By KOLLEEN TAYLOR

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture, Mike Naig is on the road today visiting several major agriculture projects in central Iowa. The trip, which is part of his 99 county tour, will take him to Boone and Webster City.

The Boone stop will be at AgCertain. Secretary Naig will meet with company leadership and employees of AgCertain and tour this innovative ag company. They will discuss value-added ag, manufacturing, logistics, workforce, and other topics related to business.

The visit to Webster City will focus on the Career Ag Academy project that broke ground in March of 2025. The visit to Webster City will take him to the Hamilton County fairgrounds where he will have a round table discussion and tour of the Career Ag Academy.

“His main focus is the work of the Career Ag Academy and the opportunity for the students to experience hands-on learning in a classroom and real-life setting,” Robin Streigle, Webster City Area Chamber of Commerce Events Coordinator said.

The round table discussion will include a few of the students and community leaders who were integral in the project, including Superintendent Matt Berninghaus and Ag instructor Kurt Veldhuizen.

“He had heard about the project, but didn’t know it was completed yet,” she said, “It’s a big deal to have something like this in the community; to have a place about agriculture that can be used by the FFA, and kids who don’t live on farms, so it will expose them more to opportunities.”

In addition to the roundtable discussion, Secretary Naig will have a tour of the facility. The expectation is that this project may set an example that would help in developing the workforce for agriculture, and offer a new approach to the way schools are able to engage and prepare the next generation for careers. There are several unique features in the learning facility; a dedicated livestock learning area, meat lab, and classrooms, among other amenities.

The Career Ag Academy Inc., is a local non-profit, and is in partnership with the Webster City Community School District and the Hamilton County Fair. Students can receive dual credit courses through partnerships with Iowa Central and Iowa State University.

Naig, who is the 15th Iowa Secretary of Agriculture, was first elected in 2018 and re-elected in 2022.