• Home
  • News
    • Politics & Government
    • Business & Economy
    • Crime / Courts
    • Health / Medicine
  • Sports
    • High School Sports
    • Radio Iowa Poll
  • Affiliates
    • Affiliate Support Page
  • Contact Us
    • Reporters

Radio Iowa

Iowa's Radio News Network

You are here: Home / Health / Medicine / "Five a day" could bring more profits for Iowa farmers

"Five a day" could bring more profits for Iowa farmers

May 29, 2006 By admin

An Iowa State University study finds the state’s farmers would benefit greatly if people would start eating more healthy foods — along with a shift in Iowa’s agricultural philosophy.

Rich Pirog at ISU’s Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture says the figures are staggering in the scenario that sees us eating five servings of Iowa-grown fruits and vegetables each day for three months out of the year. Pirog says there would be a net increase in economic activity with $302 million in total economic output and $112.6 million in labor income and a net of 4000 new jobs.

While Iowa’s known as an agricultural state, Pirog says most of what’s grown here is eaten by livestock, not people. The study assumed Iowa farmers will change that up. For the five-a-day scenario, they chose apples, carrots, spinach, broccoli and squash, all items that could be grown in all 99 of Iowa’s counties for at least three months a year. While Iowa has a small horticultural industry, most of the state’s growers are involved in corn and soybeans, much of which feeds cows and pigs.

Pirog says farmers would have to shift their focus. Pirog says most fruit and vegetable crops are higher value crops as far as net return per acre, though they are riskier. In addition to the economic impact and thousands of new jobs such a change in Iowa’s growing strategy would bring, Pirog points out that switching to five-a-day servings of fruits and veggies would also make us healthier. Now, only about 20-percent of Iowans eat that much fresh produce a day.

Related web sites:
Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Filed Under: Health / Medicine

Featured Stories

Summit has easements for 20% of carbon pipeline route through Iowa

Morel mushroom hunters on hold without warmer conditions

Trinity Health aquiring all MercyOne health properties

Field of Dreams site developer wants to bid on state baseball, softball tournaments

Governor gets bill targeting Iowa bars deemed ‘public safety nuisance’

TwitterFacebook
Tweets by RadioIowa

Iowa assistant coach Kirk Speraw to retire

Northern Iowa prepares for Missouri Valley Conference softball tournament

T.J. Otzelberger announces staff changes at Iowa State

Iowa State adds transfer guard

Iowa State’s Tyrese Hunter enters transfer portal

More Sports

eNews and Updates

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Archives

Copyright © 2022 ยท Learfield News & Ag, LLC