The Western Iowa Grape Growers Association (WeIGGA) is sponsoring the 2013 Loess Hills Wine Festival.  The festival will be held on Saturday September 21^st , 2013 from 2-pm to 10-pm at Tom Hanafan River’s Edge Park (Iowa side of the Bob Kerrey walking bridge), Council Bluffs.

The grapes have been harvested, the wine is fermenting. This year will feature 5 Western Iowa Wineries including, Prairie Crossing, Sugar Clay, Vine Street Cellars, Prairie Hawk and Wabash Wine Company and 1 local brewery, Keg Creek Brewery. Three bands will be providing live music during the festival including, JB Acoustic (2-pm to 4-pm), MoJo Bag (4-pm to 6-pm) and Pink Kadillac (6-pm to 10-pm).

The Loess Hills Wine Festival is a fun event for the entire family.  Activities will include craft and local food vendors, hayrides, a grape stomp, food, live music and wine and beer tasting for the adults.  Adult admissions receive a souvenir wine glass and 10 tasting tickets.

Advance tickets for ages 21 and over (normally $30) are $15 per person if purchased before September 1^st at WeIGGA’s web site http://www.weigga.org/html/admission.html . VIP Tickets are $50 and Children ages 10 to 20 years old are $10. Children under 10 are free.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Officials say dove hunting is growing in popularity throughout Iowa since lawmakers legalized the sport in 2011 following years of sometimes angry debate. The state Department of Natural Resources says the number of people registering to hunt mourning doves has gradually increased since lawmakers changed state law two years ago. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service data shows more than 9,000 dove hunters are registered in Iowa, though numbers are preliminary. Officials say they’re still learning how to manage the 70-day season, starting Sept. 1.

Opponents had fought legalization, arguing the birds represented peace and have so little meat that the only reason to shoot them was as target practice. Supporters of the change responded that the birds are plentiful and there was no reason to keep them off limits.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa Electrical Examining Board won’t exempt farm buildings from mandatory electrical inspections.  The Des Moines Register says the board voted 8-3 on Thursday to reject a proposal that would have generally exempted farm buildings. The proposal was aimed at resolving issues stemming from a court ruling that the board exceeded its authority by requiring inspections on most electrical installations on farms.

Some critics say the inspections are a power grab by the board and that the inspections overburden farmers. Other farmers and their supporters say poorly installed electrical wiring creates safety hazards.  On Thursday the board set a task force to seek a compromise to present to the Legislature.

Safety is important, no matter where you live. Officials with the Cass County Extension Service and Outreach invite area youth to join them for a Rural Safety Day on August 24th from 8:30 AM – 2 PM at the Cass County Fairgrounds. The event is free for all 4-6 graders in Cass County, who will learn how to keep themselves safe while working on or visiting a farm.

Youth will learn about first aid, safety around animals, unexpected hazards, electrical safety and much more. Lunch and resources will be provided by Cass County Extension and Outreach. Whether you’ve spent your entire life on the farm, occasionally visit friends or relatives on the farm, or have never set foot on a farm, there is something for everyone at Rural Safety Day.

To register, contact the Cass County Extension office at 712-243-1132 or xcass@iastate.edu before 4:30 PM on August 22^nd. Youth will also need to have a health form on file with the Cass County Extension office to participate. These forms are available in the Extension office, or can be printed using the following link: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/cass/news/rural-saftey-day-set-august-24th.

This year’s Rural Safety Day will be full of hands-on fun and exploration. With the harvest season coming up and youth spending time outdoors in the cool fall weather, plan to attend this educational day for tips on staying safe this fall!  Make sure to register by August 22^nd to be a part of this fun-filled day.

Firefighters from Lenox, Clearfield, Corning and Creston were called to the scene of a blaze Tuesday night at CMC-Dalton Ag Products, in Lenox. Also assisting at the scene were officials with Taylor County Ambulance, Adams County Emergency Management, Lenox Police and the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office. Officials say the fire was reported at around 10:36-p.m. The cause of the fire and amount of damage is undetermined at this time. The State Fire Marshall’s Office has been contacted to conduct further investigation. CMC-Dalton Ag Products manufactures fertilizer application equipment, such as tool bars, dry spreaders, liquid applicators and running gear for related equipment.

The latest U-S-D-A crop report was released Tuesday, and shows that under half of the corn crop statewide is in either good (39%) or excellent (10%) condition. The same is true for soybeans with 39-percent in good condition and only 9-percent in excellent condition. Iowa Ag Secretary Bill Northey says there was not enough rain to go around. “Other than a few spots that got some rain, some spotty heavy rains, everybody else needs rain,” Northey says. “I guess it’s August in Iowa and we almost always need rain in August in Iowa.”

Northey has been at the Iowa State Fair and talking with farmers about their crops. “Most places have crops that don’t look too bad, but could really benefit from rain. Others are saying if they don’t get rain pretty soon, that their crops are really going to be suffering hard,” Northey says. The Ag Secretary farms near Spirit Lake.

(Radio Iowa)

The costs associated with being a farmer in Iowa rose by double-digits, percentage-wise, last year.  A report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service shows $26.84 billion was spent in Iowa on agricultural production in 2012. That marks an 11-percent increase over 2011. Only farmers in the state of California spent more last year, $31 billion, according to the report.

In 2012, Iowa farmers dealt with the worst drought in five decades, which cut crop yields and hurt livestock production. The biggest cost for Iowa farmers last year was feed, at $4.43 billion. Iowa is the nation’s top producer of corn, soybeans, and pork. Nationally, farmers spent a record $351.8 billion on ag production in 2012.

(Radio Iowa)

Iowa Ag Secretary Bill Northey handed out certificates Tuesday at the Iowa State Fari to honor those who have had a farm in their family for 100 years. Northey says the number of farms meeting the mark has stayed pretty steady. “The last few years somewhere between 300 and 400, this year 365 century farm awards were recognized. Amazing to see that many farms recognized,” Northey says. “We have over 17-thousand century farms that have been recognized since the mid 1970’s when this program started.”

Northey also recognized heritage farms today too. “Which are farms that have been in the same family for 150 years. And again, about the same number as last year, we’ll have 67 farms that we’ll recognize that are heritage farm awards this year. That means that they have been in the same family since the Civil War or before,” Northey says. The recognition stirs up a lot of emotion for the families.

“There’s a lot of very happy people and people that think of others that came before them. Some damp eyes in celebration as well,” Northey explains. You can find out more about the century and heritage farm programs on the Iowa Department of Agriculture’s website at: www.iowagriculture.gov.

(Radio Iowa)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has again lowered its estimate of this year’s corn and soybean harvest, assessing the impact of the wet spring in many states that delayed planting and damaged some crops. Early wet weather worries have rapidly shifted to concerns about the return of drought in portions of the dry western corn belt.

Still, the USDA says in its monthly crop update released Monday that U.S. farmers are on track to bring in the largest corn crop ever this fall and the third largest soybean crop. The department expects a harvest of 13.8 billion bushels of corn, up 28 percent from last year.

Soybean farmers are expected to bring in nearly 3.26 billion bushels, up 8 percent from last year.

The state’s largest general farm organization, Iowa Farm Bureau Federation (IFBF), today (Tuesday), launched the ANF Great Grocery Giveaway in partnership with the University of Iowa Athletics Department and Hy-Vee. The grocery sweepstakes invites Iowans to meet today’s farmers through video tours of their farms and register for a chance to win free groceries for a year worth $5,000.

Iowans can register for a chance to win by visiting www.americaneedsfarmers.org and taking virtual farm tours; each video they watch earns an entry in the ANF Great Grocery Giveaway while giving them an up close and personal look at five Iowa farm families.  Website visitors can register with each of the five farmers each day of the sweepstakes, which kicked off today, Farm Bureau Day at the Iowa State Fair, and runs until noon October 31st, 2013. The web-based farm video tours feature five diverse Iowa family farmers who grow corn or soybeans and raise pigs, beef or dairy cows.

David Rydberg, a cattle rancher from Essex, is one of the featured farmers in the ANF Great Grocery Giveaway. He says “We’re excited to be a part of this because as a family farmer, I believe in the value of transparency and education; most people who enjoy beef today don’t live on a farm, but they want to know how we farm, how we raise our animals and how we keep them safe and healthy.”

Following the sweepstakes, one lucky winner will be chosen at random for $5,000 in free groceries from their local Hy-Vee.