Business News

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig this week commented on the Iowa Crop Progress and Conditions report released by the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. The report is released weekly from April through November. “With spring weather now upon us, farmers across Iowa are looking to get planters into the field,” said Secretary Naig. ...

The Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council announced that Foundation Analytical Laboratory Owner and Director of Technical Services, Diane Young, will serve as the next Council co-chair. Appointed by Governor Kim Reynolds, Young succeeds Accumold President and CEO, Roger Hargens, who served as STEM Council co-chair for three years...

Some stores would be able to opt out of the state’s bottle and can redemption program under a bill that advanced through a House Ways and Means subcommittee this week. House File 814 would allow stores that sell cans or bottles to refuse returns if there were another, nearby place that customers could drop off their empties. The redemption center has to be within 10 miles of the store in more populous counties, or within 15 miles in rural areas...

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach will host “Money Smart: Prioritizing Bills, Managing Debt and Improving Credit” virtually on Wednesdays, May 5, 12 and 19 from noon to 1:00 p.m. Participation in any of the three sessions is free and open to the public...

Michael Chowdhurry, general manager of Storm Lake’s city-owned King’s Pointe Resort, hosted an open house last week, and is shown speaking to community guests. Chowdhurry is leaving his position after a year, due to health issues. The open house also served to introduce Nick Korth, the new food and beverage manager at King’s Pointe. ...

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig this week commented on the Iowa Crop Progress and Conditions report released by the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. The report is released weekly from April through November. “With recent warm and dry conditions across the state, many farmers are eager to begin fieldwork with an eye towards planting,” said Secretary Naig. ...

The art of tattooing has a long history. As early as 2000 B.C. tattoos were found on Egyptian mummies and represented many facets of life for those who chose that form of expression. Declarations of love, status or religious beliefs are themes that have run though body art in history, and are still common themes today - as tattoos are more popular than ever...

ISG and Tyson Food teamed up on Iowa Agricultural Service Day at Upper Des Moines Opportunities, March 23, 2021. Tyson had two groups work, 1st from 8:30 to 10:30 and 2nd 10:30 to 12:00. Besides sorting and boxing food donations, the ISG group put their hands to good use setting up bikes, over 25! All that engineering schooling going to good use...

Hy-Vee, Inc. announces that it will host its second “Best of Local Brands” summit in May to expand and enhance the product offerings at its more than 275 retail stores in Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wisconsin. The first quarterly summit was held in February where 52 new brands were selected to become available to Hy-Vee customers in the coming months...

It’s a brisk, windy Wednesday in March, as the sun finally breaks through the afternoon sky – in spite of the crisp temperatures, Deanna Harrer keeps prepping her plants, and garden products, at Jones Nursery in Storm Lake. Surrounded by plants in one of the back nurseries, Deanna and her crew water, arrange, and nurture their product for the return of their customers, who will probably be eager to get their gardens in, after a brutal winter. ...

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has confirmed that a popular aquarium product sold at some aquarium supply stores and pet stores in Iowa may contain zebra mussels, a highly invasive species that can cause severe damage to the food chain and infrastructure if released in lakes and rivers...

Climate change is impacting Iowa agriculture and negative impacts are expected to increasingly threaten agricultural productivity in the state. There are many ways, however, that farmers and landowners can increase the resiliency of production systems, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and even capture carbon...

Molly Reitsma has recently joined Farm Credit Services of America (FCSAmerica) in Storm Lake as a closing specialist.  “We are glad to have an individual with the experience and knowledge Molly brings to our association”, said Angie Vaughan, FCSAmerica’s regional vice president of retail operations for northwest Iowa. “Molly is looking forward to meeting and working with our customers.”...

The Iowa Chapter of the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers has presented its 2021 Early Career Award to Grant Aschinger, AFM. Aschinger was presented the award virtually at the February annual meeting of the Iowa Chapter of ASFMRA. This award recognizes an outstanding early career member of the Iowa Chapter for his/her contributions to the Chapter, ASFMRA, and the profession...

Jan M. Spielman, MBA, ChFC®, CRPC®, BFA™, a Private Wealth Advisor with Ameriprise Financial in Storm Lake and Spencer, Iowa was named to the list of “Best-in-State Wealth Advisors” published by Forbes magazine. The list recognizes financial advisors who have demonstrated high levels of ethical standards, professionalism, and success in the business...

Tyson Foods is offering free, onsite COVID-19 vaccinations to thousands of frontline team members at its Iowa plants this week, including Storm Lake sites. The vaccines are being provided in conjunction with local health departments across the state of Iowa, where food processing workers are among the priority group newly eligible for vaccination...

In response to high levels of both personal and financial farm stress, the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Dairy Team is offering three “Farm Couple Getaways” across Iowa, with one location in Northwest Iowa. The program is for farm couples wanting to take advantage of activities to improve farm family communication, work on farm or family goalsetting or farm transitioning, or who would just like a weekend away to discuss farm and family issues as a couple...

Buena Vista University (BVU) and Community 1st Credit Union have put their respective stamps on a Strategic Partnership that will benefit both organizations as they strive to enhance the communities and states they serve. Under the agreement, Community 1st Credit Union employees, their spouses, and dependents may receive grant funding to lower the overall cost of education while enrolled in classes at BVU’s Storm Lake campus. ...

Route 86 Music is excited to announce the creation of its new record label called Route 86 Records. Owner Gary Lambert is excited to bring artists in under this label and has already released several singles. Artist Rock a la Carte kicked things off with the release of their single “So Much Better (Together)” featuring talents from not only Rock a la Carte but also bands Boon & Lambert, Vinyl Nights, Triple Shot and Ten Seven...

On Tuesday, the U.S. Senate voted to confirm former Iowa governor Tom Vilsack to be the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture for the second time. Secretary Vilsack formerly served eight years under President Obama.  In response to the confirmation vote Iowa Renewable Fuels Association Executive Director Monte Shaw made the following statement: ...

By Perry Beeman Iowa Capital Dispatch What Gov. Kim Reynolds saw as a chance to expand Iowa’s nation-leading biofuels industry has turned into a high-octane political fight among some of the most powerful interest groups in the state. Reynolds is proposing to require ethanol and biodiesel at all convenience stores and other retailer fuel outlets. ...

While extreme weather conditions are expected to continue across the country throughout the week, MidAmerican Energy’s natural gas and electric delivery systems are well positioned to serve its customers through the duration of the cold snap. High demand for energy has strained the electric supply in some portions of the regional electric grid, including those in parts of Missouri, Nebraska and even areas in Iowa not served by MidAmerican. ...