2/2/01

Contacts:
Don Hofstrand, Cerro Gordo County Extension Office, (641) 423-0844
Karen Bolluyt, Communications Service, (515) 294-3701

POTENTIAL MEMBERS INVITED TO MEETINGS OF INNOVATIVE GROWERS LLC

AMES, Iowa -- More profit for grain producers is the goal of Innovative Growers LLC. Innovative Growers (IG) will hold meetings for prospective members and other interested people at four Iowa locations on Feb. 8 and 9.

The Feb. 8 meetings will be at the Dickens Community building from 10 a.m. to noon and at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Algona from 2 to 4 p.m. The Feb. 9 meetings will be at the Fort Dodge Holiday Inn from 10 a.m. to noon and at the Best Western Holiday Lodge in Clear Lake from 2 to 4 p.m.

"IG will be a farmer-owned, specialty-grain supply network. The goal is to increase member profits by establishing long-term relationships with seed companies, processors, end users and others," said Don Hofstrand, extension farm management specialist based in Mason City.

IG began accepting members in August 2000 and has nine members. Bill Northey, Spirit Lake, is president.

A membership unit has a one-time cost of $200 and gives a member the right to grow up to 10 acres of specialty grains for IG. The minimum investment is 10 units. Any farmer or landowner who produces crops and is an Iowa resident can join IG.

The IG effort is supported by Iowa State University Extension and the Iowa Grain Quality Initiative.

"We expect to develop sophisticated certification and information programs to support the production of next-generation specialty grains. And we intend for producers to capture more of the value that grain has to the end user," said Charles Hurburgh, professor of agricultural engineering at Iowa State.

Hofstrand urged interested people to attend the February meetings. But he noted that information on IG also is available at www.iowagrain.org and through the Cerro Gordo County Extension Office.

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