An Interview with Legacy Ag Investor, Dave Kier
Photos of Kier Holdings' feed mill in Zambia.
Modern stories love to focus on the individual, often pitting one person against a horde of enemies.
There’s something in us that loves to beat the odds, and we love to keep a simple focus on a single hero, but that just isn’t how true transformation works.
Fun stories focus on one person heroically overcoming the odds, but true stories focus on the team.
AgGrandize is a partnering organization because we know the best work happens when we rely on one another, building trust, and one man we’ve learned to trust and relied on over the years is Dave Kier.
Two of our highest performing ag partners (one in Central Asia, one in South East Africa) have both been supported by Dave Kier (particularly Hamara Heartlands in Zambia) and both of them have proven to be high impact and doing incredible good for their regions. Considering Mr. Kier’s track record and history of high impact investment and the ministries he’s supported, we were thrilled to have him at our recent Joseph Project Summit in Central Asia and requested a quick interview. Here were a few of his stories and reflections on decades of Kingdom-driven ag impact:
Photo courtesy of Dave Kier.
Why invest in agriculture? How did that come about?
Dave Kier (DK): “Well it goes back 30 years now. I knew way back I wanted to be hands-on with development and business-as-missions style work. I wasn’t a big fan of short term trips, but I had heard of people making a difference through business and decided to pursue that.
So I went out to Central Asia and met people who were doing ministry and serving people in some really interesting ways. I traveled a lot, learned a lot, and ultimately we helped get some things off the ground thanks to a lot of teamwork.
Being more hands-on is great. I like traveling and spending time with people there, on the field, in person, and I think it’s what God called me to do—to engage. I can get pretty naive when I just live in my comfort zone, but God has used this work and these friendships to open my eyes to the realities of people around the world.
Of course, the work has been disappointing at times, but other times it’s been really rewarding. I’ver seen that agriculture can have such an impact, and I’m really grateful for all we’ve accomplished.”
What was it like being back in Central Asia after so many years?
DK: “Well I’ve kept in touch with Micah and Oasis Agro over the years. It was great seeing how they’ve grown and progressed, reaching out into other countries in the region. It felt like being back on home turf again, it was so refreshing.
I also have a grandson working in the region and felt encouraged to see what a strong community network people there have. It’s good to know he’s got support.”
You’ve helped start ag businesses in Kyrgyzstan and Zambia? How do the two compare? Any insights into the likes and differences of the two regions?
DK: “Hmmm, well doing business in Zambia is very similar to how it runs in the USA. It’s very straight-forward, we never had any concerns about government corruption or anyone not welcoming us. The people have just been so welcoming and hospitable.
Kyrgyzstan also have some wonderful people but it was more of a hustle, less smooth. I’ve been really impressed by the innovation I saw in Kyrgyzstan, it was amazing to see the creative problem solving. Our Zambian business partners were able to get access to the equipment they needed, but I’ve noticed Kyrgyz partners often have to improvise, creating machinery from spare parts or coming up with some impressive workarounds to problems. I love seeing it.“