The Conservation Ag Foundation and No-Till Farmer is pleased to announce that specialized attachments manufacturer Yetter Manufacturing and tires/wheels manufacturer Titan International have stepped forward in support of Almena, Kan., no-tiller and rancher Michael Thompson as the 4th recipient of the Conservation Ag Operator Fellowship. 

Thompson was selected for the honor due to his extensive experience no-tilling a diverse array of crops, successful livestock integration and dedication to soil health and the active role he takes in the stewardship of local watersheds.

The Conservation Ag Operator Fellowship program is an in-depth, year-long content series shared via No-Till Farmer channels that will detail Thompson’s decisions and actions throughout the year. The multi-media series, garnered from numerous trips out to his own farm, examines his approach to a variety of subjects, including cropping decisions, attachment/equipment purchases, test plots, seeding/planting conditions and on-the-go decisions in response to weather and other variables. Farmers may also ask Thompson specific questions at any time through the "Ask the Operator" online forum.

The capstone of the project includes a final report on performance and results, and a keynote presentation at the 34th Annual National No-Tillage Conference in St. Louis from Jan. 6-9, 2026.

Program Benefactors

For the first time, longtime National No-Tillage Conference sponsors Yetter Manufacturing and Titan International are the co-benefactors of this year’s Ag Operator Fellowship.

Yetter: “We’ve seen the impact and influence of the year-long Conservation Ag Fellows – Ray McCormick, Loran Steinlage and Jim Leverich – and are eager to support the actionable ideas from Michael Thompson’s farm that will be documented and shared with the no-till community and presented on the large stage in the keynote at the National No-Tillage Conference in January,” says Derek Allensworth, Yetter Vice President of Marketing & Sales.

Titan International: “We’re excited to be part of this unique program to advance the farmer-to-farmer knowledge sharing model created by The Conservation Ag Foundation, No-Till Farmer and the National No-Tillage Conference,” says Paul Reitz, CEO/President, Titan International. “The no-till community is among the greatest adopters of new technology and new practices, and we’re pleased to help propel that transfer of knowledge that is so critical in moving toward advanced cropping systems.”

About Michael Thompson, Operator Fellow

Thompson is a founding member and chairman of the Kansas Soil Health Alliance, ex-officio board member of No-till on the Plains and serves as mentor in the Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) program that connects Kansas farmers and ranchers to improve water quality. He was also the recipient of the 2022 Kansas Leopold Conservation Award, which recognizes farmers, ranchers and forestland owners who inspire others with their dedication to land, water and wildlife resources in their care.

Thompson was a notable presenter at the 2019 National No-Tillage Conference, where his talk, “Cows on Cropland: How Grazing Synergies Boost Yields and Soil Health,” packed the room with attendees.

Read more about Michael Thompson here:


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