Iowa Agriculture Secretary Mike Naig has announced half a million dollars’ worth of “Choose Iowa” grants are going to 30 Iowa-based operations that sell food and Iowa-made products.
“Everything from retail stores in towns, on farms; expanded distribution into retail, restaurants, farmers markets,” Naig said during a news conference this morning. “I mean, I think that’s what I want to stress here is that we’re seeing really a diversity of the types of businesses, the products, but also how consumers are getting a chance to interact with them.”
The 30 grant recipients are pledging to invest over $1.7 million in their businesses. The announcement was held in Slater in the future retail spot for Home Kneads, a business that makes sourdough bread. Mike Harris and his wife, Nina, plan to use theor $25,000 grant to help buy new equipment, like new ovens and a van to distribute their bread. “Iowans want real Iowa products, real food,” Harris said. “…We partner with companies like Fareway. They see value that we can bring to Iowans.”
Another $25,000 grant is going to Kittleson Brothers, a business in St. Ansgar, a century-old family business that raises potatoes and onions. In 2021, Adam Koch, a descendant of the founders, joined the business. “We are updating our potato facility, so the grant will be going toward our new potato wash line,” Koch said. “There will be some pretty big updates that we’re working on this summer and this will help us continue to grow and keep our product in Iowa.” The company currently distributes potatoes and onions to 30 Iowa grocery stores.
Jeff Hafner said his $19,000 “Choose Iowa” grant will help buy a refrigeration unit for a food distribution center called “That Iowa Girl” in Panora that ships products to seven Midwest states. “The value of these grants is huge, not only in the community, but in the networking on these small businesses,” Hafner said.
Buser’s Produce in Conesville is getting a $7500 grant and owner Jordan Lyon, a partner in the operation, said the grant will be used to start selling the melons from his farm in the Des Moines metro. “I grew up in Conesville and I remember listening to the old guys talk about loading rail cars with watermelons in the rail yard there…It went from hundreds of railcars a day during the summer moving out of there to when I got into the industry we were going to a few farmers markets,” he said, “…and hopefully as we continue to expand, it’ll be available in every grocery store in the state of Iowa.”
The Rooster Ranch in Knoxville is building a commercial kitchen to make its jalepino-based sweet relish called “Ranch Candy” and is getting a 15-thousand dollar state grant to support the project. Owner Jodi Barrett said moving production out of her home kitchen is just part of the project. “Last year we contracted with a neighboring farmer to grow our jalepino plants. Last year he put in 200 jalepinon plants,” she said. “This year I’m happy to say he has started 1000 jalepino plants and has committed to growing all the rest of the produce we use in our product — and who knew that good old Iowa soil can grow some really spicy peppers.”
Naig sids these projects are responding to consumer demands. “We’ve got national survey work and we’ve even done some survey work here in Iowa,” Naig said. “80-plus percent of Iowans say they would go out of their way to ‘buy local’ and they’d even be willing to pay more for those products.”
The following Choose Iowa Value-Added Grant projects, listed in alphabetical order by city, were awarded today:
Mustard Seed Community Farm | Ames | $17,600.00
Mustard Seed Community Farm will construct and equip an on-farm licensed commercial kitchen and food processing establishment that includes a walk-in cooler, bathroom, storage, and equipment for freezing, dehydrating, and canning farm produce and making value-added farm products. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $99,000.00
Treasure Acres Farm | Blairsburg | $5,115.00
Treasure Acres Farm will purchase a heated honey creamer, honey warming and cooling cabinet, upgraded extraction and uncapping equipment, bottling and filling equipment, and quality-control tools. This project allows the farm to increase efficiency, improve consistency, and expand the market-ready volume of shelf-stable, value-added food products made from Iowa-produced honey. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $10,230.00
Batige’s Transparency Project Farm | Cedar Rapids | $5,482.00
Batige’s Transparency Project Farm will install a cooler on their farm where they grow culturally relevant food for the African immigrant community. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $10,964.00
Afro-Iowa Unity Farm | Cedar Rapids | $20,000.00
Afro-Iowa Unity will purchase a refrigerated van to keep their produce chilled during transport, enabling them to deliver fresh products to customers and allowing them to expand their customer base outside of the Cedar Rapids area. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $40,000.00
Grand View Beef | Clarion | $22,372.50
Grand View Beef will purchase a refrigerated trailer to ensure the safe and reliable transportation of their grass-fed, Iowa-raised beef directly to customers across Iowa. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $44,745.00
Buser’s Produce | Conesville | $7,500.00
Buser’s Produce will purchase a semi tractor and 53-foot refrigerated trailer, allowing them to expand the market for their watermelon, cantaloupe, sweet corn, pumpkins and squash into central Iowa. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $50,000.00
InConvenience Inc. | Davenport | $9,189.59
InConvenience Inc. will create a dedicated cooler space in their Davenport convenience store called The Iowa Grown section. This refrigerated, self-serve island merchandiser will sell products made and produced in Iowa. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $18,379.17
Iowa Food Hub | Decorah | $25,000.00
Iowa Food Hub will purchase a newer, larger replacement truck for their fleet, allowing them to expand their routes and reliably serve more customers in Iowa. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $70,000.00
Global Greens – Lutheran Services in Iowa | Des Moines | $2,786.50
Global Greens – Lutheran Services in Iowa will purchase totes and shelving for their shared use warehouse. The warehouse is where local produce is aggregated and stored, and CSA shares are packed each week. They will also purchase a hanging basket retail display for their new business line of plant sales, and supply aggregation service for farmers at their Global Greens Greenhouse. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $13,032.49
Pie Bird Pies | Des Moines | $11,514.30
Pie Bird Pies will purchase a dough sheeter and a convection oven, two key pieces of commercial kitchen equipment, allowing them to increase pie production in their bakery and source more Iowa ingredients, including fruit. By increasing production, they can better meet the needs of existing customers and diversify and expand market access with the addition of wholesale partners. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $23,028.60
Jefferson County Ciderworks | Fairfield | $25,000.00
Jefferson County Ciderworks will purchase and install a six-head canning line at their Fairfield production facility to significantly expand in-state processing capacity. This will allow them to launch new value-added product lines and increase the sales of Iowa agricultural products. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $84,125.00
Mundo Lindo Farm | Fairfield | $25,000.00
Mundo Lindo Farm will convert a grain bin into a farm store with refrigerated and frozen coolers and shelving, creating a retail space to sell products from their farm as well as other area growers and producers. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $70,053.76
Pickle Creek Herbs | Fairfield | $20,216.35
Pickle Creek Herbs is building an open-sided pole structure for on-farm washing and packing of produce with a walk-in cooler to extend the storage life of produce. The addition of a freeze dryer will preserve herbs and berries, creating shelf-stable ingredients that can be utilized in their herb-infused oils, vinegars, and body care products. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $45,232.70
Soldier Creek Winery | Fort Dodge | $12,500.00
Soldier Creek Winery will purchase a semi-automatic isobaric bottling machine and its necessary adjacent specialized equipment. Designed for carbonated beverages, including sparkling wine, pét-nat, cider, and ready-to-drink cocktails, the isobaric bottling machine fills bottles under pressure, preserving carbonation, preventing oxidation and reducing product loss. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $60,669.00
Prairie Produce | Grinnell | $17,601.50
Prairie Produce will purchase and install a walk-in refrigeration unit to support post-harvest handling of their Iowa-grown specialty crops. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $35,203.00
Carlson Tree Farm | Hampton | $7,286.56
Carlson Tree Farm will purchase an A-frame building and create a “Little Barn Market” that will extend the quality of products, creating additional value-added product sales for their Christmas tree farm. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $14,573.13
Mint ‘N More Foundation | Knoxville | $9,315.00
Mint ’N More Foundation plans to start a weekly pre-order pickup for Iowa-grown food in Knoxville called Gathered Local Foods. The project includes the purchase of refrigeration and cold storage equipment, shelving, display and merchandising equipment needed to aggregate, store, and distribute locally produced foods. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $25,359.00
Rooster Ranch | Knoxville | $15,421.00
Rooster Ranch will establish a commercial kitchen to expand production of its shelf-stable Ranch Candy products, a small-batch, value-added condiment made entirely from Iowa-grown agricultural products. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $36,841.00
Yoder Family Farms Pork | Lone Tree | $25,000.00
Yoder Family Farms Pork will construct a building to serve as the central hub of their farm store where they will market their retail Duroc pork. They will also sell products from other local producers, including eggs, beef, lamb and seasonal produce. They also plan to create a learning environment where customers can have an interactive experience while visiting the farm store. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $138,152.25
Fireside Winery | Marengo | $12,500.00
Fireside Winery will purchase and install specialized canning equipment to produce and sell still wine packaged in aluminum cans, an emerging product category with limited availability in Iowa. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $43,898.00
Enchanted Evergreens | Newton | $25,000.00
Enchanted Evergreens will renovate and repurpose a historic barn on their Christmas tree farm into a dedicated workspace for creating wreaths and porch pots made from Iowa-sourced greenery. It will also be a heated indoor retail space for Iowa-made products, restrooms, employee break space, and a welcoming area where customers can gather. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $89,529.00
EcoPrime | Osage | $25,000.00
EcoPrime will acquire a larger mobile freezer trailer, enabling higher-volume transportation and onsite cold storage of value-added and regeneratively raised meat sourced from more than ten Iowa partner farms. As a result, EcoPrime and its network plan to participate in additional farmers markets, pop-ups, festivals, and events statewide. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $50,000.00
That Iowa Girl | Panora | $19,215.00
That Iowa Girl will buy a 10-foot refrigerated box with reefer to mount on a leased cab and chassis truck to replace their smaller reefer van, helping them be more economical during their expansive delivery routes. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $38,430.00
Golden Hills Apiary | Riverside | $5,758.90
Golden Hills Apiary will invest in a modern extraction and bottling line, including an automated honey frame uncapper and a specialized honey creamer. This will transform their operation from a small-scale artisanal apiary into a high-capacity production facility capable of supplying regional grocery stores, wholesalers and specialized markets. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $11,517.00
Home Kneads | Slater | $25,000.00
Home Kneads is expanding into a larger commercial facility and will use funds to purchase additional ovens, mixers, and a walk-in cooler to support higher volume production. They will also purchase a pre-owned delivery vehicle to expand distribution capacity. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $50,730.00
Local Harvest CSA | Solon | $8,617.11
Local Harvest CSA will purchase a blast chiller freezer and vacuum sealer allowing them to create a local market for previously unmarketable produce. This will increase the production of value-added Iowa products sold directly to consumers and wholesale to restaurants and institutions. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $17,234.21
Wilson’s Orchard | Solon | $20,000.00
Wilson’s Orchard plans to expand the distribution of their refrigerated apple products by purchasing a more reliable refrigerated truck. Wilson’s Orchard is known for its value-added apple products, including jugged sweet cider, canned sparkling cider, apple cider vinegar and apple cider donuts. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $45,000.00
Kittleson Bros. | St. Ansgar | $25,000.00
Kittleson Bros. plans to remodel their facilities this summer, which will include safer, more efficient and more modern equipment. They plan to install a new potato wash line in this revamped facility. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $353,202.08
Minerva’s Meadow | State Center | $25,000.00
Minerva’s Meadow will restore a 1950’s barn to create a processing space and cooler for flower processing, bouquet making, oil distillation, educational classes and demonstrations, as well as wholesale markets and florist deliveries. They will also build a staircase and larger access to the hay loft, allowing them to use the space for farm activities, including storage, drying flowers and herbs, and a workspace for creating value-added products. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $72,228.43
WW Homestead Dairy | Waukon | $25,000.00
WW Homestead Dairy will purchase a refrigerated truck to allow for increased access and expansion to new markets within Iowa. Anticipated Total Project Cost: $50,000.00
