Agri-Business & Planting for the Future W/ Jody White

In this episode of the Podcast, we are talking about agri-business, farming and  entrepreneurship with Jody White , a multiple international award winning Caribbean entrepreneur in the field of agri-business and entrepreneurship.

Jody talks about his life and how he found his footing in entrepreneurship. His first venture was a food production company, called Slim Down 360, which he built from the ground up. That later grew to become a profitable business over the years. 

He spoke about developing and growing his agro-processing business and the lessons learnt. His products were sold online and via Amazon, additionally he was able to ship products to the US, England and Guyana. 

Jody talked about how he pivoted when Covid-19 arose; when he sold a part of the business and refocused to the core offerings of meal production and delivery. Thereafter his experience operating across sectors in agri-business, organically positioned him as a pioneer in the space. He was then contracted as a Consultant to advise companies on developing agri-business products to get  them market ready.  

We discussed farming, agriculture, the life of farmers, business of farming and growing your own food. He spoke about the trends in food consumption and production. Also, where the efforts of local and regional Governments should focus in building the value chain, to ensure that there is more local foods available within their countries and even for Trade within the region.  

Jody shares about his work aspirations, travels to Guyana and UK and the use of technology which enables him to work smarter and faster. He spoke about how  technology is used in marketing, business development, green houses and aquaponics farming. However little is being used in the  agro-processing, in fields or renewable products. 

He spoke about other ventures he is involved in like writing books and animation projects. Plus his radio show where he speaks to guests from around the world on agriculture, agri-business and things happening in this sector. 

What of growing your own food? Jody said you must first determine what is your end goal. Is it for your family or business. If it is for business and you have land, there are many things to consider; and you should determine what you are good at, the trends, what the land can produce, how much time you can give and what resources financial, equipment and workers you have to work the farm. It is a full time job.

For your home garden, Jody talks about some easy vegetables you can grow like chive, lettuce, cucumbers, ochres and others we can explore, to get some quick crops. 

Jody is a man on a mission, an entrepreneur pioneering in evolving spaces, plotting the course of his life on his terms and making moves beyond borders. 

Bio 

Jody White is an innovator of multiple #1 products on Amazon and a pioneer in value added exports out of the Caribbean. He has served in multiple capacities in agri-business and food system project. He opened the London stock exchange and sailed deep into forests on pirogues in the interest of Agriculture. 

He is passionate about working on projects that mesh business with the development of local capacity, whether it through entrepreneurs, farmers, the community or otherwise.

Jody is the host of Agri-business Innovation show, live on Freedom 106.5fm in Trinidad & Tobago. Where he interacts with influential guests from around the world talking about agriculture and business.