007: Biodynamic Regenerative Farming: Benefits Beyond Organic Practices with Gregory Kalinin

Essential Ingredients Podcast

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“You can also look at resources of putting your time into building that network of advisers. It's a bit of time to build that but then you get so much value out of that as long as you're willing to listen.” —Gregory Kalinin

Dynamic agriculture can be seen as a way of weaving regenerative farming into a holistic and adaptive system that can benefit both the farmers and the environment. By blending these two practices, farmers can meet specific goals, such as minimizing tillage, recycling organic matter, using cover crops, rotating crops and livestock, avoiding synthetic inputs, and diversifying production. Dynamic agriculture can also help farmers respond to the changing demands and preferences of consumers, such as organic, local, fair trade, or niche products.

This week, Gregory shares his journey from being a coffee geek to the Co-Founder of Holistic Roasters, a biodynamic and organic coffee roasting company. As a coffee enthusiast who was introduced to high-quality siphon coffee in Japan, Gregory developed a passion for exploring different coffee brewing and roasting methods. He began home roasting and sourced biodynamic coffee for a school fundraiser, which led to the creation of Holistic Roasters alongside his business partner. Under Gregory's leadership, Holistic Roasters has expanded its product offerings while committing to sustainable and regenerative farming practices.

Listen in as Justine and Gregory explain what biodynamic agriculture means and how it fits into the larger movement of regenerative farming. They also discuss the importance of testing ideas through small pilots before fully committing as well as insights into building a values-aligned business in the specialty coffee industry.

Meet Gregory:

Gregory is a serial entrepreneur and corporate executive with a track record of developing and implementing new business ideas across multiple industries in start-up, turnaround, and rapid-change environments.

After completing an MBA from McGill University in 1995, Gregory co-founded a high-tech startup that achieved a successful IPO on the Canadian stock market. The company was recognized by Canadian Business Magazine as one of the hottest software companies and by Profit Magazine as one of the country's fastest-growing companies.

In 2001, Gregory was recruited by Bombardier Aerospace to launch a new business unit called Flexjet in the Asia-Pacific region. Executing a pioneering development strategy allowed the business to surpass growth targets using a fraction of the allocated budget. Flexjet Asia-Pacific became the region's #1 business aircraft charter network by attracting ultra-high-net-worth individuals, political leaders, and Fortune 100 clients. For his work, Gregory received a special bonus from the Bombardier Board of Directors for having "achieved exceptional results, with an exemplary level of perseverance".

In 2008, Gregory led the turnaround of an aerospace manufacturer where he increased sales by 680%, diversified the customer base, and rebuilt the Company’s reputation. Emergia Aerospace became the #1 supplier of production line tooling in Quebec with customers ranging from Bombardier to the Canadian Air Force and Bell Helicopter Textron.

Currently, Gregory works with several companies including a talent assessment and performance management company; Holistic Roasters, a Demeter USA-certified roaster and distributor of biodynamic coffee; and MiX Café, a private café for employees and their guests.

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Episode Highlights:

00:33 Biodynamic Agriculture Defined

05:12 How Biodynamic Fits Into Regenerative Agriculture

11:03 The Third Wave Coffee Movement

15:47 Navigating Product Market Fit

21:34 Product Development, Feedback, and Pivoting Tips

25:01 The Value of Building a Network of Advisors and Experts

101 episodes

#Fitness #Entrepreneur #Business #Nutrition #Justine Reichman