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Smithfield Foods awards 12 Impact Grants nationwide
Smithfield Foods has awarded more than $280,000 in Impact Grant funding to 12 nonprofit organizations working to strengthen communities where Smithfield employees live and work. These grants build on the more than $24 million Smithfield invested in 2025 to strengthen communities nationwide, including donating more than 16 million servings of protein to neighbors experiencing food insecurity. “Through our Impact Grant Program, we are proud to partner with local organizations that are addressing...
Farm Futures releases 2024 grower survey
The Farm Futures January Planting Survey shows corn and soybean acreage will shift across the U.S. this spring. Jacqueline Holland, grain market analyst for Farm Futures, said the shift might not be as much as what market prices are forecasting. Holland said soybean...
ISU dining chef Joshua Wilkins wins Pork Congress cooking competition
The nine chefs competing at this year’s Taste competition, which kicks off the Iowa Pork Producer’s Pork Congress week in Des Moines, were tasked with using boneless pork loin as the featured competition cut. Joshua Wilkins, Chef de Cuisine with Iowa State dining...
First sustainable aviation fuel plant represents opportunity
Sustainable aviation fuel could grow into the largest new market ever seen for U.S. farm commodities thanks to the start of production at LanzaJet Freedom Pines Fuels. However, groups in Midwestern states say they could miss out on the opportunity without low-carbon...
Sec Naig talks about poultry processing classification reform
During the pandemic, we saw the local meat locker's resurgence and discovered how vulnerable we were to disruptions in our meat processing supply chain. Since then, efforts have been made at the state and federal levels to make these supply chains more resilient and...
Maximizing the value of U.S. pork exports globally
The U.S. Meat Export Federation is always working to maximize the value of U.S. meat exports globally. For pork producers the monetary return on each pig through export sales is a vital piece of the profitability puzzle. The mission of USMEF is to “Increase the value...
Unverferth completes facility addition at Shell Rock plant
Unverferth Manufacturing has added a 5,000-square-foot facility complete with major renovations and top-of-the-line upgrades at its plant in Shell Rock, Iowa. Communications Manager Jerry Ecklund said this addition will help to streamline the production process. This...
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More Ag News
Several changes for this year’s state fair, but the heart remains
The Iowa State Fair is less than a month away, and the people who run it are excited (with a healthy dose of fear) for it to kick off. Iowa State Fair CEO Jeremy Parsons said several events have taken place on the fairgrounds recently, and that helps them to be...
Despite bullish July WASDE, market expectations should be tempered
It seems like we only get one or two friendly USDA reports to talk about every year, and the July WASDE report was one of them. However, it’s not as bullish as it might initially seem, so expectations for the long term need to be tempered. Allendale commodity broker...
Sun powered sustainability taking shape at Chevron REG in Mason City
Chevron Renewable Energy Group is introducing an enhancement at its Mason City biodiesel production facility that includes the installation of a solar array. The project kicked off with a groundbreaking event at the site that included local leaders and project...
Secretary Naig anticipates record year for water quality wetlands in Iowa
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig announced today that the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship anticipates a record calendar year for progress toward the construction of Department-sponsored water quality wetlands within Iowa. Over the past few...
Outlook for fall 2024 fertilizer shipments
While we just passed the 4th of July a week ago, it is not unreasonable to think about the supplies you will need for and after the fall harvest. One of the biggest inputs that will be thought about is the fall fertilizer and its availability. In the past, we saw some...
