In the late 1990s, the Fort Dodge Betterment Foundation acquired seven parcels of land in order to execute land exchanges in the region for the purpose of purchasing two farms adjacent to the Union Pacific and Canadian National railroads. These parcels of land were prime for development because, one, they were served by two competing Class 1 railroads. Secondly, it was surrounded by fertile ground with high yields of corn and soybeans. In fact, 25 percent of Iowa’s corn production and 25 percent of Iowa’s soybean production grows in counties within a 50-mile radius of the development. Finally, there weren’t many obstructions, i.e., neighbors to be disrupted by 24/7 bio renewable manufacturing.

The development thus became known as Iowa’s Crossroads of Global Innovation (ICGI).

The first tenant in the park was VeraSun, now Valero. They manufactured ethanol, corn oil, corn germ and dried distillers grains. Their annual grind is approximately 43 million bushels of corn. The original investment in the plant was $120 million and it employed 40. Over the years, they have consistently reinvested in the plant by upgrading equipment and installing technology. Today they employ 69.

The second tenant in ICGI was Tate & Lyle. They invested $270 million and planned to employ 120. They were approximately 80 percent completed with the facility when there was a change in leadership and the technology that they were going to employ in the plant was not perfected, so they eventually decided to sell the plant.

Cargill purchased the plant and added over $100 million to upgrade and retrofit the plant with their technology. They produce ethanol, sweet bran, corn oil, corn germ and starches. Cargill continues to invest in upgrades and new equipment annually. Their current grind is at 150,00 bushels per day. In February 2022, they announced the addition of a new product line for human consumption. The new product line will add $78 million in capital investment and upskilling 26 employees.

CJ Bio America is the third tenant in the ICGI. It is a South Korean company that co-located with Cargill as one of Cargill’s customers. Cargill sells dextrose (a liquified starch) and steam via pipeline “over the fence” to CJ Bio America. CJ transforms and adds further value to the corn product into amino acids. They currently manufacture three different amino acids.

Their original plant employed 181 employees and and they spent over $330 million in capital for the plant.

Since 2011, CJ Bio has expanded twice. In 2017, CJ invested $51 million and created an additional 18 jobs and in 2021invested $20 million and created 25 more jobs. They have a total of 263 employees as of 2021.

The development has been a collaborative effort. The city of Fort Dodge, Webster County, the state of Iowa agencies ( Department of Transportation, Iowa Economic Development Authority, Department of Natural Resources and Iowa Finance Authority), the federal government (Economic Development Administration, Department of Agriculture and Department of Transportation), MidAmerican Energy, Iowa Central Community College, the Fort Dodge Betterment Foundation and the Greater Fort Dodge Growth Alliance have all been involved in the development and marketing of Iowa’s Crossroads of Global Innovation.

Kelly Halsted is the economic development director of the Greater Fort Dodge Growth Alliance.