December 2024
December 12, 2024
Click the brackets in the bottom right corner to view the
magazine in full screen or click one of the story titles below.
In this issue...
On the Cover
Our creative design coordinator, Susan Langman, selected images representing the Iowa Soybean Association's (ISA) past, present and future. In this issue, we celebrate ISA's 60th anniversary, reflecting on where projects, programs and markets have been and where they're going in the future.
Executive Insights: Celebrating 60 years of ISA
ISA was founded in 1964 when soybeans were emerging as a critical Midwest crop. Over the years, ISA has played an essential role in advocating for farmers, building demand, fostering research and promoting sustainable practices.
Page 4
Rural Route 2: 60 years in the making
The association’s historical documents recall when several Iowa farmers came together with a common purpose to develop new products, create new markets and “make better profits for soybean producers in the state.”
Page 7
Global endeavors
How do you showcase the power of soybeans, its many uses and reach a global audience?
Page 10
Gains in conservation
Roger Wolf’s witnessed farmers’ efforts in conservation as an environmental specialist for the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) and during his nearly 25 years of work with ISA.
Page 14
Aphid Control
The presence of soybean aphids poses a significant risk to soybeans. They cause considerable damage to soybean crops, resulting in a potential yield reduction of nearly 40% and the transmission of diseases that further compromise crop health.
Page 18
Driving Iowa's soybean production
In the 1920s, it was a little-known American forage crop. By 1969, U.S. farmers produced more than 75% of the world’s soybeans. By 1973, soybeans became America’s top cash crop and leading export commodity, ahead of wheat and corn.
Page 22
Surveying for corn rootworm
Corn rootworm continues to be an economically significant pest across Iowa. In Iowa, the northern and western corn rootworms are of greatest concern.
Page 28
Meet the president
Study the course, apply your training. Study your fields, work the plan. Turns out there are some similarities between the triathlons Brent Swart competes in and the acres of crops he and his brother tend in northern Iowa.
Page 30
Back