He Was Worth $0. Now He Farms 3,500 Acres with Seth Entz | Ep 95

Seth grew up riding tractors with his grandfather and knew early that he wanted to farm. Married at 19, he and his wife eventually started a cattle operation near Eureka. Then the cattle market crashed. After nearly three years of trying to make it work, they sold everything and moved back home.

A retiring farmer offered a new opportunity. Seth explains how leased acres, shared equipment and careful purchases helped him rebuild—and why the ground he farms today isn't inherited family farmland.

The conversation gets into farmland investing, cash rent versus crop share, and the difference between equity on paper and cash to pay the bills. Seth shares how he restored an overgrown 80-acre property, why he treats soil like a bank, and how buying used machinery at auction gave him an early advantage. One bargain meant a four-day trip hauling a planter home from North Dakota.

Sam and Seth also unpack crop insurance, rising seed and fertilizer costs, and Seth's views on government farm subsidies. And when Sam asks where he'd put a hypothetical $10 million, Seth's answer leads to a bigger question: how will the next generation afford to get into farming?

• The cattle venture that left Seth with $0 net worth
• Rebuilding a farming business after failure
• Growing to roughly 3,500 acres through leases and purchases
• Cash rent, crop share and long-term landowner relationships
• Soil health, fertilizer and decisions that pay off years later
• Improving neglected farmland and finding value
• Used equipment auctions, depreciation and reliability
• Farm cash flow versus land equity
• Crop insurance, subsidies and rising input costs
• Raising kids who understand the work behind a family farm

For farmers, entrepreneurs and business owners, this is a candid look at risk, rebuilding and protecting the cash flow that keeps a business alive.