡️ Crushing
➡️ Fermentation
➡️ Aging
➡️ Bottling
➡️ Distribution
➡️ Restaurants
➡️ Tourism

One crop can generate economic activity far beyond the vineyard.

And yes, Chianti is a natural partner for food. 🍝🍕🧀

Its acidity makes it especially versatile with tomato-based pasta, pizza, aged cheeses, roasted meats, and other hearty dishes.

Today we're raising a glass to the farmers and vineyard workers behind one of Italy's most famous agricultural products. 🍇👨‍🌾🍷

09/04/2026

🥜🌴 Happy National Macadamia Nut Day!

They may be small, buttery, and delicious, but macadamia nuts come from a tree crop that takes patience, pollination, the right climate, and years of orchard management. 🌱👨‍🌾

Fun Facts 👇

🇦🇺 Macadamias are native to Australia. Indigenous Australians valued the nuts long before they became a commercial crop.

🌺 Hawaii helped make them famous. Macadamia trees were introduced to Hawaii in the 1800s, and the islands became closely associated with commercial macadamia production in the United States.

🌴 They like tropical and subtropical conditions. Warm temperatures, adequate moisture, good drainage, and protection from severe frost help macadamia trees thrive.

🌋 Hawaii's volcanic soils can provide excellent growing conditions, although orchard management, elevation, rainfall, and drainage all influence production.

🐝 Pollinators matter! Macadamia flowers can benefit from insect pollination, making bees valuable partners in the orchard.

⏳ Growing macadamias takes patience. Trees may take several years before producing meaningful crops and considerably longer to reach full production.

🔨 That shell is SERIOUS. Macadamias have one of the hardest shells among commonly eaten nuts. Specialized equipment is generally used to crack them commercially.

💚 Macadamias are especially known for their high proportion of monounsaturated fats.

And they're a great example of value-added agriculture. One orchard crop can become:

🥜 Roasted nuts
🍫 Chocolate-covered macadamias
🍪 Cookies
🧈 Macadamia nut butter
🥛 Plant-based beverages
🧴 Oils and specialty products
🎁 Tourism and gift products

From orchard to processing to retail, there's a lot of agriculture behind that little nut.

How do you like your macadamias: plain, roasted, in cookies, or covered in chocolate? 😋👇

09/04/2026

🥩 $150 million facility.
🏭 200,000 square feet.
💰 Approximately $390 million raised.
📋 USDA approval.
📈 Planned capacity of up to 26 million pounds annually.

And today? The facility remains vacant.

Believer Meats' state-of-the-art Wilson County, North Carolina, facility received USDA approval to manufacture cultivated chicken products in November 2025. Just one month later, the company ceased operations.

Now another chapter has unfolded.

UPSIDE Foods submitted a $50 million bid for the $150 million facility earlier this year but has since withdrawn it. According to a court filing cited in the report, no qualifying bids were received by the final deadline.

Believer's financial history adds perspective. The company reportedly raised approximately $390 million after its 2018 founding. Bankruptcy filings later showed its U.S. subsidiary owed $213 million.

There has been significant investment, attention and debate surrounding cultivated meat as an alternative to conventional animal agriculture.

But ultimately, new food technologies face the same questions as every other business:

Can they produce at scale?
Can they compete economically?
And most importantly — do consumers want what they're producing?

Consumers should have choices. The marketplace has a way of telling us which choices they actually make. 🥩

AGPROfessionals is sharing this industry information based on reporting by Peter Thomas Ricci for MeatingPlace.

🔗 Read the entire article:
https://www.agpros.com/articles-and-information/150m-cultivated-facility-remains-vacant-after-believer-meats-collapse

09/03/2026

🍇 Happy National Cabernet Sauvignon Day! 🍷

Before Cabernet Sauvignon becomes one of the most recognizable red wines in the world, it starts as an agricultural crop shaped by soil, sunshine, water, weather, and the decisions of grape growers.

And Cabernet has quite the family tree!

🧬 Cabernet Sauvignon is the offspring of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc. UC Davis researchers used DNA fingerprinting to confirm the parentage in 1997. The cross is believed to have occurred naturally in France's Bordeaux region centuries ago.

More Cabernet fun facts 👇

🍇 It's a centuries-old crop. Cabernet Sauvignon dates to roughly the 17th century, yet today's vines are propagated primarily through cuttings, preserving the variety from generation to generation.

🇺🇸 California is Cabernet country. Napa Valley may be its most famous American home, but Cabernet Sauvignon is grown throughout California and in wine regions across the country.

🌄 Washington is another Cabernet powerhouse. Cabernet Sauvignon was Washington's largest wine-grape variety by production in 2024, accounting for 40,589 tons, or 27% of the state's wine-grape harvest.

🌱 Soil matters. Cabernet can grow vigorously on deep, fertile soils, while shallower hillside soils can naturally restrict yields. Good drainage is particularly important because the variety doesn't perform well in poorly drained soils.

☀️ Weather shapes the wine. Cabernet is relatively late-ripening. Conditions that are too cool can prevent full ripening and encourage more herbaceous characteristics, while excessive heat can also affect its classic varietal character.

🍷 Talk about value-added agriculture! Grapes grown in the vineyard can move through harvesting, crushing, fermentation, aging, bottling, distribution, tourism, hospitality, and retail before reaching the consumer.

One agricultural crop can support an entire chain of businesses and rural jobs.

So today, raise a glass to the grape growers, vineyard crews, agricultural professionals, winemakers, and everyone else behind the bottle. 🍇🚜🍷

What's your favorite U.S. Cabernet-growing region?

09/03/2026

🐄 What does a $6.4 BILLION industry look like?

It looks a lot like Northern Colorado.

Colorado agriculture generated approximately $9.22 billion in sales in 2022 — and nearly $6.4 billion came from livestock, poultry and livestock products.

Now consider this:

📍 Weld County alone generated nearly $2.4 BILLION in agricultural sales.

🐄 Almost $1.95 BILLION of that came from livestock.

🥩 Colorado cattle and calves generated $4.66 BILLION.

🥛 Colorado milk sales added another $1.249 BILLION.

And those numbers don't include the full ripple effect created when livestock producers purchase feed, hire veterinarians, move cattle by truck, buy equipment, build facilities, employ workers, use professional services and send agricultural products into markets beyond Colorado.

Agriculture isn't simply part of Northern Colorado's landscape.

It's part of its economic foundation.

As the region grows and decisions are made about land, water, infrastructure and livestock production, it's worth understanding exactly what is at stake — and how much of Northern Colorado's economy depends on keeping production agriculture productive.

🧠 The numbers are worth knowing.

🔗 To read the entire article, click on the link:
https://www.agpros.com/articles-and-information/northern-colorado-the-livestock-powerhouse-behind-colorado-agriculture

09/02/2026

Ranching: The activity or business of breeding and raising cattle on a ranch.

But anyone in agriculture knows the definition goes much deeper. 🐂🌾

Ranching means caring for livestock through every season. It means managing grass, water, nutrition, genetics, animal health, and the land that makes it all possible.

Most of all, ranching is a profession of hope.
Hope for rain. 🌧️
Hope for healthy calves. 🐄
Hope for green grass. 🌱
Hope for a good market.
Hope that today's work builds something worth passing on to the next generation.
Ranching isn't just a business. It's an investment in tomorrow.

09/02/2026

Surveying Services: The Foundation for Successful Land Development

Whether you're buying property, developing land, expanding an agricultural operation, building infrastructure, or planning your next project, accurate information about the land is essential.

That's where surveying comes in.

Surveying is often one of the first steps in a project, and one of the most important. Establishing property boundaries, understanding topography, locating improvements and utilities, documenting easements, and creating an accurate picture of the site provides the foundation other professionals need to plan, design, permit, and build.

At AGPROfessionals, our surveying team provides comprehensive land surveying services for agricultural, commercial, residential, municipal, and development projects. More importantly, our surveyors work alongside our engineers, land use planners, environmental consultants, real estate professionals, and agronomists to help clients move projects from concept to completion.

Surveying That Supports Your Entire Project

A survey is more than a map. It provides the information needed to make informed decisions about a property. Our surveyors help clients answer critical questions:
• Where are the property boundaries?
• What does the land look like?
• What improvements or features are already there?
• Where are easements and rights-of-way located?
• How can the property be developed?
• What information will engineers, planners, or contractors need to move forward?

The answers depend on the project, which is why AGPROfessionals offers a broad range of surveying services.

Land Boundary Surveys

Understanding exactly where property begins and ends is fundamental to land ownership and development. For land purchases and other real estate transactions, an accurate survey can help identify potential issues before they become expensive problems.

Our land boundary services include:
• ALTA/NSPS Land Title Surveys
• Land Survey Plats
• Improvement Survey Plats
• Subdivisions
• Lot Line Adjustments
• Exemptions
• Annexations
• Zone Changes

Our ALTA/NSPS Land Title Surveys provide a particularly comprehensive picture of a property, documenting boundaries, improvements, easements, access, rights-of-way, and other important features. For commercial, agricultural, and other complex land transactions, an ALTA Survey can provide valuable information for buyers, sellers, lenders, title companies, and other stakeholders.

Topographic Surveys: Understanding the Land

Knowing property boundaries is only part of understanding a site. Topographic surveys document the physical characteristics and elevations of the land, providing critical information for engineering, planning, drainage, construction, and development.

AGPROfessionals provides topographic surveying services to support:
• Engineering design
• Volume calculations
• Easement and right-of-way design or acquisition
• Construction development and design
• Use by Special Review (USR)

Accurate topographic information gives project teams a better understanding of existing site conditions before design and construction begin.

Construction Staking: Turning Plans Into Reality

Once a project moves from planning and design into construction, surveyors help ensure that what's being built is located where it is supposed to be. Construction staking translates plans into precise field locations, helping contractors and construction teams build according to the approved design.

AGPROfessionals provides construction staking services for:
• Agricultural projects
• Commercial projects
• Residential development
• Municipal projects
• Utility and energy projects
• Machine control

Our surveyors can also provide as-built surveys to document completed improvements and confirm what was actually constructed.

Specialized Surveying Services

Some projects require surveying services that don't fit neatly into a single category. These services can support property transactions, land planning, permitting, development, construction, and ongoing property management.
AGPROfessionals also provides:
• Legal descriptions
• Easements and rights-of-way
• Improvement Location Certificates (ILCs)
• Property pin locates
• Condominium surveys
• City and county land use applications and plats/mapping

More Than a Surveying Firm

One of the biggest advantages of working with AGPROfessionals is that surveying doesn't happen in isolation. Our surveyors work directly with professionals in engineering, planning and land use, environmental services, real estate, agronomy, and other disciplines.

That multidisciplinary approach can be particularly valuable for agricultural and rural development projects, where a survey is often just one piece of a much larger process.

Consider a client planning to expand a dairy, feedlot, ranch, development, or other business operation. Surveying may begin by documenting the property for purchase or planning purposes. From there, our surveyors may provide boundary and topographic information needed for land use planning and permitting, support engineering and utility design, prepare easement or right-of-way descriptions, and ultimately provide construction staking and as-built surveys.

As the client's needs change over time, the relationship can continue. A property may later need to be expanded, modified, subdivided, or developed differently. Because our teams work together, clients don't have to start over with a new firm every time another piece of the project arises.

The Technology Is Important. Experience Matters More.

Modern surveying combines proven surveying principles with increasingly sophisticated technology. Our survey team utilizes tools and technologies including high-precision GNSS positioning, robotic instruments, digital field collection, GIS, CAD, 3D data, drone imagery, and cloud-based workflows.

But technology is only part of the equation. A quality survey requires professionals who understand what the data means. Surveying demands technical knowledge, attention to detail, professional judgment, and an understanding of property records, legal descriptions, and the history of a property.

At AGPROfessionals, our team brings together decades of surveying experience with newer professionals developing their skills and bringing fresh perspectives and technology expertise. That combination helps us approach each project with both practical experience and modern tools.

Start With the Right Information

Every successful land project starts with understanding the property. Whether you need an ALTA/NSPS Land Title Survey for a real estate transaction, a boundary or topographic survey for planning, construction staking for a new facility, or specialized surveying services for easements, subdivisions, or land use applications, AGPROfessionals can help determine what your project requires.
Our goal isn't simply to complete a survey and hand you a map.
Our goal is to provide accurate, useful information that helps you make decisions, solve problems, and move your project forward.
When you're ready to understand your land—and what's possible on it—start with the surveying experts at AGPROfessionals.

AGPROfessionals is a full-service agricultural consulting company providing services for the agriculture industry. Contact us for engineering, surveying, environmental compliance, land planning, permitting support, and more.

09/02/2026

Miguel Mena
Agronomist

Miguel Mena joined our AGPROfessionals team in the summer of 2024. Originally from Iowa, Miguel developed an interest in the unique challenges dry climates pose to the agriculture industry in the West. That interest led him to pursue his Bachelor of Science in Agronomy at South Dakota State University. Miguel is currently finishing his Master of Science in Soil and Land Resources from the University of Idaho.

Miguel’s role as an agronomist will focus on helping large modern farms (concentrated animal feeding operations - CAFOs) maintain environmental and regulatory compliance while meeting their crop production goals through nutrient management planning.