HAVRE — For three brothers outside Havre, the search for ways to lower fertilizer costs begins in their own fields.
Greg, Gary and Gerald Baltrusch are generational farmers and founding partners of Smart Blend Technology. For the past three growing seasons, they have used their agricultural operation to test Lípasma, a liquid biological plant food designed to help crops access and absorb nutrients more efficiently.
Watch Madison Collier's report from Havre:
Fertilizer costs have remained a recurring concern for Montana producers, with prices influenced by overseas supply, transportation and geopolitical disruptions. The Baltrusches see reducing the amount they use as one way to gain more control over those costs.
“We’re not relying on foreign markets,” Greg said. “We’re off that roller-coaster pricing.”
However, Lípasma itself is not new. Gerald said it was developed about 20 years ago, but their work has focused on adapting and testing it for larger agricultural operations.
“Bringing it into agriculture is a high barrier,” Gerald said. “Growers, they need to mitigate risk. When you look at this ground, you look at this dirt, this is their family, this is their heritage, this is their life.”
The Baltrusches approached the product with that same caution. After watching similar products come and go over the years, in 2024, they began applying it to small plots of land.
Then, in 2025 Smart Blend Technology formed. The team is Gary, Greg and Gerald Baltrusch, alongside Tom and Daniel Costamagna.
They expanded the trials during the second season, testing different application rates across hundreds of acres, and other farmers were also invited to try it on their operations.
This year, the Baltrusches are using Lípasma across their entire farm.
According to the trio, the product is applied after a crop emerges and can be mixed with an existing herbicide application. Which, Greg said, allowed them to use their current equipment without adding another trip across the field each year.
“It mixes with all our chemicals and is easy to use,” Gary said. “You just mix the chemical, put the Lípasma in, then come in and spray the crops when they’re ready for weeds.”
Gerald said previous trials indicated they could reduce synthetic fertilizer use by 50% while producing comparable results.
The performance figures and savings estimates cited by the Baltrusches come from company-led, on-farm trials involving Smart Blend and participating growers.
With this product, their goal is to reduce their reliance on synthetic fertilizer, not promise dramatic increases in yield.
“Are you going to get a better bushel per acre — five bushels? No,” Greg said. “Are you going to get two or three points better on your protein? No. If we can just stay at par with what we have been doing, that’s what we’re looking for.”
They explained producing a comparable crop with fewer synthetic inputs could also leave more money in a producer’s budget.
The Baltrusches estimate the change saved them at least $20 per acre last year, but they acknowledged that fertilizer prices and growing conditions can change from one season to the next.
What began on their farm is now reaching more producers, as Lípasma was applied to more than 40,000 acres during the 2026 growing season.
Some participating farmers tested it on a few hundred acres, while others used it across larger portions of their operations. Gerald explained that the company is investing in additional production and storage capacity in Havre as it looks toward 2027.
The Baltrusches say they want that growth to benefit Montana producers and their community.
“We’re a Montana-based company,” Gerald said. “All the proceeds, all the money that comes in, we want to help the Montana farmers.”
Smart Blend will host Farmer Day in Havre on Nov. 2, giving current and prospective growers an opportunity to learn more about the technology and connect with other farmers using it. The event will include field data and presentations.
“We're community-minded. Everybody around us is too. This could be a really big deal for this community.” Gary said, smiling.
