News
Iowa’s Water Crisis Crashed the Midterms
As Democrats flipped state and federal seats, farm runoff and cancer concerns infiltrated nearly every race.
Elections•5 min read
Inside Iowa
Investigating the hidden costs of factory farming across the state
Feature
How a Billion-Dollar Dairy Plant Could Worsen Iowa’s Water Pollution
Industry•9 min read
Feature
A Scientist Was Pushed Out for Studying Iowa’s Water. Now He’s Running To Regulate It.
Elections•15 min read
Explainer
Where Iowa’s Gubernatorial Candidates Stand on Water Quality
Elections•10 min read
Feature
We Asked 1,000 Iowans About Factory Farming. Here’s What We Learned.
A survey taken this past spring shows a majority of Iowans say they have experienced negative environmental impacts from industrial animal operations. But plenty are also ambivalent, or ignorant, about…
Elections•11 min read
We Mapped All 11,000 Factory Farms in Iowa. Here Are Five Things We Learned.
Inside Iowa•8 min read
What’s happening in Iowa
Sources: 25m: Hog population: USDA NASS, Quarterly Hogs and Pigs, June 2026. Human population: US Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 estimates | Fivefold: Data: Environmental Working Group. 1990 and 2019 figures from EWG’s 2020 analysis; 2025 figure from EWG’s 2026 analysis. Large CAFOs are those housing 1,000 or more animal units (1,000 cattle, 714 dairy cows, 2,500 hogs or 100,000 laying hens) | 79%: Share of Iowa voters who support introducing mandatory requirements for industrial agriculture to reduce pollution. Data: Global Strategy Group poll of 600 Iowa registered voters for Food & Water Action, Jan–Feb 2026 | Rising: Data: CDC WONDER. Average incidence for 2018-22 inclusive by US state, age-adjusted to the 2000 US standard population. All invasive cancer sites combined, all ages, both sexes.
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