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At the Iowa Farm Table Podcast: Daily Summaries Delivered
by From the Iowa Food System Coalition
The At the Iowa Farm Table Podcast takes a deep look into food and farming in Iowa. Brought to you by the Iowa Food System Coalition.
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- 6 days ago16 min
Citizen Scientists Making a Difference
This week’s story features Mary Skopec of Lakeside Laboratories, and Jodi Reese and Terry Langan of Nishnabotna Water Defenders. You can listen to the podcast above, or read the story below.Be sure to check out our other related podcasts on water quality, what we know about the relationship between agriculture and cancer, and ways to help improve our nitrate issues in Iowa.Mary Skopec: How do you get everybody to get in this boat and row in the same direction? I don’t know but everybody needs to get in that boat.Beth Hoffman: These are the wise words of a woman I’m going to affectionately call Iowa’s Queen of Water Testing, Mary Skopec. She is the Executive Director of Lakeside Laboratory in Milford, Iowa. And before that, she worked at the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, where she, you guessed it, tested water.It was the early 2000s, when the Iowa legislature appropriated money for water quality monitoring for the first time.MS: I was able to jump in right away and start developing this statewide monitoring program for wetlands and lakes and rivers and beaches and all of that, and it was phenomenal.BH: Skopec tested 132 lakes around Iowa three times a year in the early 2000s, which gave the state critical information about our waterways. It might seem crazy to think about it now, but at the time, we knew very little about pollution in our state.MS: One of the things that we said is we want to know what’s there and what’s not there, because we have no idea.BH: But a large part of Skopec’s program was to also teach people how to test the water themselves. Because recruiting volunteers to test water, as we will see in this episode, is about much more than just testing water.I’m Beth Hoffman, journalist, author and farmer. And this is At the Iowa Farm Table, a production of the Iowa Food System Coalition, a group of more than 60 organizations dedicated to making our food system more just and sustainable.MS: I’d been in every little nook and cranny of the state doing water quality testing with volunteers, and really loved that.But let’s go back about 60 years to the 1960s. US waterways–lakes, rivers, streams–were in bad shape. For decades, centuries really, we had dumped everything and anything in the water, hoping our industrial messes would all just float away. But in 1969 the industrial waste in a river in Ohio, the Cuyahuga, caught on fire. People were shocked and it was one of the reasons the Environmental Protection Agency was created in 1970. Then in 1972, a bipartisan US Congress passed the Clean Water Act. Senator Edmund Muskie, a Democrat from Maine helped make it a reality.Muskie: As citizens, you know what dirty water is. You know when you cannot swim , you know when those tributaries you used to fish no longer have trout. You know that’s pollution. And I’m not sure you’re interested in the exact quantity of suspended solids or the oxygen demand in the river, but [what] you are interested in is getting an unhealthy environment healthy, getting a dirty river clean. And we share that goal. And the 1972 Clean Water Act is intended to achieve that goal.BH: Now, today…MS: Anything that’s coming from a pipe is regulated under the Clean Water Act.BH: The Act also mandated state governments monitor water sources and make a list of “Impaired Waters.” But once the testing began–scientists started to realize that the pollution was not just coming from pipes running out of wastewater treatment plants or factories.MS: in the 1980s was when we really started to think about nonpoint source pollution, pollution from farm fields, exposed dirt, and from development in cities.MS: Environmental groups around the country start saying, “Hey, states, what are you doing to meet the purpose of the Clean Water Act? [00:08:00] How are we going to address this thing that is not regulated?” And it really starts with some water quality monitoring, and that’s where I think in Iowa it was like, “We need
- 2 weeks ago11 min
“It profoundly changed my life.”
David Thoreson is an adventurer who has spent a large portion of his life at sea. He has learned critical lessons—in the Arctic and at his home of Okoboji—about how we impact the world around us. And, he knows first hand, we need to make important changes, now.In this special episode of At the Iowa Farm Table, Beth Hoffman combines Thoreson’s photography (and other images) with the usual audio podcast to create a video experience. In it she looks how and why agriculture in our state needs to improve, and the ways one community has done so.Below is a transcript of the podcast if you prefer to read.It profoundly changed my lifeDavid Thoreson: I something was happening–dramatic–but I was not mentally prepared for what I witnessed,Beth Hoffman: David Thoreson is an Iowan, an explorer and an avid conservationist. He witnessed firsthand something most of us have not.DT: It profoundly changed my life.BH Thoreson has experienced climate change in action–a story we will get into detail a little later. But he also knows what solutions to a warming climate look like, because he’s experienced that too–in his community of the Iowa Great Lakes, also known as Okoboji.I’m Beth Hoffman, journalist, author and farmer. And this is Season III of At the Iowa Farm Table, a production of the Iowa Food System Coalition, a group of more than 60 organizations in Iowa working to make the food system more sustainable and just.DT: I was a very active kid. I liked being outside…playing by the river all the time, making forts and building caves…And my grandfather loved sailboats and had a big library that was full of nautical books…I started developing a dream to go sail around the world as, really as a boy.BH: It took a while for Thoreson to figure out how to get on a sailboat. In the meantime, his adventurous spirit took him around the world as a young man.DT: I rebuilt a bicycle and toured around South Pacific islands and slept in huts with native village people and went to New Zealand. I rode 1,300 miles, and then hitchhiked through Australia. I kept doing adventures, and then at some point, I came back here to Okoboji in the ‘80s and started a freelance photography business based on conservation and outdoor photography.BH: Upon his return, Thoreson got more involved with his com b munity. He joined the city council and later, helped start the Dickinson County Water Quality Commission. Such activism was in his blood. His grandfather had been the president of Okoboji Protective Association, one of the oldest environmental groups in Iowa, started in 1905.DT People would come up here by train, and…they would camp on the lake shore. So you can you can understand that that wasn’t very sanitary as far as human waste. Then there was also the pressure of animals and farming on the lake shore.BH: People living on the lake realized early on that they needed an organization to deal with the water quality of the lake.DT: The water quality movement here in the lakes area has been very progressive, even ahead of state and national trends…And so part of the push early on was to form partnerships both with the local farming community and also with our neighbors…because we understood that as long as we could keep these lakes clear, that it drove the economy.BH: Conservation wasn’t just good for the flora and fauna, it was good for the economy. So the Association created a tax authority to raise money for water quality and recreational initiatives.Many Iowans have long supported a similar statewide initiative–the Natural Resources and Outdoor Recreation Trust Fund (also known as IWILL). Iowa voters overwhelmingly passed a ⅜ cent sales tax increase in 2010 that at this point would have generated more than $200 million for Iowa’s water and land. But the legislature never funded it.The Okoboji tax authority is a local version and a model for how a statewide program is supposed to work.DT: We’ve used a lot of the funds to purchase property to restore wetlands, and grasslands, and a lot of prairie around the lakes area.BH: But what the tax shows is that people can work together for a common goal–clean water. They even work together to make sure animal confinement stays away from the lake.DT: And we’ve done that strictly by peer pressure…W hen we hear of anything, we kind of
- Sep 29, 202616 min
Pesticide Drift: The Label Is the Law
Welcome back to Season III of At the Iowa Farm Table!This week Beth Hoffman digs into pesticide drift with Amanda Severson (Grand View Beef), Joel Meyer (Meyer Agri-Air Inc), and Rob Faux (a farmer and communications at Pesticide Action and Agroecology Network). You’ll learn about how the laws around drift are determined and what happens when they are broken. And all in 16 minutes!The full transcript of the show is included below if you prefer reading to listening. You can also refer to it if you feel like you missed something said in the show. There are also links in the transcript (and in the resources list below) for you to see for yourself where data was found.The Iowa Food System Coalition has also done a series of interviews with Iowa’s federal and state candidates—and asked them all about what they’d do about pesticide drift. Watch the 2026 Candidate Conversations to hear their responses.Related Podcasts Mentioned in Episode* Drenched in Chemicals* Iowa, Farming and Cancer: What Do We Really Know?Transcript[Amanda Severson] I was sitting here at my desk. And there was somebody applying fungicide. I didn’t really think anything of it because they were flying back and forth, and it was loud and distracting, but they were over the field.[Beth Hoffman] Amanda Severson and her husband Knute own Grand View Beef, an operation in north central Iowa specializing in grass feeding and finishing beef.[AS] But then all of a sudden, I just watched as the plane looked like it was coming just straight at me, and he turned it off where he was supposed to, but you just kind of watched, like, this l- liquid whoosh come and land in my grass.[BH] She and her family experienced a pesticide drift incident in the summer of 2026.[AS] Our kids were actually outside. And I had to tell them, “Sorry, you got to come inside.” And then the next time they went out to the garden, I said, “I’m sorry, but you have to bring your cherry tomatoes in and we have to wash them now.”[BH] According to the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (aka IDALS), there were 257 reported pesticide drift incidents in Iowa in 2025. That’s a number that has not really gone up or down significantly in about a decade. But Amanda Severson and her husband Knute decided NOT to report the incident.[AS] What Knute and I do here is already incredibly unique. There’s a lot of eyes on us, and not all of them positive, right? So we’ve always just kind of focused on, [00:11:00] let’s tell our story, let’s keep our heads down, do our best, love our neighbors and support them, and those are the ways that we can make small changes… 12:30 you just hate to, like, burn a bridge by being negative.Short music to transition[AS] You know, when, when spraying chemicals is the norm in a farm community- It’s really hard to be the one to say, “Are we supposed to be doing that? Is that okay? Can you change this?” Because none of the other neighbors are asking for it, it’s just us. So it gets a little challenging, knowing when to [00:20:00] speak up. 12:30 It’s such a hard call to make.[BH] The Severson’s are likely not alone. Many of us would rather not make waves with our neighbors, especially those of us who farm differently from the corn and beans most of our neighbors grow. Plus, it takes time and energy to figure out the laws, to do all the paperwork, and pay for the lawyers.[AS] I did try to look up after that happened, like what was the distance supposed to be and, I mean, because they just kind of [00:15:00] flew on our gravel road and did a pass. And I’m like, are they supposed to be leaving a buffer?.. I should do more research. But I think unfortunately we’ve normalized it. Like,... “Oh, well, we’re the weird ones, so we’re not going to complain. We’ll just keep quiet.”MUSIC[BH] I’m Beth Hoffman, journalist, author and farmer. And this is Season III of At the Iowa Farm Table, a production of the Iowa
- Jun 30, 20269 min
Cancer, Prairie Strips and a Man's Soul
Jon Bakehouse is a corn and soybean farmer in southwest Iowa. He and his family were working to improve the sustainability of the farm over the years. But an unexpected health scare changed Bakehouse’s perspective of farming, andAbout this podcastThis episode is part of a partnership with the Practical Farmers of Iowa, a farmer-led nonprofit with more than 9,000 members that equips farmers to build resilient farms and communities. Through farmer-led education, on-farm research, financial support, technical assistance, business development and solutions-oriented policy work, PFI helps farmers try new ideas, solve problems together and build successful farm businesses.Every January, at the PFI annual conference in Des Moines, a ‘Conversation Coop’ (a room really) is set up, where attendees tell stories about food and farming. These stories are then stored with StoryCorp–a national story collection site–and at the Library of Congress. I got to thinking–there have to be great stories in that collection, stories that more people should hear. And so, with PFI and the story-teller’s permission, we have edited down the interviews and are sharing them with you here.To learn more about prairie strips, go to:https://www.iaagwater.org/prairie-strips-a-beautiful-tool-for-soil-preservation/https://www.cals.iastate.edu/news/2025/prairie-strips-can-rapidly-improve-soil-health This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit attheiowafarmtable.substack.com
- Jun 16, 20269 min
Do we have a moral obligation to "feed the world"?
Arlyn Kauffman, a row crop and egg farmer from southern Iowa, took a group of high school students to one of the nation’s largest agricultural shows, where major seed and chemical companies were showcasing their products.What he learned there changed his life.This episode is the beginning of an occasional series Beth Hoffman will produce in partnership with Practical Farmers of Iowa (PFI).PFI is a farmer-led nonprofit with more than 9,000 members that equips farmers to build resilient farms and communities. Through farmer-led education, on-farm research, financial support, technical assistance, business development and solutions-oriented policy work, PFI helps farmers try new ideas, solve problems together and build successful farm businesses.Every January, at the PFI annual conference in Des Moines, a “Conversation Coop” is set up where attendees tell stories about food and farming. These stories are stored with StoryCorps, a national story-collection organization, and at the Library of Congress.Arlyn Kauffman recorded his story at the Conversation Coop in 2026.Stay in the LoopStay connected to the latest in Iowa’s food system news. Subscribe to the Iowa Food System Coalition newsletter for timely news, action alerts, and event updates, all focused on supporting local farms and communities.Please like and share this podcast if you enjoy it!Thanks for listening to At the Iowa Farm Table Podcast! This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit attheiowafarmtable.substack.com
- Jun 2, 202612 min
Farmers and Land
More than 70% of farms in the U.S. have been lost over the past 125 years. Today less than 2% of Americans call farming their profession.Yet, in a world with a changing climate and uncertain job market, many are looking to farming as a way to get back to the land, grow healthy food for their community, and discover a life full of meaning. But finding land and becoming a full fledged member of the family farm are essential first steps in the plan.Beth Hoffman explores how securing land for beginning farmers isn’t just about creating business opportunity. It’s about revitalizing rural communities by giving the next generation the opportunity to farm again. Thanks for listening to the At the Iowa Farm Table Podcast! Subscribe for free to receive new posts to your email inbox.VoicesCarly McAndrews—Trowel and Error FarmKristiana Coutu—Beginning Farmer Center, Iowa State UniversityJada Fife—Fife’s Fine Foods and Land Acquisition and Management Coordinator at SILTHannah Breckbill—Humble Hands Harvest, creator of Farmers Land Investment Cooperative, and Land Navigator.ResourcesNew Census of Agriculture reveals more farms, more farmers in IowaStay in the LoopStay connected to the latest in Iowa’s food system news. Subscribe to the Iowa Food System Coalition newsletter for timely news, action alerts, and event updates, all focused on supporting local farms and communities.Please like and share this podcast if you enjoy it! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit attheiowafarmtable.substack.com
- May 5, 202612 min
How Prairie Made Iowa
We wanted to send a quick note of appreciation for all of our listeners! Thank you so much for your support.Please be sure to write a review of this podcast (especially if you listen outside of Substack). And sign up for the Iowa Food System Coalition’s Local Food Challenge taking place this summer.Have you ever wondered why U.S. tax payers often pay farmers NOT to farm? In this episode, we frame that question a little differently: have you ever wondered why U.S. tax payers don’t pay more farmers to provide ecosystem services for the health of our landscapes?150 years ago, prairie got in the way of Iowa’s European settlers. In order to farm, they had to till it up. Now, many Iowans are advocating for us to restore as much of it as we can.In this episode, Beth dives into the “why” of prairies with one of Iowa’s “Prairie Farmers,” Nicholas Lirio of Hocksey Native Seed.VoicesNicolas Lirio—Hocksey Native Seed and the Prairie Farm PodcastResourcesHistory of the Conservation Reserve ProgramHouse Farm Bill Falls ShortEnvironmental Working Group—Conservation DatabaseMusic Geoff HarveyMonumeStay in the LoopStay connected to the latest in Iowa’s food system news. Subscribe to the Iowa Food System Coalition newsletter for timely news, action alerts, and event updates, all focused on supporting local farms and communities. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit attheiowafarmtable.substack.com
- Apr 21, 202617 min
Iowa, Farming and Cancer: What Do We Really Know?
Iowa has a cancer problem. We are one of the only states in the nation with a growing cancer rate, and have higher levels of certain kinds of cancers than do similar areas of the country.Many have put the blame on Iowa’s fields, while others say that legal pesticides are safe for us and the environment.In this episode we go down the rabbit hole to understand—how do chemicals become products on our shelves? Is a legal chemical safe? And what do researchers know about the relationship between chemicals and cancer?Thanks for listening to At the Iowa Farm Table. Please subscribe to receive our podcasts right to your inbox VoicesAudrey Tran Lam—Environmental Health Program Director, Center for Energy & Environmental Education, University of Northern IowaDavid Cwiertny—Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Director, Center for Health Effects of Environmental Contamination, University of IowaSeth Watkins—Pinhook FarmWeary Ramblers— Kathryn Severing Fox and Chad Elliott ResourcesHigher cancer rates in counties with more CAFOs, study findsU.S. chemical management system must be transformed to prevent harm, argue new policy papersREACH Regulation—European Commission on Energy, Climate change, EnvironmentCancer and Environmental Risk Factors in Iowa—Iowa Environmental CouncilEPA contact in IowaCancer in Iowa—Iowa Cancer RegistryInteractive Iowa Maps—Iowa Cancer RegistryInternational Study Reveals Glyphosate Weed Killers Cause Multiple Types of CancerStay in the LoopStay connected to the latest in Iowa’s food system news. Subscribe to the Iowa Food System Coalition newsletter for timely news, action alerts, and event updates, all focused on supporting local farms and communities.Lyrics to Reduce, Reduce, Reduce! by the Weary RamblersPesticides kill thingsThat’s just what they doThey wouldn’t be good at their jobIf they weren’t bad for youSo we need to spray more sparinglyOnly what we really needListen to Mother NatureShe loves diversityGot a few weeds?That’s alrightA little milkweed and some foxtailTheir just fineIf you’re sprayin’Just to sprayIt does more harm than goodIt costs more at the end of the dayWe gotta’ start doing something…there’s just too much to loseReduce, Reduce, Reduce what we useReduce, Reduce, Reduce what we useDon’t plant your crops on the water’s edgeGive ‘em ‘bout fifty feetOn the edge of every fieldGo ahead and leave the treesDoin’ these two things makes forA Healthier, happy homeFor the plants to grow and for the little critters to roamGot a few weeds?That’s alrightA little waterhemp and thistlesTheir just fineIf you’re sprayin’Just to sprayIt does more harm than goodIt costs more at the end of the dayWe gotta’ start doing something…there’s just too much to loseReduce, Reduce, Reduce what we useReduce, Reduce, Reduce what we use This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://attheiowafarmtable.substack.com
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The At the Iowa Farm Table Podcast takes a deep look into food and farming in Iowa. Brought to you by the Iowa Food System Coalition.
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