During the recent Iowa Corn Growers Association’s annual grassroots summit, two respected advocates received the 2021 Friend of Iowa Corn Award and the Walter Goeppinger Lifetime Achievement Award.
ICGA named Gov. Kim Reynolds as the recipient of the 2021 Friend of Iowa Corn Award. The annual award recognizes state and federal legislators, their staff, and others that show exemplary effort on behalf of ICGA policy issues. Gov. Reynolds has worked tirelessly over this past year as she introduced the Iowa Biofuels Standard and made it a top priority for the legislative session. By simply reducing E0 sales, an additional 45.7 million bushels of corn could enter the market over the next five years creating more profitability for corn farmers. She worked diligently to gain the support of many colleagues in the House and Senate, continued to advocate for the legislation when it hit roadblocks, and still showed unrelenting support for renewable fuels even though the bill didn’t make it across the finish line.
Additionally, ICGA awarded the Walter Goeppinger Lifetime Achievement Award to retired Wallaces Farmer editor, Rod Swoboda. This annual award is given to a person with outstanding service and commitment to advancing the corn industry. Svoboda served as a member of the Wallaces Farmer editorial staff for 44 years. He got his start as a field editor in 1976 writing about crops and conservation. He worked his way up to managing editor and was named editor in 2003. As the 10th editor in the 107-year history of the magazine, he continued the publication’s focus on providing helpful information for Iowa farmers.
“Over the course of Rod’s 44-year career at Wallaces Farmer, he reported on the development of ethanol, the establishment of the Iowa Corn checkoff program, water quality issues, adoption of no-till practices, and many, many more farm management topics,” said Iowa Corn CEO Craig Floss. “The agricultural industry is better because of Rod’s service. We can look to him as an example of what it means to go beyond the call of service for the greater good. ICGA thanks him for strengthening the corn industry.”
