We explore the stories and insights from the military veteran and supporter communities who are leading the way for vets in agribusiness, agtech, and agri-preneurship. We swap stories, talk ag, and show how grass-roots nature of the ag community can be a natural fit for the military veteran.
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We explore the stories and insights from the military veteran and supporter communities who are leading the way for vets in agribusiness, agtech, and agri-preneurship. We swap stories, talk ag, and show how grass-roots nature of the ag community can be a natural fit for the military veteran.
Today’s guest is Robin Gentry McGee, founder of Essential Provisions.
Robin’s story is part kitchen, part battlefield – not one of dirt and distant lands, but a battle for her father’s health. Her early years were spent in the family’s garden, followed by a career in food and restaurants, and then a seismic moment when her father’s hospital experience forced her to rethink what we call “hospital food.”
That led her from the kitchen to product development and ultimately to building shelf-stable meals designed with service members and high performers in mind.
As Robin says:
“These guys, especially when they were deployed, they need a taste of home. They need to feel like this just came off their loved one's stove.”
This episode isn’t about miracle cures or grand claims. It’s about how a daughter’s experience with her father—about family meals, advocacy, and seeing what people are actually fed when they’re at their most vulnerable—became the engine for a company trying to reconnect service members to real food.
We dig into product development, sourcing from regenerative farms, the procurement challenges with the military, and the practical reasons why a “taste of home” matters for health, performance, and morale.
Enjoy!
Vets In Ag Podcast
We explore the stories and insights from the military veteran and supporter communities who are leading the way for vets in agribusiness, agtech, and agri-preneurship. We swap stories, talk ag, and show how grass-roots nature of the ag community can be a natural fit for the military veteran.
