Agricultural Workforce Development Programs in Iowa

The curriculum covers essential maintenance protocols for clean grain elevators, feeder house chains, and headers to prevent mid-season downtime. We also analyze specialized harvest scenarios, including green soybean management and residue distribution, while highlighting the long-term impact of uniform spreading on next year’s crop performance. Participants walk through precise grain loss check procedures using industry-standard mobile apps and drop-pan methods to differentiate between header and threshing losses. This event is designed to help everyone navigate common harvest pinch points and optimize in-cab technology, ensuring maximum field efficiency and confidence in the weeks following the program. Target audience is combine operators.

Designed for a wide range of attendees, from curious farmers to licensed spray drone applicators and agtech startups. This full-day workshop will provide both foundational knowledge and advanced insights into the world of agricultural drone spraying, including compliance and regulatory for personal versus custom applicators, general operations, and set up and safety. Workshop includes hands on demonstrations from multiple spray drone providers.

Crop Advantage meetings provide a solid foundation of current, research-based crop production information to help make smart, informed decisions in the farming operation. Each Crop Advantage meeting is an approved continuing education course for Iowa private pesticide applicators. Additionally, these meetings are approved for continuing education credits for Certified Crop Advisors (CCAs).

Participants gain a better understanding of how planter downforce systems function, differences in settings of high speed vs. conventional planters, evaluation of wear parts and maintenance, and data management for planters. Intended audience includes: Ag Industry Professional, Farm Owner/Operator and Extension Professionals.

Become a certified food safety leader with this nationally accredited ServSafe® course - ideal for managers and staff seeking compliance and career advancement in foodservice.

Meet FDA requirements and boost your farm’s food safety standards with Iowa State’s affordable, hands-on Produce Safety Alliance Grower Training and free on-farm readiness reviews.

Learn how to tackle herbicide resistance with this self-paced online course. Includes videos, activities, and tools to help farmers and agribusiness pros build long-term weed control strategies.

This online series offers monthly expert-led sessions on swine breeding and herd management, perfect for professionals working in pig production who want to improve efficiency and stay current with industry challenges.

Get certified in pork quality assurance with online or in-person training. Courses qualify for veterinary CEUs and help improve animal care and food safety.

Stay certified and safe with Iowa’s Pesticide Safety Education Program. Offers continuing instruction courses (CICs) and resources for safe pesticide use.

Build leadership skills to support local food systems. This course covers food system basics, facilitation, planning, and evaluation. Offered online or in person. Certificate awarded after completion.

Selling homemade food in Iowa? This online course teaches you the laws and food safety practices you need to know. Learn how to safely prepare, package, and sell your products. Certificate awarded upon completion.

Become a certified tree steward with this 6-week course. Learn tree ID, planting, care, pest management, and more through classroom and field labs.

The Resilient Food Systems (RFS) Certification is a process-based certification that increases capacity for food systems practitioners to develop skills for facilitation and strategic planning for preparing for disaster and developing more resilient practices across place-based food systems. Participants will learn a strategic-planning process and participate in hands-on activities and site visits to explore best practices for visioning techniques, scenarios and table-top exercises, conducting research and community food systems assessments, and design thinking and implementation, and evaluation. The workshop is offered as either a retreat for place-based communities to practice and learn simultaneously, or as a general workshop with practice activities for conducting the process in one's own community. s include activities and networking for