Iowa’s Largest Co-op Considering Moving HQ to Des Moines

Landus Cooperative, the largest agricultural co-op in the state of Iowa, is considering moving its headquarters from Ames to the city of Des Moines.

The shift in location follows the appointment of Landus’ new CEO Matt Carstens last year, who had previously been senior vice president of Truterra, a division of Land O’Lakes focused on agricultural technology and data. The cooperative also recently opened an Innovation Center in Ralston, northwest of Des Moines, that will connect farmers to global innovation leaders to drive a sustainable future for ag, and forged a partnership with Google providing Landus’ farmers with data-based insights.

The farmer-owned cooperative, which employs more than 600 people across Iowa and Minnesota, is considering leasing 25,000 square-feet of office space. As an enticement, the city of Des Moines is offering Landus a five-year, $250,000 forgivable loan to help fund the relocation. But in return, the city is demanding a first-of-its-kind requirement - that Landus and its associates book a minimum of 1,000 hotel rooms in the city every year, estimating that visitors to Landus would pump an estimated $1.4 million into the city’s economy over a five-year period.

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