Jeana Fired Me? A New Role, a Bigger Mission, and the Future of the Farm and Winery

“It sounds dramatic, right? “Jeana fired me.” But like most things in farming—and marriage—it’s a little more complicated than that. This week marks a big shift in our journey as I step into a new role off the farm, and we both recommit to the bigger mission that started all of this in the first place.” by Chad

Is it possible? Possible to be fired by your spouse? You bet. But the truth is — we’ve both quit, both fired each other and we’re still here (read prior blog for the one about the farm keeping us together). For real though — I did start a new job this week. I went to work for Syngenta. A company I worked most my career for. A company I owe my current station in life to. I thought the weekly blog would be a great place to share this news. And share —

1. Why the jump out of our business?
2. What I’ll be doing at Syngenta.
3. Who’s going to replace me (this will be short/in the conclusion).

Follow along — I really think this is a huge opportunity to broaden our mission.

Maybe it’s actually a better role for me — acting as an owner and not an operator? I still dream of being 75 and hanging out at the tasting room with your kids’ kids. All kidding aside — when a business is young — say a toddler like ours — it’s better to “feed” it than take from it. The last two years, we’ve taken from it. As a toddler of a business — we need to fuel its growth by feeding it.

It’s been magical the last 2 years being here. Spending so much time with all of you. Spending so much time with my family, with the grapes, apples and pumpkins. Gosh — I was able to turn around our pumpkin production from the miserable 2023 crop. For some reason this was something that made me really feel like a farmer. It’s kind of emotional to write that sentence. Since my first memory at 4 — I dreamed of being a farmer. I gave up on that dream after college when I saw how much land cost. But we stayed with it — and “timing” on our side — made it happen.

Next time you’re in the tasting room — check out this picture high on the wall (picture below). We think it’s somewhere on our property. What it reminds me of is — beating the odds, staying with it and doing hard shit. That’s grit. That’s farming.

And Syngenta is ALL about serving farmers. Thanks to a LinkedIn post (I’ve stayed more active on LinkedIn b/c it’s a great network) — I reached out to a good friend asking — “What’s going on with Syngenta Biologicals?”

My friend said, “Hey, talk to the group in that segment of the business — it can’t hurt.”. One thing led to another (and with some solid advice from friends/mentors) — I flew on a plane for the 2nd time in 2 years (says the book miles guy) to Sacramento and got the job. I’m now working for Syngenta Biologicals as the Manager for the West. Check them out on the web – Syngenta Biologicals.

What the heck are biologicals? Maybe let’s characterize it in the realm of: Traditional crop protection products — insecticides, herbicides, fungicides (often referred to as pesticides, although organic products are ALSO pesticides).

• Traditional Crop Protection (Pesticides)
• Biologicals
• Organic (Pesticides)

Biologicals are NOT always organic, but they can be. Biological products bring amazing and unique benefits to farmers. They can work in the soil to “awaken” beneficial bacteria, they can help the plant consume nutrients more efficiently and they can control pests. This is a pretty new business for Syngenta. It’s an incredible opportunity for me to bring new solutions to farmers and help Syngenta build a strong future in this market.

Syngenta invests more in R&D than any other company of its kind on the planet. Think of it for a moment — that literally means working in an environment where you’re plugged in to innovation! In 2020 Syngenta Group acquired Valagro — based in Atessa, Italy. With it came a rich pipeline and foundation of R&D. I’m excited to help lead this business in the West.

Plants are alive AND soil is alive. Agriculture has a bright future. So many brilliant people are waking up every day passionately working to help farmers — and they need help. It takes a team, it takes grit.

You’ll still see me some when you visit. We plan to hire someone to fill my spot. Jeana is stepping up (I guess she got promoted) and we have the winter to figure things out. This opportunity will allow us to feed Lagriōth Winery & Chelan Valley Farms growth. This opportunity will allow me to be part of a magnificent group of people (again) at Syngenta — working to bring biological products to farmers.

Wish me well. And if you’re a farmer — we’ve got some “Life Changing” products, if you’re interested.