Neighbors criticize plan for western Iowa chicken facility

MINEOLA, Iowa (AP) — Neighboring residents and other people opposed to the construction of a chicken confinement facility in western Iowa filled a meeting at a church and roundly criticized the plan as better suited to an industrial park.

The opponents’ concerns aired at St. John Lutheran Church in Mineola on Monday included the potential smell, the impact on the water table and the affect on local roads.

2 plead not guilty to charges stemming from grain scheme

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Two former officers at a northwest Iowa agriculture cooperative have pleaded not guilty to federal fraud charges.

The Sioux City Journal reported that Kenneth Ehrp and Calvin Diehl entered the pleas Thursday in U.S. District Court in Sioux City. The charges: conspiracy to defraud the United States, and making false statements.

Feds approve Nebraska plan for growing hemp

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has approved Nebraska’s hemp plan, so the state will begin taking license applications on Monday.

The Nebraska plan lays out the regulations and calls for the state to collect $236,000 in license fees to administer the program for 270 cultivator licenses, 30 processor-handler licenses and 15 broker licenses. It allows for 400 cultivation sites.