Mary Holz-Clause, P&S, Value Added Agriculture
Situation
In 2001 a group of corn and soybean farmers from the Greene County Iowa County
were looking for ways to diversify their cropping options. The Greene County
Extension Director, Craig Hertel, crop field specialist, and Iowa State
University (ISU) Extension Value-Added ag specialists, Ray Hansen, Margaret
Smith, Reg Clause and Mary Holz-Clause worked with the farmers to explore
crops that could be grown within the county, but would not require any
new or specialized harvesting equipment. The initial group was 24 commodity
farmers. We assisted the farmers in group development, including how to
cost-share, pool resources, set up production breakeven documentation and
to mitigate risk. We also assisted field staff in setting up test plots
and finding markets. The last several years, staff have helped in agronomic
issues and marketing assistance. In addition to the direct assistance,
members of the group have also attended several continuing educational
events sponsored by Value-Added Ag. These included the Grant Writing 101
and Marketing Your Business workshops.
Objective
The objective of this project was to find an alternative crop that provided
income greater than raising corn and soybeans and used the same tillage
equipment.
Activities/Output
Since 2001 more than 90 growers have been involved with a total value exceeding
close to $4 million. The crop acres have included azuki, garbanzo, black
bean, black and brown soy, high protein non-GMO soy, mung, cranberry beans,
green edamame, garbanzo and snap beans. Trials have included sunflowers
(grey and black), pinto, navy, northern, kintoke, black soy with green
centers, lima and kidney beans.
The beans have been directly marketed to supermarkets, farmer’s markets,
a processor near Des Moines for quick freezing, wholesalers for domestic
markets and a growing export market. More than 200 tons of black beans have
been sold to contract customers.
The two years have yielded several large export contracts. More than 90 metric tons of azuki beans were exported to Japan. Azuki beans are used to make "anko," a popular confectionery ingredient in Japan, where they are cooked with sugar and mashed into a sweet bean paste used in everything from ice cream sandwiches to doughnut filling.
The group has made several trips to Tokyo in the last several years and Greene Bean Project leaders negotiated to sell azuki beans to a Japanese importer. Several Japanese buyers are also interested in Greene Bean Project’s production, and are requesting an acreage contract for increased production in 2006.
Impact/Outcomes
According to Kevin Nishimura, one of the buyers of the Greene Bean azuki
beans, the biggest supplies of azuki beans to Japan come from China. The
Japanese customers are looking for supplies of beans that ensure safety
and traceability. "The Greene Bean azuki from the U.S. fits that bill,
because of their interest and capability to grow organic beans and provide
a traceable system."
Every year since the project was started, the acreage of azuki beans has grown and now includes producers in seven other counties across the state of Iowa.
2005
121 - Adding Value and Enhancing Agricultural Products
Page last updated:
July 9, 2006
Page maintained by Linda Schultz, lschultz@iastate.edu
