SharkFarmerXM's podcast
Amanda Radke from Mitchell, SD 7-16-24
- ♪♪♪ - ♪ Unstoppable, unshakeable ♪ ♪ But it rolls out for town, unbreakable ♪ ♪ It's unavoidable ♪ ♪ You're so relatable ♪ ♪ Rebetween the lines ♪ ♪ Start to loosen up your mind ♪ - Now, welcome back in the Shark Farmer Radio, hey! - I'm your host Rob Sharky. We're in the studio today. Shh, I'm outside of Bradford, Illinois. Studio powered by Beck's Hybrid. - Ah, enough of the storms. - Ah, I think I'm done. - Right, you know, two days of it has been a lot. The first one that we sort of bypassed, I thought was gonna level our corn. I don't know how the corn can take 80 mile an hour wind and still be standing and look actually pretty good today. - I couldn't believe it, 'cause it was still a little bit light last night when I came through, and I'm watching that corn. I'm like, "How? How are you not falling down?" - Right, I mean, power lines down. We're on a generator still. I think we're gonna be on a generator for a while. Good thing we have one. It used to be that we didn't hide. We had one of those little bitty generators, and you had to keep pouring gas in like every couple hours. Okay, I'm glad we upgraded. This is like the sixth time this spring or summer. We made it all through the winter with nothing, and now spring and summer, we've had it on for days. - Wasn't for that little generator. You and I would not be on the air right now though. - That's right. - Yeah, long story behind that. All right, today we're gonna go out to South Dakota, Mitchell, South Dakota. We're gonna be talking with Amanda Radke. How you doing, Amanda? - Hey, I'm doing great. Thanks for having me on. - Yeah, how's things look out there in South Dakota? - Well, we had some record-breaking flooding here in the last couple of weeks. And one day, Tyler and I right here on the ranch had 13 inches of rain. So lots of washed out roads and bridges and fences, but the crops that aren't underwater are looking really great now that the heat has kind of turned on. So I think we'll still have a crop at the end of the season. - Yeah, 13 inches, I mean, man. In some parts of South Dakota, that's probably the year's total. - Yeah, pretty much. It came down hard and fast. I think that week's total, we had about 17 inches and a little bit further east of us. I mean, there was massive flooding with total loss of homes and neighborhoods and just really devastating stuff. So yeah, I think it actually did break records for levels for our waters and our rivers here on the eastern side of the state. - Yeah, well, let's hope the rest of the year, maybe just be calm. How about that? That'd be cool. Maybe just like a half-inch every week and we'll just call it a day. (laughing) - Yes, as we say that, I've got hay that's been knocked down ready to bail up and it's raining again. - Yeah, well, we could explain if it was a drought too, right? - That's right. - You're ranching out there. Fifth generation, is that right? - Yes, that's right. So my husband and I run rad key landing cattle. So it's Angus and limousine seed stock operation and we're really excited we're working towards our first production sale here, upcoming in February, right here at 3/8. - Okay, so explain what that is. - Yeah, so we've always sold our bulls privately. We've never had a real auction sale. So we've actually set a date and inviting everybody out. So we set it for President Day, that's February 17th. And so we're gonna have a great day of selling cattle, selling some beef, that'll be new. And then my daughter and I both write children's books. So we're gonna have some a family hour and have kids out and do story time and that kind of thing. - Okay, so we've talked to so many different people who do these bull sales and so much time and effort goes into that, is it stressful getting ready because you feel like you wanna make a certain amount of money, sell a certain number and do you have it online too? - Yes, well, it's definitely stressful because it all boils down to one day, right? We're a culmination of a lot of work and decisions and effort comes to, well, we could have a blizzard that day and nobody shows up or depending on the markets, you know, people might not be in the mood. I mean, there's just so much that goes into it, but I work with a really great group called CK6 Consulting that helps producers get ready for this and really proud to have them kind of on the team and they'll keep us steady, even if I'm just a barrel of nerve barfing behind the barn or something, not failing. (laughing) - Why'd you make that decision to not be a private sale anymore and go with the auction? - Yeah, so ever since I've kind of started working with CK6 Consulting, they've done about $200 million in bull sales in the last five years in the Angus breed and kind of one of those things, when you see it all the time and you can see, hey, you know, just having that pressure point of an auction sale can really drive value higher. It's one of those things I think you can talk yourself out of it because the private treaty deals are a little less risky and you just kind of take customers in, you know, any time of the year and be in sales all the time. But this is one of those things where we're CK6 owner, Chris, are all basically like pushing us in the deep end of the pool and saying, you better figure out how to swim. So that's how it feels, ready or not. We're going for it, so we're doing barn construction here on the place, getting it ready for, you know, host people in the dead of winter and so a lot of prep leading up to it, I guess, that we're really excited about it. - Well, I got to imagine that really expands the geography of who might be buying your critters. - Yeah, I mean, with online sales, this will be a DV auction, but yeah, you could be selling cattle from all the way across the country or a guy can be, you know, an instructor watching the sale and it, yeah, it just kind of opens up a bigger network whereas traditionally it used to be kind of whoever was in a 200 mile radius of you you could sell to. - And what breed are you raising? - Angus and limousines. - Okay, is there a reason for that? I'm not educated. I mean, I know what they are, but I don't know why people pick what they pick. - Yeah, you know, my parents have been in the limousine business since 1982, so that was kind of when that continental breed in the early '80s came to the United States, but Angus is known as the business breed and there's such a demand now for highly marbled, well, you know, very, very high-end beef and so I think that's kind of the future for us that we see is trying to enter into those premium markets for steak because, you know, foreign nations can raise a lot of average beef and ship it into this country, but only America can do that, that highly marbled stage experience. - You're damn right. - You're in that way. - That's right, America. - America. - Another rabbit. - I know, if you're gonna eat beef, why would you eat crappy beef, that's right. Today we're talking with Amanda Redky from Mitchell, South Dakota. We'll be back. All right, after the break. ♪ A ground shaker, a rule breaker ♪ ♪ Hold tight, he'll roll you through every acre ♪ - This segment is brought to you by Common Ground. Are you looking for an easy way to buy, sell, or lease your land? Well, check out Common Ground where they connect landowners and farmers and hunters too, by the way. Go to commonground.io, that's commonground.io. (upbeat music) All right, tonight on RFD TV, it is the premiere of season nine of Shark Farmer TV. - Can you believe we have been doing this for nine seasons? - No. - It is fantastic, I'm so excited. I would say I'm more excited about this season than any of them, I don't know why. I don't know, I guess all the work we've put into it. - Do you just live in the present? Is that what it is? So everything we've done in the past means nothing to you? - Well, you know, we were doing so much traveling and so much speaking, and oftentimes when we do that, that's where we're meeting up with people and taping on their farms and ranches. And I said, you know, we gotta enjoy this and live in the moment. So I'll have to say a lot of blood, sweat, and cheers went into this season. And the first, this is our opening night of episode, I mean, episode one, season nine. It's exciting, we're in Oregon at the tulip farm. And it was so gorgeous. It was one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. - You don't pick them, either. It's just for people to come out and enjoy. And I'm not, you have to see this farm. This is not like somebody's backyard. - No. - What was it, like 40 acres? - At least. - And it is like, it's perfect. - It is perfect. It is every single color plus some that you can imagine. And while we were there, there was a rainbow. It had just stormed before we got there. And this rainbow went over and I go, this is just, it's like the heavens are opening up. - Tonight, 830 is central on RFD TV. Today, we're talking with Amanda Ratge. She's from Mitchell, South Dakota. It's the fifth generation rancher out there. We've been talking about her bull sale. Amanda, I don't know what this is. Can you tell me about bid on beef? - Yeah, so it's a brand new platform. And I gotta say, I gotta congratulate you guys on nine seasons because I'm sure if you look back on season one in some of your first episodes, like is it you kind of cringe a little bit? - It sucked. It sucked so bad. We had zero, zero content. So we started showing farmer Derek stuff. Remember that this is the third thing that was all farmer Derek? - It was, he was so great. He's like, yes, absolutely, put it on. - Yes, anyway, bid on, thank you, but bid on beef. - Well, well, I think that's where we're at right now. So I work with a great group of partners on this bid on beef concept. And it is in its initial launch. So we launched June 1st. It is a auction platform, but instead of selling cattle, we are selling beef. So high-end steaks and burgers, tomahawks, ribeyes, you name it. We've done about a dozen auctions now with great success, kind of selling steaks all across the country. And so that's the new platform, bidonbeef.com. So we'll be selling steaks, I guess right here on our place as well as we've signed up about 35 different producers who will be using the platform as well. - Okay, I don't even know how this, how you go about doing this? I mean, do you hire smart people to do programming? Or do you do it yourself? How does it all work? - Do I look like I'm a web coder? Absolutely not. - No. - Yeah, it's been, we started at the end of 2023 building this website. So it's yeah, full service auction platform, people can come and put their proxy bids in. They get notified by text and email, if they've been outbid on a stake. And we did four pilot auctions on different platforms before we launched our own platform, but it was just with wild success. So we've turned a lot of beef into a great premium for our producer families. And what we realized is this is just an incredible way to take the best of the best in the country that we could sign and identify and put it into the marketplace and let the consumer decide you tell us what it's worth. And the ability to help producers be profitable while also helping consumers who really want a trusted source of beef, it's been really rewarding. - So do you think the success is largely and part of what we all went through with COVID and everybody wants to buy American beef and they want to know the story and they want to know where it comes from and how it was raised? And do you think that's largely why that this is being such a successful platform? - Absolutely. In fact, I wish this platform existed in 2020 because it'd probably be on a yacht somewhere if that was like this, but it's all kidding aside though. Yeah, I mean, during COVID, we saw bear shelves and I was getting calls from people in big cities that were like, "Hey, I can't buy beef right now "at the grocery store, can you ship it to me?" And the reality is in this country, 85% of our beef supply is held captive by four major packers. And meanwhile, we're losing 1,300 cow-cast producers every year. And so I'm seeing this trend of like our food supply is getting more consolidated. The American consumer is asking for quality and they want to be reconnected back to the land and back to the farmer and the rancher. And we just see it as a real opportunity to serve people and to get this high-end beef experience in front of as many people as possible. And really, the consumer is totally in the driver's seat to decide the price. And so we're just kind of humbly putting it out there and telling the story of what it is and seeing what the market will dictate. Surprise of packers haven't offered to buy it yet. (laughing) Yeah, could you shut up about this stuff? We'd rather you not do this. Yeah, I suppose. I think we're gonna, and that's not really our intention is that, you know, take over or change the entire beef industry, but, you know, I don't really see a political will to change some of the corruption and the problems in our industry. And if I can't change things in DC, although I'm certainly trying, my mentality is I can't stand to see more ranchers go out of business. So what can we do in the private sector today to help people within our sphere of influence be able to find profitability in this cattle business and do well without any subsidies or government programs or anything propping us up just the free market, capitalism at its finest and people saying here's what I have to offer and then the buyer saying I'd love to buy it and have it shipped to me. So I also love what you're doing and I know we're running out of time in this segment so we might have to address it after. But so you're also talking to kids. You have like nine children's books out there where you're sharing what life on your ranch is like and what, you know, a kid living on a ranch would, what his life would be like. - Look at you started in writing children's books. - Yeah, I mean, it's kind of the same theme of traveling this country speaking and realizing a lot of people don't know where their food is coming from and what's portrayed in the media and in movies is just so wildly inaccurate. And that's why I realized that people only got to hear our story. They would be more confident in the foods they're buying. They would feel more connected to, you know, the farm and ranch that they might have had in their family generations would go. And so it's been a really rewarding experience. And so, yeah, in a lot of ways, this bit on these platform feels like an extension of that. But even more exciting, I have four children and my oldest daughter, Scarlett, has started writing and illustrating books. And I'm not afraid to admit it, but her books are wildly best sellers compared to mine because people just really love hearing from a ranch kid and hear that honest, authentic story from someone their age. - I love that. - Yes, today we're talking with Amanda Radke from Mitchell, South Dakota. When we come back, you ready Emily? Buckle in. - Uh-oh. - CO, pipeline. - Oh my gosh. - Pipelines. - Don't email me. - Are you pro or a getst? (laughing) - We'll be back. All right, after the break. (upbeat music) ♪ You show relatable when we're between the lines ♪ ♪ Start to loosen up your mouth ♪ - This segment is brought to you by Common Ground. Are you looking for an easy way to buy, sell, or lease your land? Well, check out Common Ground where they connect landowners and farmers and hunters too, by the way. Go to commonground.io, that's commonground.io. (upbeat music) All right, it's time for Mitchell, South Dakota's favorite radio segment. Where in the world is Will? Will, what's you find for us today? - Mitchell, South Dakota is a city in and the county seat of Davison County, South Dakota. - Yeah. - The population was 15, 660 at the 2020 census, making it the sixth most populous city in South Dakota. - It's not saying a whole lot. (laughing) - The first settlement at Mitchell was made in 1879, sorry, Mitchell was incorporated in 1883. It was named for Milwaukee banker, Alexander Mitchell, president of the Chicago Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad. - Okay. - Mitchell's home of the corn palace. - Here, Bender? - I have not. I've never been to South Dakota. Actually, that's not true. I've got to pee air. - Well, that doesn't count. - Right. (laughing) Home of the corn palace, the corn palace is decorated with several colors of dried corn and grains, creating murals. The theme of the external murals is changed yearly at fall harvest. Internal murals are changed approximately every 10 years. The building itself is used for several purposes, including a basketball arena, the local high school prom, trade shows, staged entertainment, and the Shriners Circus. - Of course. What are their little cars? - Right. I love their cars and their hats. (laughing) Got a few notable people here, George McGovern, former representative and senator from South Dakota, and a 1972 Democratic nominee for president against Nixon. Mike Miller, former NBA basketball player, two-time NBA champion. David Rumelhart, cognitive psychologist who co-developed key neural network AI method, back propagation with Jeffrey Hinton and Ronald J. Williams. - I was wondering about that. - All right. And Gary Owens, American disc jockey voice actor, announcer and radio personality. His polished baritone speaking voice generally offered dead pan recitations of total nonsense, which he frequently demonstrated as the announcer on Rowan and Martin's laugh-in. Owens was equally proficient in straight or silly assignments and was frequently heard on television and radio as well as in commercials. - Yeah, rich baritone voice. (laughing) All right, thank you, Will. Appreciate it. Amanda, did you know all that stuff? - I did not. (laughing) That's a whole lot about Mitchell, I never knew. But I did go to prom at the corn palace. That is-- - Did you really? (laughing) - I really did. (laughing) - That's awesome. - Do you still follow the guy you went with? Do you still follow him on Facebook? - He still lives in town. So yeah, I see him all over. (laughing) Amanda's a fifth generation, a rancher out there talking about her a bit on beef and that. But Amanda, you've been front and center, I guess on the front lines of this pipeline. What got you involved with that? - Yeah, it wasn't really a rule I asked for it, but it was certainly one I felt in my heart I needed to be a part of. So I started getting phone calls from farmers and ranchers and landowners across the eastern side of the state of South Dakota, that their land was being condemned for a privately owned, out of state funded carbon pipeline project that was being propelled by the Green New Deal and 45Q tax credits. And these people in South Dakota just had no way to say no and protect their land and their futures. And so the calls were overwhelming and I felt the need to get involved and it's been a long three year fight for the people of South Dakota, but they don't show any signs of bending or breaking down now. - The people don't. Because the pipeline, is that a no go now? - Well, so there were two pipelines right away. There was Navigator and then there were Summit Carbon Solutions. A Navigator did pack up and head home. The project will not continue here, but Summit has kind of picked up more miles with their proposed route. They do not have a permit at this time. They were turned down by RPUC, but they plan to reapply here within the next month or so. But we're doing what we can. I mean, it's been a long legal battle, but the grassroots movement just continues to grow with people saying, you know, we're gonna fight for our private property rights. We're not gonna give up our local governance and give it to the big brother nanny state. We're not going to allow provisions of the Green New Deal to be ushered in as part of state law, South Dakota. - Well, I get it. You know, if you've got an interstate going across the country, you can't not do an interstate because one person doesn't want to sell their property. It's the definition and the reason eminent domain came into place. It has a place. I don't know when it changed exactly. I think it would involve like a shopping mall or something like that, but it was always, it was a government, right? If it like the government project, right? They're putting in power lines. They're putting in an interstate. They're putting in a dam or something like that. That's the only time and it was only supposed to be used like on the very few occasions. When did it start being used for public or for private entities? I've never understood that. - Yeah, that's been our frustration the whole time and I've become very skeptical now of phrases like public private partnerships and value added agriculture because in South Dakota, those phrases have been weaponized against the very farmers and ranchers that these politicians are proclaiming to be working for and representing and so that all kind of came to fruition here in our last legislative session. There was a package of pipeline bills. Any eminent domain regulations were basically shut down really quick by our legislative body in favor for a bill called SB201, which essentially created an easement agreement for this pipeline project. Basically put a value dollar on our land and what that pipeline would be required to pay and it took away all abilities for the local governments, your county commissions to do setbacks or zoning or mapping or planning and gives it all to the state in South Dakota and I had testified on this issue in peer during the session and I had made the observation and told our legislators there's only four states in the country that have legislation like this and we'll never believe which ones they are, but it's California, New York, Michigan and Illinois. And I said we do not want to be number five on this list and unfortunately the legislators passed it. Governor Kristi Nohm signed it into law, but in South Dakota, we have a really unique opportunity that we're able to do a referendum, meaning if we got enough petitioned signatures gathered, we could challenge that law and get it on the ballot come November. And so we just recently in 90 days collected 34,000 signatures. We needed 17,500 to get on the ballot, but literally even during the South Dakota flooding that we had, we had people in canoes and boats literally floating their petitions to get to high ground to get those petitions to the Capitol. So the people are very determined. - It really surprised me with your, I remember when your governor signed that, that really surprised me. - I would have figured she would have talked, took that thing out in the field and shot it down. - It does like her ruffle pit, but that's a dog joke. - You are going to get me emailed today. Y'all are going to get a ruffle pit. - That's funny. I don't care what you say. - I'm going to get you through the emails. - Yes, Amanda real quick. If people want to find you on social media, where do they go? - Yeah, so they can check me out on any platform, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, X, just my name, or they can go visit amandaradky.com. They can also register at bitonbeef.com in the first $25 to a bit on an auction, is on us. - Fantastic. Radky is R-A-D-K-E, Radky, Amanda. Thank you so much for being on the show. Really, really appreciate it. Don't go anywhere, Amanda. Sean Haney's coming up next. He's going to beat you at the next beef auction. We'll catch everybody next time. ♪ Carrotty fool, carrotty ♪ ♪ Carrotty fool, the next shaker ♪