As one of the country’s top producers of corn, soybeans, hogs and eggs — among other key commodities — Iowa helps feed Americans far and wide. Here, farming is more than a way of life for many families; it’s a source of deep pride. Groups can experience Iowa’s rich agricultural heritage through a range of interactive tours at farms, dairies and other unique agritourism-based attractions across the state.
WW Homestead Dairy
Waukon
Situated within the rich farmland of Northeast Iowa, the WW Homestead Dairy produces fresh local milk and award-winning, handcrafted cheeses, cheese curds, ice creams, butters and more. The dairy offers guided tours of both its farm and creamery, allowing groups to see, firsthand, how staff bottle their milk and create their prized dairy products. At the creamery, a viewing hallway overlooks the entire processing area, so guests come away with a better understanding of the many steps involved in dairy production. While there, visitors can stock up on cheese and other specialties at the dairy’s on-site retail store and enjoy a made-to-order cone of locally made ice cream. On the farm, groups can tour the milking facility and even meet the farm’s cows and calves. Guided tours of both locations are available by reservation only; contact the dairy to arrange details.
Manning Hausbarn Heritage Park
Manning
Experience German heritage in the heart of Iowa farm country at the Manning Hausbarn Heritage Park, home to an authentic, meticulously restored German house from the 1660s. In Manning since 1996, the home — one of the oldest buildings in the U.S. — showcases how a well-to-do German family of that era might have lived in comfort, warmed by a large stone fireplace and insulated from the elements by a sturdy thatch roof. The park also includes the beautiful Trinity Lutheran Church, built in 1913, and several well-preserved buildings and farm equipment from the early 1900s-era Leet/Hassler Farmstead, which is itself listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Guided tours of the park are available May through October. Visitors who time their trip around one of Manning’s several town festivals, including Kinderfest in June or Oktoberfest in September, can also enjoy a city-wide celebration of the German cultural traditions of the area’s early settlers.
World Food Prize Hall of Laureates
Des Moines
Established in 1986 by Iowa native and Nobel Peace Prize winner Norman Borlaug, the World Food Prize honors international achievements in agriculture and food production. Housed in the beautifully restored former Des Moines public library, the World Food Prize Hall of Laureates features engaging, hands-on exhibits about agricultural innovation and efforts to address world hunger. On-site displays showcase the breakthroughs of former World Food Prize honorees as well as the broader innovations of Iowans in agriculture. As a result, guests leave with a deeper understanding of how Iowa’s ag producers play a key role not only in U.S. food systems, but also in those of the entire world. The building — a Beaux Arts landmark built in 1903 — also offers ample architectural charm, including art-filled galleries, exquisite stained-glass windows and a soaring rotunda dome, which is flanked by murals depicting Borlaug’s life and work. Guided private tours are available by reservation, Tuesdays through Fridays.
Kinze Innovation Center
Williamsburg
Founded in Iowa in 1965 by Jon Kinzenbaw, Kinze is renowned as an innovative manufacturer of high-speed planters, grain carts, tillage tools and other large-scale agricultural equipment. At its 25,000-square-foot Innovation Center, the company invites visitors to explore interactive displays that showcase Kinze’s origins and its continued evolution over the decades. Groups can explore the site’s extensive collection of historic Kinze farm machinery, including early prototypes of its most successful equipment. Highlights include Big Blue, an early Kinze-built twin-engine tractor, and the company’s first-ever grain cart and 12-bottom plow. Visitors can also explore a replica of Kinzenbaw’s original Ladora, Iowa, welding shop, enjoy towering outdoor lawn art made from farm equipment, and explore exhibits on the high-tech precision embedded within the company’s newest farm machinery product lines. The Innovation Center is open Mondays through Fridays. Guided group tours of Kinze’s adjacent factory can also be arranged by reservation.
kinze.com/about/innovation-center
Wells Visitor Center & Ice Cream Parlor
Le Mars
Everyone screams in delight for ice cream at the Wells Visitor Center & Ice Cream Parlor, where a blend of irresistible flavors and interactive fun awaits. Located in downtown Le Mars, the ice cream parlor and visitor center invites groups to taste as many of the 40 locally produced ice cream varieties as they’d like before ordering their perfect cone. During the visit, guests can explore a virtual production line to learn how Wells Enterprises — best known for its signature Blue Bunny brand — produces more than 200 million gallons of ice cream per year. Short films about the history of the Wells company and its ice cream production play on rotation at the on-site theater, while other displays explain how Le Mars came to hold the official title of “Ice Cream Capital of the World.” While in town, groups should make a point of finding the 50 6-foot-tall ice cream cone sculptures that dot the city, each painted in fun colors by local artists.
