Iowa Farm Bureau Young Farmer Ag Insights Tour highlights value-added opportunities

As farmers look for ways to strengthen their bottom line, the 2026 Iowa Farm Bureau Young Farmer Ag Insights Tour, held June 4-5, offers a chance to see how others are approaching diversification.

Created for farmers ages 21-40, the two-day tour offers firsthand insight into how the crops and livestock they raise are used and processed-and how those same products can open new opportunities to increase income back home.

Participants will travel across western Iowa and into Nebraska to visit agricultural entrepreneurs who are growing income through direct-to-consumer sales, niche markets and creative approaches. Stops include:

• Guthrie County Quality Meats, Guthrie Center, a locally owned and operated custom and state-inspected meat locker that processes beef, pork, sheep and goats.
  
  
• Templeton Rye Distillery, Templeton, an award-winning distillery that earned its reputation in the prohibition era as "The Good Stuff." The tour will demonstrate the whiskey making process from grain to glass.
  
  
• Waspy's Truck Stop and Feed Mill Restaurant, Audubon, spanning more than 16 acres, this full hospitality destination was created by a local farmer and features a restaurant, hotel and other amenities.
  
  
• Duncan's Poultry, Missouri Valley, has served poultry farmers since 1987 by supplying baby chicks, layers, meat broilers, turkeys, geese, ducks, feed, supplies and custom exempt poultry processing services.
  
  
• Long Walk Farm, Council Bluffs, a diversified, direct-to-consumer farm that grows vegetables and cut flowers and sells duck eggs with a focus on organic practices and soil health.
  
  
• Milk Unlimited, Atlantic, a dairy operation that uses robotics, balanced nutrition and data-driven practices to support animal care and produce enough milk to feed approximately 160,000 people each year.
  
  
• Hawkeye Breeders, Adel, uses the latest technology to deliver high-quality semen through customized reproductive services worldwide, giving breeders confidence in strong conception rates and reliable genetics.

"This tour puts you in the middle of operations that are doing more with what they already produce," said Zach Brummer, Iowa Farm Bureau farmer education program manager. "From processing and branding to tapping into new markets, young farmers can see practical ways others are building resilience and adding income on the farm, while also connecting with peers navigating similar decisions around growth, risk and diversification."

The group will stay overnight at the Magnolia Hotel in downtown Omaha, enjoy an evening reception at Olive & Ira's and have time to explore the Old Market district.

Registration is $75 per person, $125 per couple for Farm Bureau members or $275 per person for non-members. Farmers who are not members can join Iowa Farm Bureau for $60 or less to access the discounted rate and additional program benefits.

For more information or to register, visit https://www.iowafarmbureau.com/aginsights.