NW Iowa counties urged to embrace organic farming
By Bret Hayworth Journal Staff Writer | Posted: Tuesday, July 31, 2007
More than once, Woodbury County rural economic development director Rob Marqusee has brought a group to Fiona's Firehouse Bistro on Fifth Street to tout the benefits of locally grown food.
He did it again Monday, using some meatloaf, potatoes and dessert as an enticement. Also on the table was a proposal to create a four-county consortium promoting locally grown organic foods.
Supervisors from Woodbury, Monona, Plymouth and Cherokee counties heard Marqusee passionately encourage them to stem the loss of family farms by banding together to promote organic foods. To show how the Woodbury County agricultural economy has changed, he cited a drop-off in sales of livestock from $358 million in 1969 to $80 million in 2003, along with a 78 percent increase in the number of farms with more than 1,000 acres from 1975 to 2004.
In addition, virtually 100 percent of the corn and soybeans grown exits the county to a few huge corporate ag processors.
Better, Marqusee said, would be to keep the food locally for consumption, offered in farmer's markets or on Fiona's menu. Marqusee said the niche market that farmers should consider is raising organic crops, vegetables and fruits.
Of his continuing push for organic, Marqusee acknowledged, "Some people say, 'Well, you are a health nut,'" but he said his goal as rural economic development director is simply to buck the family-farm loss trend. "Local people have to act, to take control of their destiny," he said.
There are only a handful of organic producers in Woodbury County, but Marqusee said they're receiving premium prices for such goods as strawberries, asparagus and corn. Woodbury County Supervisor Mark Monson said there is a growing trend among Americans "who think it is better not to have chemicals in the things they eat ... and they are willing to pay twice the cost" over what they'd pay for mass-produced food.
"People want local. People want to buy local because they trust it more," Marqusee said.
He said there is "absolutely guaranteed demand" for organic, locally grown food, but there is not enough supply from Northwest Iowa. He said a Wells Dairy vice president told him the firm would like to create an organic line but hasn't because there are no local sources and Wells doesn't want to import the needed goods.
Marqusee said there is good news on the horizon, with word last week that a $40 million organic soybean processing plant would be built by 2008 in South Sioux City by Speciality Protein Producers, a Wisconsin start-up firm. Marqusee said Specialty officials told him that organic soybeans would draw a price of $16 per bushel, far above the current price of $7 for traditional yellow soybeans.
He said Western Iowa Tech Community College has a course that teaches farmers how to get their land designated as certified organic. In response to a question from a Plymouth County supervisor, Marqusee said it takes three years for land that has been used for traditional growing methods to receive the certified organic label. Many farmers grow alfalfa on the land in those intervening years.
Organic farming, Marqusee said, can be carried out on small-acre farms and is very labor intensive. Some in attendance pointed to the conservative nature of farmers and resistance to change from the type of agriculture they're accustomed to practicing.
Although she isn't on the Monona County Board, Jeanne Nelsen of Soldier was in attendance and said she and her husband are about to give up operating the feed store in Soldier. Nelson was enthusiastic about the locally grown market, saying that younger farmers with "an independent streak" would be up for it.
"They are going to see there is money in this," Nelsen said.
The Cherokee County supervisors have already embraced the organic move, so it is up to Plymouth and Monona to make it a foursome.
Marqusee said: "If they pass these policies for the (organic) conversion, then I will work with their economic development folks to create a much broader outreach and network of local farmers. ... I'm hoping that Monona and Plymouth come along, because we'd like to have four counties. What that would allow us to do is broaden the scope. We want to create as many opportunities as we can for small farmers to make additional cash."
Plymouth County Supervisor Craig Anderson said the board within the last year discussed giving a tax abatement to organic farmers but didn't. "We couldn't get a handle on how many acres would qualify, so we tabled it." Anderson, a farmer, said Marqusee's proposal has merit and that the Plymouth County board would likely consider it in the near future.
Woodbury County Supervisor George Boykin indicated he looks hopefully toward all four counties coming together in the consortium.
"We are in the same boat together; it just doesn't end at the Woodbury County line," Boykin said.
Bret Hayworth may be reached at (712) 293.4203 or brethayworth@siouxcityjournal.com
He did it again Monday, using some meatloaf, potatoes and dessert as an enticement. Also on the table was a proposal to create a four-county consortium promoting locally grown organic foods.
Supervisors from Woodbury, Monona, Plymouth and Cherokee counties heard Marqusee passionately encourage them to stem the loss of family farms by banding together to promote organic foods. To show how the Woodbury County agricultural economy has changed, he cited a drop-off in sales of livestock from $358 million in 1969 to $80 million in 2003, along with a 78 percent increase in the number of farms with more than 1,000 acres from 1975 to 2004.
In addition, virtually 100 percent of the corn and soybeans grown exits the county to a few huge corporate ag processors.
Better, Marqusee said, would be to keep the food locally for consumption, offered in farmer's markets or on Fiona's menu. Marqusee said the niche market that farmers should consider is raising organic crops, vegetables and fruits.
Of his continuing push for organic, Marqusee acknowledged, "Some people say, 'Well, you are a health nut,'" but he said his goal as rural economic development director is simply to buck the family-farm loss trend. "Local people have to act, to take control of their destiny," he said.
There are only a handful of organic producers in Woodbury County, but Marqusee said they're receiving premium prices for such goods as strawberries, asparagus and corn. Woodbury County Supervisor Mark Monson said there is a growing trend among Americans "who think it is better not to have chemicals in the things they eat ... and they are willing to pay twice the cost" over what they'd pay for mass-produced food.
"People want local. People want to buy local because they trust it more," Marqusee said.
He said there is "absolutely guaranteed demand" for organic, locally grown food, but there is not enough supply from Northwest Iowa. He said a Wells Dairy vice president told him the firm would like to create an organic line but hasn't because there are no local sources and Wells doesn't want to import the needed goods.
Marqusee said there is good news on the horizon, with word last week that a $40 million organic soybean processing plant would be built by 2008 in South Sioux City by Speciality Protein Producers, a Wisconsin start-up firm. Marqusee said Specialty officials told him that organic soybeans would draw a price of $16 per bushel, far above the current price of $7 for traditional yellow soybeans.
He said Western Iowa Tech Community College has a course that teaches farmers how to get their land designated as certified organic. In response to a question from a Plymouth County supervisor, Marqusee said it takes three years for land that has been used for traditional growing methods to receive the certified organic label. Many farmers grow alfalfa on the land in those intervening years.
Organic farming, Marqusee said, can be carried out on small-acre farms and is very labor intensive. Some in attendance pointed to the conservative nature of farmers and resistance to change from the type of agriculture they're accustomed to practicing.
Although she isn't on the Monona County Board, Jeanne Nelsen of Soldier was in attendance and said she and her husband are about to give up operating the feed store in Soldier. Nelson was enthusiastic about the locally grown market, saying that younger farmers with "an independent streak" would be up for it.
"They are going to see there is money in this," Nelsen said.
The Cherokee County supervisors have already embraced the organic move, so it is up to Plymouth and Monona to make it a foursome.
Marqusee said: "If they pass these policies for the (organic) conversion, then I will work with their economic development folks to create a much broader outreach and network of local farmers. ... I'm hoping that Monona and Plymouth come along, because we'd like to have four counties. What that would allow us to do is broaden the scope. We want to create as many opportunities as we can for small farmers to make additional cash."
Plymouth County Supervisor Craig Anderson said the board within the last year discussed giving a tax abatement to organic farmers but didn't. "We couldn't get a handle on how many acres would qualify, so we tabled it." Anderson, a farmer, said Marqusee's proposal has merit and that the Plymouth County board would likely consider it in the near future.
Woodbury County Supervisor George Boykin indicated he looks hopefully toward all four counties coming together in the consortium.
"We are in the same boat together; it just doesn't end at the Woodbury County line," Boykin said.
Bret Hayworth may be reached at (712) 293.4203 or brethayworth@siouxcityjournal.com
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