Northern-grown soybeans just got a fresh perspective.  

On July 1, the first day of fiscal year 2026, Northern Soy Marketing (NSM) welcomed South Dakota farmer Carson Stange to its board of directors. 

“We’re excited to have Carson join the board,” said NSM Chair Glen Groth, who farms in Minnesota. “To keep our organization’s forward momentum, we need a variety of minds on the board to foster robust conversation. I’m looking forward to working with Carson and incorporating his thoughts and ideas for the betterment of soybean growers across the Upper Midwest.” 

Stange, who was elected to represent District 7 on the South Dakota Soybean Research and Promotion Council (SDSRPC) in June, farms near Stratford, raising corn, soybeans, wheat and cattle. Graduating from Lake Area Technical College in 2014 with an agriculture precision degree, Stange began farming full time in 2020 after working on a neighboring farm.  

“My heart was always on the farm and when my daughter was born in 2020, it was time for a change,” Stange said. “So, I started with about 80 acres of alfalfa and sold it commercially. That kept growing into picking up some crop ground each year, and I’m farming 1,500 acres now.” 

No stranger to leadership, Stange graduated from the South Dakota Agricultural and Rural Leadership program as part of Class XII, where he heard about SDSRPC’s See for Yourself tour. Little did he know, he’d soon be a farmer-leader of that very organization.  

“I got involved with the See for Yourself tour, which went to the Pacific Northwest, and I guess they had a pretty good sales pitch,” Stange said. “It just happened that my SDSRPC district was coming up this year for election and the previous director was terming out.” 

That previous director is Mike McCranie, who also represented South Dakota on NSM’s board during his tenure. Though McCranie is no longer on the NSM board, he will still have ample opportunity to interact with the organization and promote northern-grown soybeans as U.S. Soybean Export Council vice chair. And he’s confident NSM is in good hands with Stange. 

“When Carson was elected, I contacted him and recommended that he join the NSM board,” McCranie said. “During that conversation, I tried to shepherd him towards areas that I thought he’d be interested in and NSM was one of those areas. I think he’ll be a good addition.” 

A collaboration of farmer leaders from Minnesota and South Dakota, NSM promotes the quality, consistency and reliability of northern-grown soybeans and soymeal by working with respected researchers to provide a more accurate picture of soybean feeding quality by considering critical essential amino acids.  

“The work that NSM does is really intriguing to me,” Stange said. “I want to be a part of educating people on NSM’s view of quality over quantity. And I think a lot of farmers don’t know that they have a higher value soybean, so I want to help educate producers, consumers and international purchasers.” 

NSM is kicking off its year with its third-annual Crop Tour, happening Sept. 29-Oct.3, 2025. The tour will bring international stakeholders to farms across Minnesota and South Dakota before heading to Grays Harbor, Wash. Placing an emphasis on building relationships, NSM inherently understands the importance of connecting with purchasers in-person and the crop tour is an excellent opportunity for soybean farmers to speak directly with the people buying their soybeans.  

“NSM differentiates our soybeans from the rest of the world,” Stange said. “The organization helps our region stand out as the best soybean growers.”