(Audubon) As part of his annual visits to every county, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig will be in Audubon, Adair, and Union Counties tomorrow, February 27.
Naig will speak at the quarterly meeting of the Hungry Canyons Alliance from 11:00 a.m. until noon at the Audubon Rec Center, at 703 Southside Avenue.
The Hungry Canyons Alliance is a coalition of counties in southwest Iowa working together to reduce soil erosion and improve water quality in the region’s highly erodible “hungry canyons.” Through targeted watershed projects, cost-share assistance, and strong partnerships with landowners, the Alliance implements practical conservation practices that keep soil on the land and nutrients out of Iowa’s waterways. Hungry Canyons Alliance receives funding from the state via the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. Secretary Naig will speak about ongoing soil conservation and water quality efforts in Iowa, including efforts to accelerate this important work. As a note, Dr. Justin Glisan, the State Climatologist, will be speaking at around 10:00 a.m. immediately before Secretary Naig. Secretary Naig’s comments are open to the media, and I anticipate an opportunity to chat with him briefly before he departs.
According to the press release, Secretary Naig will head to Nichols Farms cattle and seedstock operation near Bridgewater. Nichols received the Iowa Farm Environmental Leader Award in 2025. Following the passing of Dave Nichols, Ross Havens now manages Nichols Farms. It continues its leadership legacy while serving as a board member of the Iowa Cattlemen’s Foundation, representing the Cattlemen’s Beef Board on the Iowa Beef Industry Council Board, serving on the Cattlemen’s Beef Board Executive Committee, and acting as Secretary-Treasurer of the U.S. Meat Export Federation. Secretary Naig will learn about the farm and its operations and customers, discuss the beef industry, conservation, innovation, and other topics.
Secretary Naig will cap off his tour at “Champion Steaks” in Union County. The company’s beef is bred, born, raised, fed, and processed in Union County. Champion Steaks received a Choose Iowa Value-Added Grant in 2024 to add cold storage to expand their direct-to-consumer meat business. Secretary Naig will tour the business and visit with the Rieck Family about their project and their farm/business. He will also discuss the Choose Iowa program and its continued growth and momentum.
