Nearly Five Decades in the Industry, Agriculture Is Still ‘Everything’ to Agronomist Phil Krieg

It doesn’t take long to realize just how much agriculture means to Phil Krieg. It’s not only his nearly five-decade stint in the ag industry that makes it clear. It’s evident in the way he cares about growers, in his goal to wrap up his career in the place he started it, and in his list of extracurricular activities.

Krieg is an agronomic service representative for Syngenta Crop Protection, covering three sales districts in southern Illinois and one in southwestern Indiana. He’s also a contributing agronomist for Successful Farming’s coverage of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Crop Progress report.

As he gears up for another busy growing season, Krieg took some time to speak with Successful Farming about his coverage area, the most memorable year from his nearly two decades with Syngenta, and the dairy farm where he got his start — and where he hopes to finish his career.

SF: You’ve been an agronomist for almost 20 years; before that you were in ag retail for even longer. Tell us about that switch. 

PK: I started my career in 1977, and I started out selling feed, seed, and grain automation equipment, of all things. About a year and a half later, I transitioned to ag retail at St. Clair Service Company. I started out as a fertilizer, chemical, and seed sales person, became certified through the Growmark system, and attained my certified crop advisor status. I worked my way into operations, and when the Syngenta opportunity came to me in 2005, I was operations manager at St. Clair Service Company. 

SF: Did you always want to be in the ag industry? 

PK: Yes. I grew up on a small farm in southern Illinois and worked on a dairy farm while I was in high school. Agriculture was definitely going to be my career in some fashion. The dairy farm that I worked on is still in operation, is in the same family, and is prospering. 

SF: What’s special about your coverage area? 

PK: The coverage area I work in is very diverse from the standpoint of the weather. My north line is about Route 16 in Illinois all the way to the southern tip of Illinois, and then I cover an area in southwestern Indiana around Evansville. What’s interesting is the way the season progresses — my southern area will usually be 10 days to two weeks ahead of the northern area. There’s a progression of the crop from south to north. 

We also have a lot of crop diversity in the area I cover. I get into quite a few vegetable crops — a lot of melons in Indiana, and pumpkins and horseradish in Illinois. The primary crops, though, are corn, wheat, and soybeans. The vast majority of wheat is planted to doublecrop soybeans after the wheat comes off. It’s a very busy territory. 

The fun thing about this area is that I get to ask a lot of questions. I can’t assume anything. Whether I’m on a service call or with a grower, the most important thing I can do is ask a lot of questions to make sure I understand the rotations and the top priorities.

SF: How do you handle covering two states? 

PK: My sales rep in Evansville, Indiana, has to keep me pretty well abreast of what the progress is there, just as my sales rep in the southern tip of Illinois has to tell me what their progression is, so that I’m in tune with those areas. I live in the north-central area of the territory I cover, so what I see out my window may not be what they’re seeing out their window. I have to touch base with them a lot.

SF: As you come up on two decades at Syngenta, is there one particular year that stands out in your memory?

PK: 2012 stands out. That was the year of the drought — the most significant drought and heat spell that we had gone through since the late 1980s. It left a big footprint. The entire Midwest was in that drought. Temperatures were high — a lot of days of 100°F. We saw the corn crop crash. It had endured too much heat and drought for too many days.

But in late July, right when the soybean crop was getting pretty high risk, the weather pattern changed. We started to pick up rain. The soybean crop that year was respectable — not great — but respectable. What I learned is that part of my job is to help farmers tolerate when one crop is lost, like it was in 2012, and to help them stay somewhat positive. Always keep striving to help your crop. My motto is that until a crop is cooked, keep going forward and managing it like it’s going to be the best ever.

Some days — and I know my sales reps feel this a lot as well — you’re almost a psychologist. You’re the guy that goes out there and tries to help them through a crisis time with their crop.

SF: What other hats do you wear?

PK: I raise a couple horses along with my son. We raise a few cattle for freezer beef — we actually buy feeder calves from the dairy that I worked on in high school. 

Really, farming is pretty well everything. When I’m not working for Syngenta, I’m helping my best friend on his farm. Some people say get a life outside of ag, but it’s hard for me to unplug during the growing season.

I’ve always said that whenever I retire, I’m going to go back to the dairy where I worked in high school and milk cows for a little while. That way I can say I started my career and ended it at the same place.