Agriculture has remained an important part of life in Iowa. Agricultural production improved dramatically in Iowa in the 20th century, with mechanization and the planting of hybrid crop species, as well as the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Ironically, the success in farm productivity led to lower commodity prices, which in turn meant fewer but larger farms. Though farms still made up the overwhelming share of Iowa land in the early 21st century, fewer than one-tenth of Iowa’s workforce was actively involved in agricultural production.

Iowa’s main agricultural products are corn (maize), soybeans, hogs, and cattle, and Iowa ranks among the leading states in the production of the first three commodities. Viticulture is of growing importance to the state, which has hundreds of commercial vineyards. Much of Iowa’s agricultural production is exported, mainly to Canada, Mexico, and Japan. Moreover, a large percentage of those exports is sent by rail and truck to the Mississippi River, where it is then transferred to barges for shipment to the Gulf of Mexico and then abroad.

Forestry is limited mainly to the hillier sections of the state, particularly in the Loess Hills in the west and the Driftless Area in the northeast.

Resources and power

Extractive production in Iowa is limited to quarrying, cement, and gypsum. Coal-fired power plants produce more than four-fifths of the electricity generated in Iowa. The state is one of the top producers of ethanol in the country; several ethanol plants are located throughout the state. It is also a major producer of wind energy, with hundreds of wind turbines generating power.

Manufacturing

Iowa is located on the western fringe of the American Rust Belt. Deere & Company, one of the world’s largest corporations in the manufacture of agricultural equipment, has plants in Davenport, Des Moines, Dubuque, Ottumwa, and Waterloo. Seed grain operations and food processing remain important, particularly in Des Moines and Cedar Rapids. Other manufactures include electrical appliances, motor homes, rolled aluminum, chemicals, and foodstuffs.

Services, labour, and taxation

Services are the dominant economic activity in Iowa, especially education, banking, and insurance. In addition to being the state capital, Des Moines has long been home to national corporations, banks, and publishing houses. The Cedar Rapids–Iowa City corridor is home to technology companies and research facilities affiliated with the University of Iowa in Iowa City. The Oakdale Research Park of the University of Iowa at Coralville is renowned for its support of innovative businesses, both those stemming from research at the university and those from off-campus projects. Agribusiness firms are prevalent throughout the state.

Tourism is important. Some of Iowa’s major attractions are the Lewis and Clark State Park with its replica of the explorers’ keelboat; Fort Madison on the Mississippi River, where frontier life is re-created; and the Grotto of the Redemption in West Bend, a site of religious pilgrimage made of gems and coloured rocks set into concrete. Native American burial mounds are preserved in Effigy Mounds National Monument, another tourist site. Motion pictures have also played a role in attracting tourists to Iowa—namely, The Bridges of Madison County (1995) and The Field of Dreams (1989), the latter of which starred Kevin Costner and was partly filmed on a baseball diamond sculpted into a cornfield in Dyersville, about 25 miles (40 km) west of Dubuque. Today the field is the official Field of Dreams Movie Site, which thousands of tourists visit annually. The Iowa State Fair, begun in 1854, attracts hundreds of thousands of people to the state each August and includes a livestock show, visual and performing arts exhibits, vendors, rides, and contests.

State sales taxes help provide for many public services. Proceeds from gambling are another major source of revenue. In the 1980s the state government reversed its policy regarding gambling, switching from a complete ban to having numerous kinds of legalized gambling. Gambling options include a smattering of riverboat casinos, gaming at Mesquakie, a lottery, and a racetrack in Altoona.

Transportation

Throughout the 20th century Iowa invested heavily in road transportation. Despite its modest size, it has more paved miles of road than most U.S. states because of its evenly distributed towns. In the early 21st century, however, many of the state’s antiquated bridges were in need of repair. River transportation is largely limited to the bordering Mississippi and Missouri rivers, which serve as the main channels to transport grain.

The state was once traversed by an intricate network of railways. When railroads were first built across the state in the 1860s, a northern line connected Dubuque, Waterloo, and Fort Dodge with Sioux City on the Missouri. Another line connected Davenport, Iowa City, and Des Moines with Council Bluffs and Omaha, Nebraska, also on the Missouri. Since the late 20th century the rail network has been drastically reduced, as demand has fallen and repair costs have escalated. Passenger traffic is limited to a single line. About two-fifths of freight, however, is still transported by rails that cross Iowa.

In terms of U.S. air travel, Iowa is centrally located. From eastern (Cedar Rapids), central (Des Moines), and western (Omaha, Nebraska) locations, Iowans can fly nonstop to nearby major cities including Chicago, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Kansas City, and Denver. Travel beyond those cities, however, almost always requires a stop in one of those cities. The Des Moines International Airport is the state’s largest airport.