Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture

Pubs & Papers

Research can take many forms and lead to many different outcomes. The ultimate goal is sustainability – for the landscape, Iowa’s people and natural resources. Below is a list of intermediate outcomes of Leopold Center-supported projects, partnerships and activities. Included are extension publications, in-house research projects, informative presentations and other reports – all with some link to the Leopold Center.

All Pubs & Papers are PDFs, which require a free Adobe Acrobat Reader. Click on the image or title to view the PDF.

Leopold Center Document These materials were written, reviewed or presented by Leopold Center staff. All other materials are related or based on projects supported by the Leopold Center.

Pub & Papers here are sorted by date with the newest at the top. You can filter the list by selecting a topic area below and clicking "Apply." To see all again you can select "<Any>" as the topic, or click here. There is also an alphabetical listing available.

This fact sheet is a special project of the Leopold Center Policy Initiative and ISU Beginning Farmer Center. It is designed to give producers an idea about alternative enterprises that might work in their operation with regard to level of knowledge, capital and other factors.

March 2010
Leopold Center Document Alternative Enterprise Budget: Sheep
Iowa State University Extension BFC 18

This fact sheet is a special project of the Leopold Center Policy Initiative and ISU Beginning Farmer Center. It is designed to give producers an idea about alternative enterprises that might work in their operation with regard to level of knowledge, capital and other factors.

March 2010
Leopold Center Document Alternative Enterprise Budget: Sorghum
Iowa State University Extension BFC 19

This fact sheet is a special project of the Leopold Center Policy Initiative and ISU Beginning Farmer Center. It is designed to give producers an idea about alternative enterprises that might work in their operation with regard to level of knowledge, capital and other factors.

March 2010
Leopold Center Document Alternative Enterprise Budget: Sweet Corn
Iowa State University Extension BFC 20

This research considers the potential statewide and regional economic values that might accumulate to farmers and regional economies if there was an increase in the production of 28 types of fresh fruits and vegetables for local consumption. See related grant project M2009-07.

March 2010
Leopold Center Document Selected Measures of the Economic Values of Increased Fruit and Vegetable Production and Consumption in the Upper Midwest
Dave Swenson, ISU Department of Economics

This guide to local foods in Linn County was funded by the Regional Food Systems Working Group.

February 2010
A Resource Guide to Cultivate the Linn County Local Food System
The Linn/Johnson Local Food Task Force

This study evaluates regional economic impact gains that might accrue if the region were to increase its fresh fruit and vegetable production to accommodate local or regional demand. The region studied includes rural areas, yet it is influenced by nearby metropolitan centers, which also serve as potential markets. See related grant project M2009-07.

January 2010
Leopold Center Document Investigating the Potential Economic Impacts of Local Foods for Southeast Iowa
Dave Swenson, ISU Department of Economics

This analysis looked at the potential economic impact on 10 counties in southwest Iowa from modest increases in consumption of locally-grown fresh produce.

January 2010
Leopold Center Document The Economic Impact of Fruit and Vegetable Production in Southwest Iowa Considering Local and Nearby Metropolitan Markets
Dave Swenson, ISU Department of Economics

This workbook provides growers with information and resources to use high tunnels effectively, enhance productivity and net income, and learn from the experience of other high tunnel users. Find this publication in Spanish online at the ISU Extension store. See grant project M2009-16.

January 2010
Leopold Center Document Iowa High Tunnel Fruit and Vegetable Production Manual
Iowa State University Extension PM 2098

This study, published in Journal of Animal Science, is related to a Leopold Center Ecology Initiative grant that studied energy use and nutrient cycling in pig production systems.

December 2009
Leopold Center Document Nonsolar Energy Use and One-hundred-year Global Warming Potential of Iowa Swine Feedstuffs and Feeding Strategies
P.J. Lammers, M.D. Kenealy, J.B. Kliebenstein, J.D. Harmon, M.J. Helmers, and M.S. Honeyman

Is local food more expensive than its non-local counterpart? The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture’s Marketing and Food Systems Initiative conducted consumer market research in June, July, and August 2009 to examine what Iowa consumers pay for locally grown products and how these prices compare to non-local market channel prices. This handout explains the comparisons [PDF]  Read news release about this project.

December 2009
Leopold Center Document Is Local Food More Expensive? A Consumer Price Perspective on Local and Non-local Foods Purchased in Iowa
Rich Pirog, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, and Nick McCann, Iowa State University graduate student