Board of
Managers:
Dave
Dvorak - Ron Swanson - Charles
Hurburgh - Jim Jensen - Paul
Kassel - Larry Lane - Bob
Lynch - Rob
Stout
David
Dvorak -- President
David
has been farming for 22 years, since he was a sophomore at Iowa
State University, where he earned his degree in Ag Business.
David also graduated from TEPAP (The Executive Program for Agricultural
Producers) through Texas A&M University in 2000.
He was active
in the Iowa Farm Business Association (IFBA) and served as President
in 1999 and 2000. David now serves on the Farm Business Association
Foundation Board. He is a member of the Boards of the Southeast
Iowa Agricultural Research Farm at Crawfordsville and the Agriculture
Advisory Council for Muscatine Community College. He is also
a member of the Southeast Iowa Ag Advisory Council , and Ag Ventures
Alliance.
David and Jody's Farm is ISO 9000 certified. They farm in Muscatine County
and live near West Liberty with their two children, Casey who is 12 and John
who is 10.
Ron
Swanson -- Secretary/Treasurer
Ron
Swanson has been farming for 40 years near Galt, Iowa in Wright
County. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree
in Farm Operations from Iowa State University.
He has been
active in the past with the Corn Growers organization having
served as president of the Iowa Corn Growers Association and
chairmen of the Iowa Corn Promotion Board as well as serving
on the National Corn Growers Association Board of Directors. He
is a past member of the Clarion-Goldfield School Board, Wright
County Rural Electric Coop Board, and the Woolstock Farmers Cooperative
Elevator Board.
In addition
to serving as Secretary-Treasurer of Innovative Growers, he is
on the Board of Directors of the Farm Financial Standards Council
and is actively involved in the development of production and
financial standards for corn and soybeans.
He and his
wife Florine have three sons; Kendall who is plant manager for
the West Liberty Foods plant in Sigourney, Stuart who farms with
him, and Steve who is the art director for Baker and Associates
in Minneapolis. They are members of St. Johns Catholic
Church in Clarion.
Dr.
Charles R. Hurburgh Jr.
Dr. Charles
R. Hurburgh, Charlie to most everyone, is a native Iowan from
Rockwell City. He continues to operate the family farm, and is
a Professor of Agricultural Engineering at Iowa State University.
He has BS,
MS, and doctorate degrees from Iowa State University. Dr.
Hurburgh specializes in grain quality and the marketing of value-added
grains. He is the author of more than 175 technical and general
articles on grain quality and instrumentation statistics.
Dr. Hurburgh
manages the ISU Grain Quality Research Laboratory and coordinates
the Iowa
Grain Quality Initiative, an extension information program
created to support the development of value-added grains.
James
H. Jensen
Jim Jensen
is an ISU Extension Field Specialist in Farm & Ag Business
Management. He works out of the Henry County Extension Office
in Mt. Pleasant and serves 11 counties in the Southeast Extension
Area of Iowa. Jensen works with farmers and agriculture businesses
in financial planning, marketing, and value-added product alternatives.
He has been active in working to certify farmers in the ISO quality
assurance program and spends considerable effort working in the
field of value-added agriculture. Jensen was instrumental in
the establishment of the first group of farmers to become ISO
certified in the nation. This group was composed of five farmers
in SE Iowa. Since the original training of the five farmers,
he has recruited and helped train 25 additional farmers. He continues
to work with the group that the ISO farmers have formed (IQ-AG)
in business and leadership training. The Colusa Elevator is SE
Iowa is another group that Jim has worked with in value added
agriculture and ISO certification. The elevator was the first
grain elevator to obtain the ISO certification. Jensen also is
co-chair of the ISU Extension statewide value-added committee.
Jensen has
worked as a Junior College Agriculture Teacher, Agricultural
Banker, Farm Manager, Real Estate Broker, and Appraiser over
the years. He has a B.S. degree in Agricultural Education and
a M.S. degree in Agricultural Economics from Southern Illinois
University.
Paul
Kassel
Paul is an
ISU Extension Crop Production Specialist in northwest Iowa. Winter
time activities include educational meetings where he presents
information on crop protection and crop production. Summer time
activities include farm visits for troubleshooting, field days
and applied research.
Paul and his
wife Julie have a farming operation south of Spencer. They have
three children - Cale and Brant who are seniors in high school
and Jill who is in eighth grade. They all help with farming operation,
which includes 600 acres of corn, soybeans, and hay.
Paul grew up
on a grain and livestock farm near Ayrshire, Iowa. He has BS
and MS degrees in agronomy from Iowa State University.
Larry
Lane
Larry has farmed
since 1974 on his Humboldt County, Iowa farm that was established
in 1869 by his great grand father. His farming operation includes
1500 acres of corn, soybeans, food grade soybeans, low linolenic
acid soybeans, and commercial hay. Larry no-tills soybeans, minimum-tills
corn, utilizes grid sampling and GPS monitoring for his crop
production. The Lane Farm operation has been ISO 9001:2000 certified
since 2003.
Larry is an
active member of the Humboldt County and national corn and soy
beans producers. He has been a past board member and officer
of the Humboldt Farmers Coop. Larry is a current member and officer
of the Humboldt County Extension Council and a member of the
Humboldt County Farm Bureau.
He and his
wife Marlys, are both graduates of Iowa State University as are
their three grown children.
Bob
Lynch
Robert is farming
on a century farm with his wife and son by Gilmore City, Iowa
.
Graduated from
Iowa State University in Farm Operation and started farming in
1977 with his father and Grandfather. He ridge-tills his corn
and soybeans and deep places the dry fertilizer in the ground
to help the water quality and conserve the soil.
Past board
member on the local school board for 9 yrs, local library board,
soil and water conservation board, and help with the corn and
soybean associations. Active in church and been on many boards
within the church. Belongs to Ag Ventures Alliance, Midwest Grain
Processors, Golden Oval Eggs, Agri-Energy's ethanol plant and
Innovative Growers.
Robert and
Linda have three sons; Jay married and farming, Kevin works in
Chicago and Ben a senior at TRV high school.
Rob
Stout
Rob Stout has farmed
with his father in their family farming operation near Washington,
Iowa since his graduation from Iowa State University in Farm Operations
in 1978. He practices no-till farming on their 1000 acre farming
operation. He has participated in manure utilization research with
ISU and uses the manure from their cattle feedlot and 6000 head
hog finishing operation in the crop enterprise.
Rob has raised food-grade
soybeans, HES corn (for Japanese Beer), white corn, and is always
looking at new opportunities in value-added agriculture.
Rob has been a director
of New Alliance Farm Service since 1985, and is a board member and
part-owner of Wellman Feeder Pig, Inc., a 2400 head sow cooperative.
He is also active as
a church trustee, on the Mid-Prairie Music Booster Board, and sings
in the Washington Choral Society.
Rob and his wife, Jean
have six children.
Members
Innovative Growers
currently has 36 farm businesses that have invested in the company.
The number of members by county are shown in the map below.
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