Midwestern BioAg, Inc. CEO, Dr. Anthony F. Michaels, Prepares Plan For Rapid Expansion

BLUE MOUNDS, Wis., July 15, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Midwestern BioAg, Inc. has developed a strategic plan to expand its reach, increase the capacity of the company to meet the needs of its customers and extend the diversity and cost-effectiveness of Midwestern BioAg's products and services. Midwestern BioAg provides a tailored farm management plan that incorporates better farming through better soil to meet each and every producer's production goals for soils, crops and livestock. Midwestern BioAg currently has sales of $35 million, both direct and through a network of dealers.  In its 30 year history, the company has developed a base of over 3500 farmer customers in 23 states and 3 Canadian provinces.  

On June 24, 2014, the company announced a strategic investment to finance the first round of growth.  Midwestern BioAg will use the additional capital to strengthen its organic growth, grow strategically through partnerships with large land owners and food processors and to make targeted acquisitions to integrate the supply chain and develop new products.

"I am thankful for the support of the Board, our customers, our recent investors and our staff at Midwestern BioAg as we move into the next stage of growth and expansion," said Dr. Anthony Michaels, CEO of Midwestern BioAg, Inc. "Our goal is to raise yields, lower unit costs, reduce environmental impacts and improve food nutritional quality, making farming more profitable and sustainable. Biological farming is not only good for the environment, our food supply and our health, but it builds more resiliency and profit into our farming systems."

Recently announced as the new CEO of Midwestern BioAg (MBA), Dr. Michaels follows leaders Gary Zimmer and Don Faber, two of the four founders of MBA.  Zimmer, the visionary founder of MBA will continue his role as President and member of the board. MBA, Proteus Environmental Technologies, LLC (Proteus) and Grower's Secret, Inc. (GSI) completed a strategic acquisition and investment in the future of MBA, just last month. The investment group, led by Proteus and GSI, acquired controlling interest in MBA with a plan for infusing $20 million in growth capital into the business to execute on the first stages of a national and global expansion.

The increasing demand for sustainable farming is a major component of MBA's forward planning. With climate challenges increasing and stress on yields a constant pressure point, MBA has unique proprietary knowledge to help farmers increase the productivity of the land, crops and livestock.  At the same time, farmers who use these biological systems make more money, a critical issue when trying to improve agriculture.  The company plans to expand the availability of its system with additional staff, products and service centers.

Prior to his role as CEO of MBA, Michaels was co-managing director of Proteus, and holds 31 years of leadership experience in environmental science, systems thinking and entrepreneurship. Michaels was the founder and Director of the Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies at the University of Southern California from 1996-2008 with combined research and operational budgets of over $15M per year and over 100 faculty, staff and students. He also has 27 years of experience in marine and environmental research including research on the global carbon and nutrient cycles and the role of the oceans in absorbing carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas.

Michaels co-created and managed a program on the value of climate forecasts in the management of hurricane-related risks by the international reinsurance industry and was the founding President of the Council of Environmental Deans and Directors, a professional organization for leaders of academic environmental programs that now involves over 140 universities and colleges.

A student at the University of California, San Diego and the University of Arizona (B.S., M.S.), Michaels then attended the University of California, Santa Cruz for his Ph.D. in Biology. He worked at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the Bermuda Biological Station for Research before joining University of Southern California in 1996.

Proteus brings together profound environmental technology and market expertise, end-to-end new venture incubation and technology commercialization know-how, with first-hand experience in sustainability, aquaculture, food production and alternative energy. The company's insider network of key relationships across universities, industry, agriculture, aquaculture, government and major corporate leaders in the energy and environment space add another key element to the partnership the company has created with MBA. In addition to Proteus, a key investor, Grower's Secret Inc., also has a mission to improve people's lives and repair the earth. GSI offers a complete collection of organic products for home gardeners and commercial growers that are patented in 157 countries.  As a lead investor, the company lends support to MBA's methods that will improve agriculture and secure food for growing populations.

About Midwestern BioAg, Inc.:
Midwestern BioAg, founded in 1983 and headquartered in Blue Mounds, Wisconsin, has developed methods to increase soil fertility that translate into less inputs and greater yields increasing grower profits. Midwestern BioAg is an industry leader in biological agriculture with core facilities in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan and Iowa and a sales force and network of dealers that cover 23 states and three Canadian provinces. The staff is well educated and knowledgeable in the principles and practices of soil management, crop production and animal agriculture. MBA supplies a wide range of products and programs to assist customers in managing an efficient and profitable operation. MBA creates tailored management plans that incorporate better farming through better soil to meet each and every producer's production goals for soils, crops and livestock. For more information, please contact Midwestern BioAg at 800.327.6012 or visit www.midwesternbioag.com.

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