Boosted by $5 million in federal funds, Iowa State added a new resource center designed to promote value-added agriculture to its lineup.

The Agricultural Marketing Resource Center was formally launched last week, when the $5 million check from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development was presented to ISU President Gregory Geoffroy.

“This center will make available resources that can help value-added producers make their products successful,” said Stanley Johnson, vice provost for Cooperative Extension Service.

Several projects already are under way at the center, and Internet classes for producers will begin in February.

“We are going to experiment with an online farmers’ market,” Johnson said. “We are holding educational sessions to train Extension employees that will be working with farmers.”

Iowa State specifically is involved in providing affordable access to online markets for producers and developing Internet classes about how to use Web sites effectively. A joint effort with the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation also will help create a training program for the boards of directors of new-generation cooperatives.

Mary Holz-Clause, co-director of the center, said it is first and foremost a resource center to provide valuable information to help farmers market their products online.

“We’re really excited about the opportunities we can provide to Iowa farmers,” said Holz-Clause, industrial specialist for Cooperative Extension Service.

A major benefit to the center is that it will provide literature on past projects, so producers can determine consumer demand for their products, said Daniel Brown, state director for USDA Rural Development.

The center’s resources also will help producers answer questions regarding developing new markets, he said.

“Marketing is the most critical step and should be the first,” Brown said.

The center, based out of Holz-Clause’s office, will be supported by Iowa State and three other universities – Kansas State University, Oklahoma State University and the University of California.

A benefit of the multi-university partnership is the “synergies of doing things together,” Holz-Clause said. The other universities will be able to “provide a lot more information on areas we don’t have nearly as much expertise in,” she said.

“The center will assist farmers in all centers of production as they develop alternative uses for crops and livestock,” Brown said.