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Numbers put current ag picture in perspective

AMES — Trade wars. Tariffs. Widespread flooding. Delayed planting. Seems like many farmers in Iowa and beyond can’t get a break this spring, and the numbers help tell the story. “U.S. agriculture’s debt-to-asset ratio for 2019 is forecast at 13.9 percent, meaning it’s moving in the wrong direction,” said Dr. John Newton, chief economist for the American Farm Bureau Federation, who spoke at the 92nd annual Soil Management Land Valuation Conference in Ames recently. “This ratio has increased seven consecutive years, plus it’s the highest level in nearly 20 ...

Burtek Dry Ice expands

LATIMER — Burtek Dry Ice, owned by Fort Dodge native Mike Kentfield, continues to expand its operations and is serving the needs of one of the largest plants in the Fort Dodge region. In 2017, Burtek Dry Ice landed a contract to provide dry ice to Prestage Foods of Iowa, according to Kentfield. Prestage’s pork plant is located south of Eagle Grove. To accommodate the needs of Prestage, a new manufacturing plant for Kentfield’s company was built in Latimer. “This also gave us the ability to expand our customer base north and east,” Kentfield said. Kentfield is a ...

Taco Tico franchise expands

Taco Tico in Fort Dodge has always done things a little differently. All the food is made in-house, said Ben Johnson, whose father brought the franchise to Fort Dodge in 1977. Now, a group of investors from Lexington, Kentucky, is betting they can copy the little store’s success. The ...

Iowa Central welcomes staff members

• Kara Gernhart joined the admissions team as the admissions activities coordinator. Gernhart is a Fort Dodge Senior High graduate. She attended Graceland University and graduated with a degree in elementary education. • Jessica Butterfield Bailey was hired as an instructor in the communications department. Bailey is a native of Elma. She graduated from Crestwood High School. Bailey holds a bachelor’s degree in German and International studies from the University of Iowa and a master’s degree in applied linguistics and teaching English as a second language from Iowa ...

Is preventive plant an option for you this year?

WEBSTER CITY — To plant or not to plant? That is the question. To assist producers in making some of those decisions, Farm Credit Services of America held a crop insurance spring update last week discussing planting dates, prevent plant, replant, first and second crop insurance options and more. “We are looking with what we are faced with basically over the next month down the road, the things we need to look at, different regulations, different things your crop insurance policy has in place,” said Craig Law, crop insurance officer with Farm Credit Services of America. How long ...

Juggling child care needs?

Parents who need to get to work, but can’t find a babysitter or just want a date night away from their children, have another option for child care in the Fort Dodge area. Through Sitter-ASAP, a nanny staffing agency, parents can call the company and be placed with a babysitter ...