Sen. Hoeven’s State of Technology Conference Stresses Agriculture and Technology Intersection

The 9th annual conference highlighted the work of more than 70 entrepreneurs

FARGO, N.D. — Tech companies from agriculture, cyber security, elderly care backgrounds and more are sharing their work at Sen. John Hoeven’s 2019 State of Technology Conference.

The event stresses the importance of converging agriculture and technology.

Some say that integration should start with young people.

“Working together with our universities, with our community colleges, even with our high schools, and generating an environment of learning is really necessary. We can assist with that from the federal government, but really, local leadership in school boards, in institutions that are core to the state of North Dakota is a great way to insert that technology and that understanding that’s necessary for today’s workforce, but also essential for tomorrow’s workforce,” said USDA Policy Advisor Dana Peterson.

Some of the companies are just launching, while others have a long history.

“We developed Carbontec Energy about 1988,” said the company chairman, John Simmons.

The family–owned Bismarck corporation is working on minimizing the negative impacts of iron making by converting steel mill waste products into iron nuggets.

“We enjoy getting up in the morning. We have people who are excited, and we have a good group of people working with us and it makes it a fun job. We think we’re doing something for the environment,” said Simmons.

This work is what led Carbontec to receive one of the three 2019 TechND Awards.

“Get enough people working on a problem, they’ll find a solution. There’s technology five years from now and we’ll say, ‘Wow, why didn’t anybody think of that?'”

This is Sen. Hoeven’s 9th annual State of Technology conference.