At Stine®, our goal is to recruit the best in the industry. We seek employees and sales team members who are hardworking, knowledgeable and dedicated to putting our grower customers first. We are in the business of solving problems and providing solutions; it’s the value we offer. We hire talented and experienced individuals such as Stine regional sales agronomist (RSA) Lucas Krueger.
Krueger has a passion for agriculture and zest for life. He grew up on a corn and soybean farm in North Dakota, which steered him to pursue his plant science degree at North Dakota State University. Between his freshman and sophomore year, however, his path took an unexpected turn when a “magical” opportunity changed his outlook on life and his career.
A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity
According to Krueger, roughly 400 to 500 applicants applied for the ag science internship at Walt Disney World® in Orlando, Florida, and only 15 were selected to help manage the on-site greenhouses for the 2015 spring semester. After months of intensive interviews, Krueger was selected for a once-in-a-lifetime position.
“To think there were hundreds of students who wanted this, and I was one of the 15 selected, it’s mind boggling,” says Krueger. “Throughout the process, they vet you, talk to your references, and make sure you’re willing to move to Florida and be away from home. It took about three to five months but was well worth it.”
Krueger began his internship in January 2015 in an area Disney calls “The Land,” which is part of EPCOT’s “Living with the Land” attraction. At the time, it consisted of four public greenhouses that guests were able to view and two more “backstage,” where the interns grew and researched plants before they were put on display.
A typical workday for Krueger included a Tuesday through Saturday shift from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Interns were allowed free access to the Disney parks, so when he wasn’t working, he was off enjoying the sites and rides.
Krueger would work with approximately 150 different types of plants from across the world daily, including palm trees, dragon fruit, date palms and even Mickey-shaped pumpkins.
“We learned how to grow everything without soil,” Krueger says. “It was all about nutrients, water, space and everything plants need to grow. It focused on hydroponics.”
Krueger notes that plants were often grown on strings or in PVC pipes. In one greenhouse, Krueger remembers a tomato plant that grew up like a tree as it was strung to the ceiling. Lettuce was grown on rotating PVC pipes that spun to provide nutrients to the crop during the rotation process.
One of the most unique plants Krueger worked with was, strangely enough, amaranth.
“Amaranth in the field is a weed, but at Disney, we grew it as a crop. Everything we grew had edible components, even the lily pads,” says Krueger.
Many of the plants grown in the greenhouses would be used for the restaurants on-site at Disney, others for park displays and some were even shipped to feed the animals at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
Practicing conservation and advocacy
As an ag science intern, Krueger’s team was tasked with creating a zero-waste environment. Using the plants and produce to feed the animals at Animal Kingdom was a great way to ensure nothing produced in the greenhouse was discarded.
“I remember one day, our Zero Waste Project got its zero-waste certification, which was a huge deal at the company. We were some of the people who made it happen,” Krueger notes.
He adds that everything planted was propagated. Even the corn would start its growth process in the greenhouse before being transplanted into sand for either park display or consumption.
“The biggest thing I’ve been able to bring with me to my roles outside of Disney is the idea of conservation,” says Krueger. “The importance of conservation continues to be brought up and is something we need to focus on. If it wasn’t for this internship, I wouldn’t have realized its importance.”
Krueger was also tasked with giving tours to visitors from around the world — an effort he says was an eye-opening experience for him.
“I gave three to four tours a day for six months to share what we did in the greenhouses,” adds Krueger. “What surprised me was how little people knew about where their food came from and the misinformation surrounding genetic modification and engineering. I enjoyed teaching them the true value of agriculture and how it all comes together. It proved how much of an ‘agvocate’ I could be.”
Bringing his talent to Stine
Following his internship, Krueger had a whole new outlook on life. He knew he wanted a career in agriculture but was much more open to traveling and seeing the rest of the country. He spent his first few years in the southeastern United States, traveling and living in the Carolinas and Tennessee. While it was a great experience, he was still connected to his fellow interns from Disney, and a few were studying at Iowa State University at the time. The lifelong friendships he grew in Orlando encouraged him to follow his friends to Ames, Iowa, where he finished his degree in agricultural science.
“My internship at Disney really led me on a path across the world,” says Krueger. “After I completed my degree, I did an internship with Bayer in 2019 in Hawaii. I wouldn’t have gone if it wasn’t for Disney. The opportunity forced me to grow up and work for myself rather than go back to the farm.”
His next gig landed him in his now-permanent home of Indiana, where he met his wife, Laney. He was also introduced to Stine eastern division director of sales Ben Grinnell and general manager of sales Clint Bounds. After a few conversations, Grinnell and Bounds convinced Krueger to join the Stine team.
As an RSA for Stine, Krueger supports his team of independent sales representatives (ISRs) in any way possible. He provides them with the resources they need for their day-to-day operations, helps them grow their business and make their grower customers’ operations more profitable.
“My team and our customers are some of the most loyal folks I’ve ever met,” says Krueger. “It’s a very hands-on region; we’re one big family. I didn’t expect to have that when I started here. It’s a breath of fresh air. They are what makes Indiana Stine work.”
Giving back
If you’ve ever had a conversation with Krueger, you likely know he has an outgoing personality through and through.
“I’m a big people person,” says Krueger. “If I can’t find and build a connection where I’m at, then I struggle. I’m very fortunate and blessed to have both my Disney family and Stine family play such an important role in my life.”
Krueger is not only dedicated to uplifting his team and improving growers’ operations, but he’s also committed to his community. He currently resides in Noblesville, Indiana, where he coaches little league baseball, is a volunteer firefighter and donates to the American Red Cross. He even met his wife through volunteer firefighting when her dad was the chief.
As for visiting his old stomping grounds in Orlando, he tries to get back to Disney a few times a year, but it’s the lasting friendships and hands-on agronomic experience he gained while there that have truly enrichened his life.
“I love everything I’ve done,” says Krueger. “We’re all given a certain number of days on this Earth. To say I’ve been able to work at companies like Disney and Stine, it’s incredible.”
If you have a son or daughter interested in Disney’s ag science internship, Krueger says he’s happy to talk to them to share his experience. You can contact him here. To speak to one of our other knowledgeable RSAs or ISRs to help set you up for success in 2024 and beyond, find your local rep on our Find Stine page.
