About Arizona Agriculture Connection with Maricopa County Farm Bureau
Maricopa County Farm Bureau is the voice of agriculture in a community that thrives on the dichotomy of urban and rural agriculture operations. This podcast is a home for farmers, ranchers, food lovers, prospective agriculturalists, and those who are interested in where their food comes from!
Learn more at https://www.maricopacountyfb.org/
In this episode of Arizona Agriculture Connection, recorded at the Summer Agricultural Conference in Flagstaff, Nicole explores why people choose to work in agriculture despite its challenges, sharing her own story of a multigenerational farm background, being steered away from farming, and finding purpose in telling agriculture’s story and supporting rural communities for future generations.
Attendees then share their “why,” including Lauren (an RDN with Dairy Council of Arizona) who educates health professionals about dairy and supports food banks, Carley who values dairy community and industry marketing, Linda who ranches cattle on irrigated pasture and values family life and ag camaraderie, Shakuntala (UA Cooperative Extension entomologist) who helps growers manage pests safely, and John Boelts, a Yuma vegetable farmer and Arizona Farm Bureau president, who emphasizes agriculture’s daily necessity and responsibility to provide food.
Get connected and find your place in agriculture at https://www.maricopacountyfb.org/
00:00 Why Agriculture Matters
00:45 My Family Farming Roots
01:44 Sharing Agriculture Stories
03:03 Rural Communities Future
05:05 Conference Attendee Whys
05:14 Lauren: Dairy Nutrition
07:10 Carley: Dairy Community
07:59 Linda: Ranch Life
09:48 Shakuntala: Extension Entomology
12:47 John Boelts Farm Bureau
14 Oct 2026
Farm to Table Local Flavors at The Heritage with Chef Kevin Barko
In this episode of Arizona Agriculture Connection, Nicole is on site as she visits Chef Kevin Barko of The Heritage on Main Street in Old Town Buckeye to discuss his restaurant’s focus on local flair and ingredients and to demonstrate how easy and economical fresh pasta is to make with simple equipment and basic ingredients like flour and eggs.
Chef Barko describes dishes served at the restaurant, including chicken Alfredo with wide noodles and marinara with short ribs, featuring local tomatoes from farmers' markets and flour from Hayden Flour Mill, and suggests simple sauce variations such as adding lemon to Alfredo or spices to marinara. He outlines The Heritage’s small-group cooking classes (knife skills, Ireland cuisine, Italian/fresh pasta, desserts, and a simple Thanksgiving dinner emphasizing mise en place), explains local sourcing challenges and the need to seek products out, and shares his career path from Michigan to starting a catering/meal prep business during COVID before opening in Buckeye.
Make sure to snag Chef Barko's Pasta Recipe on our blog: https://www.maricopacountyfb.org/ (https://www.maricopacountyfb.org/)
00:00 Welcome To The Heritage
01:03 Why Fresh Pasta
02:32 Two Pasta Dishes
04:35 Easy Sauce Ideas
05:25 Cooking Class Series
06:58 Thanksgiving Prep Tips
08:38 Seasonal Menu Sourcing
10:12 Local Ingredients Challenge
12:00 Buckeye Community Growth
13:38 Pasta Recipe Breakdown
14:07 Chef Barco Backstory
16:43 From Catering To Buckeye
7 Oct 2026
October Ag Report: Voting Reminder & Event Updates from Maricopa County Farm Bureau
With less than a month until the general election and early voting starting tomorrow, Farm Bureau has gathered candidate survey responses that agriculture members will receive by email and mail to inform their voting decisions. The episode also highlights upcoming events: the Women’s Leadership Committee’s annual Ag Social on Thursday, October 15 in Buckeye at Sweet Flower Home (free with RSVP via maricopacountyfb.org/events); Copper Country Music Fest October 13–15 featuring Randy Rogers Band, Nolan Hoffman, Crews Brothers, and more, with Maricopa County Farm Bureau members receiving 20% off tickets using code MCFB at coppercountrymusicfest.com; and the Maricopa County Cooperative Extension’s Soil to Table Summit on November 16–17 covering water resources, farm-to-table initiatives, soil health, and agribusiness (registration via maricopacountyfb.org). The next episode will feature recipes with local ingredients with Chef Kevin Barko.
00:10 Election Updates
00:31 Ag Social Invite
01:02 Music Fest Discount
01:24 Soil to Table Summit
01:45 Join us Next Week with Chef Kevin Barco
Who has been a guest on Arizona Agriculture Connection with Maricopa County Farm Bureau
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Lauren Pena
Brandon Clark
Tiffany Selchow
Erin Good
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
1 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
2 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 27 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
41
Social presence
0
YouTube
0
Engagement
32
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