A southwest Iowa cattle producer has been selected as the Region 3 winner of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association’s program that highlights exceptional work done by cattle producers to protect and enhance the environment. Officials with the NCBA report Nichols Farms, LTD., of Bridgewater, was announced as the Region 3 winner in the Environmental Stewardship Award Program (ESAP) at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference in Denver on Thursday (July 31st). The family farm operation is managed by Dave Nichols, Phyllis Nichols and Lillian Nichols, and covers Adair, Adams and Cass counties.

Nichols Farms of Bridgewater, owned by (from left) Dave and Phyllis Nichols and Lillian Nichols.

Nichols Farms, an internationally known seedstock producer and a cow-calf operation, will compete for the national ESAP title with six other regional winners. The national winner will be announced during the Cattle Industry Annual Convention and Trade Show in San Antonio, TX, in February 2015.

The area where the Nichols both own and rent land is known as Iowa’s Hungry Canyons area, which is identified with deep cut gullies and stream trenching. Over 70% of the farmland managed by the Nichols (some owned, some rented) has been designated as highly erodible. While it’s typical for the area to have row crops grown on nearly 70% of the land, Nichols Farms has 46% of the farmland in row crops, and 54% in grassland and pasture production.

The NCBA says the work by cattlemen and women to protect their natural resources helps to improve the environmental sustainability of the beef industry. Those efforts also help this year’s regional winners improve the land for future cattle producers, a goal shared by each of these operations.

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey today (Friday) encouraged Iowans to take advantage of fresh fruits and vegetables available at the more than 220 farmers markets in Iowa as part of National Farmers Market Week, which runs from Aug. 3 to 9.

“We continue to see growing demand for fresh locally grown produce and farmers markets are a great place to find healthy and delicious Iowa grown fruits, vegetables, meats and other products,” Northey said. “National Farmers Market Week, and every week, is a great time to visit your local farmers market to support the vendors who are there and enjoy some of the great food grown in this state.”

As part of National Farmers Market Week, Northey highlighted the WIC Farmers Market Nutrition and Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Programs. These programs provide eligible low-income seniors as well as women and children in Iowa with checks that can be redeemed for fresh, locally grown produce at authorized farmers markets and farm stands from June 1 through October 31, 2014.

Northey also encouraged Iowans to take advantage of the free Iowa Farmers Market app for smartphones that can help Iowans locate the farmers markets in their area. The app allows users to find the farmers market closest to them by using GPS location services or to search for specific farmers markets by city or zip code. Once they have located a market, the user can view the hours of the market, browse a list of vendors and see a phone number and email address of the market manager. App users can also leave reviews of the market and vendors and upload their photos to share with others.

The app is free to download and is available through Apple’s App store and Google Play by searching “Iowa Farmers Markets.”  The app was developed for the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship using funds from the USDA Specialty Crop Block Grant Program.