I’m Jim Smith — swine nutritionist, farmer, writer, and podcaster. I’ve spent my life in production agriculture, planting my first crop and raising my first pigs in the late 1980s. For the past almost three decades, I’ve helped producers improve animal nutrition and farm profitability while working alongside my family on our own farms raising crops and livestock.

My journey in agriculture took me from Northeast Indiana to Purdue University, then to Kansas State University where I earned my Doctorate in Animal Nutrition. From there I spent years working inside large-scale commercial agriculture and livestock production systems across multiple geographies before returning home to Northeast Indiana.

Along the way, I worked across sectors such as feed, product development and marketing, crop production, animal health, research, agribusiness, and farm consulting — gaining a view of agriculture that spans research, regulation, production, and markets.

Today, my work sits at the intersection of nutrition, farm economics, and communication. Whether I’m evaluating nutrition strategies, helping producers think through profitability, or sitting down with leaders in agriculture, my perspective is rooted in lived experience on both sides of rural America.

Patio Pondering began as a way to share those reflections — first in writing, and now on the podcast. Whether I’m behind a microphone or at the keyboard, my goal is the same: to spark thought, share stories, and connect agriculture with everyday life.