Eastern Iowa businesses get USDA grants

Several Eastern Iowa businesses have been awarded U.S. Department of Agriculture grants to develop new products and markets.

Fox Ridge Farm, doing business as Wilson's Orchard in Solon, will receive a $160,000 grant to develop new markets and grow sales. Hansen's Farm Fresh Dairy in Hudson, south of Waterloo, will receive a $49,900 grant to improve product packaging and expand its market area for dairy products.

Wilrona LLC, doing business as Fireside Winery in Marengo, was awarded a $43,650 grant to develop new markets and grow sales.

Bill and Rona Wyant, owners of Fireside Winery, also own Ackerman Winery and the nearby Heritage Haus in Amana.

Rona Wyant said the USDA grant will expand the market for Fireside wines by offering them at Heritage Haus.

'We are bringing Fireside wines into the Amana Colonies without taking away from the Ackerman Winery,” Wyant said. 'We are expanding our processing facility at the Fireside location.

'We will be able to add a lot of new products in the future.”

Nine Iowa-based businesses are receiving a total of $1.2 million in USDA Rural Development value-added producer grants.

'This funding will enable farmers and ranchers to develop new products, improve the bottom line for their operations and help create a robust local and regional food system,” said USDA Deputy Under Secretary Vernita Dore in a news release.

'Value-added producer grants provide capital to enable ag producers to grow their business through diversification,” Dore said. 'USDA's support is especially important for beginning farmers and smaller farm operations.”

Value-added producer grants can be used to develop new agricultural products or additional markets for existing products. Military veterans, socially-disadvantaged and beginning farmers and ranchers, operators of small- and medium-sized family farms and ranches, and farmer and rancher cooperatives are given priority when applying for the grants.