Dealerships partner with Iowa Corn on FFVs, E85
JOHNSTON, Iowa — Holmes Chevrolet in Norwalk and Karl Chevrolet in Ankeny are partnering with the Iowa Corn Promotion Board (ICPB) to promote Flex Fuel Vehicles (FFV) and the use of E85 in Iowa.

Consumers who purchase a FFV at either dealership through June 15 are eligible for $250 in ethanol/E85 certificates from a participating fuel station. Iowa has 135 stations that offer E85.
Both Holmes and Karl will receive up to forty $250 gift certificates that consumers can use to purchase E85 for their new or used FFV. Look for hang-tags in the FFVs on the dealership lots designating the vehicles eligible for the offer.

ConAgra Foods expands in western Michigan
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — ConAgra Foods, Inc. is expanding the former Elan Nutrition facility, investing approximately $73 million and creating more than 200 jobs in the next five years.

ConAgra Foods manufactures private label bars at its facility in Lakeville, Minn., and acquired Elan Nutrition – a manufacturer of snack and nutrition bars – in April, retaining its employees. The upgrade of the Elan facility at 4490 44th Street in Kentwood includes the purchase of new equipment and machinery, and will allow ConAgra Foods to expand its manufacturing capacity and R&D capabilities.

The Right Place, Inc. in collaboration with the Michigan Economic Development Corp. (MEDC) and the city of Kentwood, assembled an incentive package valued at approximately $9 million to support ConAgra Food’s enhancement of the Kentwood facility. ConAgra Foods employs more than 500 throughout Michigan, and this latest investment will add many new jobs in Kentwood over the next year.
Over the next five years, ConAgra Foods stated it plans to make a significant investment in the training and education of its Kentwood workforce, adding a Center of Excellence Research and Development group. These plans could create more than 200 additional jobs in Michigan.

FCS donates funds and volunteers to Tennessee
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The torrential downpours that recently dumped up to 13 inches of rain and caused disastrous flooding in large portions of southern Kentucky and Tennessee  were, according to some experts, a 500- or 1,000-year event.

One organizations that has stepped forward to assist with flood recovery is Farm Credit Services of Mid-America. To assist with cleanup and repair efforts, FCS has donated $25,000 through its corporate stewardship program. Teaming up with FCS are AgriBank (FCS’s parent company – $10,000) and CoBank (another Farm Credit entity – $10,000) to make a total initial donation of $45,000 to the Tennessee Farm Disaster Response Fund, administered by the Tennessee Farm Bureau.

Specific use of the funds will be determined by groups or committees within the recipient communities, depending on those communities’ particular needs. Further donations will follow by FCS, to be directed to individual programs or projects directly impacted by the floods in Kentucky and Tennessee.

The Farm Credit System’s assistance has not been limited to just the financial. Many of the System’s more than 150 employees in Tennessee have been volunteering to help with the cleanup effort.

Iowa Corn sponsors video contest for college students

JOHNSTON, Iowa — Hawkeye and Cyclone students can show their spirit for Iowa-grown corn ethanol, E85 or flex fuel vehicles (FFVs) and be a big winner in a video contest sponsored by the Iowa Corn Growers Assoc. and Iowa Corn Promotion Board.

The “Be True to Your Fuel” video contest is open to University of Iowa or Iowa State University students. Three prizes will be awarded, including a grand prize of $5,000, second prize of $2,500 and third prize of $1,000.

Videos can be submitted through Aug. 1 by mail or in person to the Iowa Corn Offices at 5505 NW 88th Street, Johnston, IA 50131. For a complete list of rules and contest information, go to www.iacornfed.com or contact  Carrie Dodds by e-mail at cdodds@iowacorn.org or Claire Masker at cmasker@iowacorn.org

Plans announced for Lake Erie wind farm
CLEVELAND, Ohio (AP) — General Electric Co. and a regional development group say they plan to create the Great Lakes’ first offshore wind farm, in Lake Erie near Cleveland.

GE and the nonprofit Lake Erie Energy Development Corp., or LEEDCo., say they’ll start by setting up five wind turbines that will generate 20 million watts of power by 2012. A longer-term goal is to expand the wind farm to generate 1 billion watts by 2020.
The plans were unveiled May 24 at an American Wind Energy Assoc. conference in Dallas. In a statement, Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland said the partnership between GE and LEEDCo is important for the state’s economy and for the advancement of offshore wind technologies.

Indiana growers put soy to work against hunger

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Indiana soybean growers are building momentum for the World Soy Foundation (WSF) Acre Challenge. Indiana Soybean Alliance Director Darrel McGriff and other soybean growers recently met in Indiana with the new executive director of the Foundation that puts their soy to work feeding hungry people around the world.

Two years ago was the inaugural year for the national program – which encourages farmers to donate the value of one acre of soybeans to the WSF – that Indiana soybean grower James Peterson initiated. Soybean farmers from 21 states raised $50,000. Farmer leaders of the program are seeking to triple that amount by the time farmers start planting again this spring.

The World Soy Foundation is a 501c3 charitable organization that can put the value of one acre of soybeans to use against hunger. Forty bushels of soybeans, the approximate national average yield, will make 18,000 rations of soy protein to children and adults in locations ranging from Africa to Latin America to Asia.