Iowa Products Available For Online Order?

April 8, 2009 11:52 AM

I've decided to make a practice of spending a few hundred dollars or so @ online storefronts based in each state that legalizes gay marriage, whether by judicial or legislative action, just by way of saying thank you to its citizens. Vermont was easy; I used to live there, and online "mom and pop" storefronts are ubiquitous, a natural extension of its maple sugaring and tourism industries. But does anybody have any suggestions for Iowa-based products? Most of the storefronts I've found online seem to aggregate products from several different producers, but if possible I want to make my purchases from the producers themselves.
posted by The Confessor to Shopping (14 answers total)

Another aggregate site, but very cool, and a great real store, too: www.iowa-artisans-gallery.com
posted by Malla at 12:00 PM on April 8, 2009

You could buy from Iowans on etsy
posted by 0xFCAF at 12:03 PM on April 8, 2009 [3 favorites]

Best answer: My favorite blue cheese is Maytag Blue, made in Newton, Iowa. It's a sharp, standard-type blue cheese made using milk from Iowa dairy herds. The Maytag Dairy Farm makes other types of cheese, but I haven't had any of them. I've been meaning to get some Maytag Blue at my local store to root for Iowa too.
posted by Quietgal at 12:07 PM on April 8, 2009 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Chambers Farms sells a variety of value added soybean products on their website. They are located in Corwith, Iowa. Their Laura soybeans do indeed make a great batch of soymilk. I don't know if the owners have a stance of gay marriage, you might want to check before you go buy a celebratory 100lb bag of soybeans.
posted by ChrisHartley at 12:15 PM on April 8, 2009

I think Niman Ranch bacon would probably count as majority Iowan, even though some of the producers are not from the state.

I second Maytag Blue cheese--yum.
posted by iminurmefi at 12:23 PM on April 8, 2009

You could also try Iowa Popcorn.
posted by LOLAttorney2009 at 12:26 PM on April 8, 2009

100% Iowa: Handmade girls' clothes.

Can you be more specific about the types of things you want to buy? That might jog some stuff loose.
posted by bricoleur at 12:40 PM on April 8, 2009

Best answer: The Amana Colonies are famous for their old-timey German way of life and wares, they are/were a religious community very similar to the Amish. Their tourism website has lists of vendors of specialty foods, wine and beer makers, and craftsmen and artists, many of these have their own website listed. I can't vouch for all the stores, but it looks like many are very mom and pop.

here's the foods page
and the wine and beer
and the handicrafts
posted by dahliachewswell at 12:52 PM on April 8, 2009

Response by poster: Pretty much anything is good; if I can't use it myself, I can probably find a family member or friend who can.

For instance, besides the obligatory maple syrup-based products from Vermont, I also bought a side of ham from Vermont Smoke and Cure, granola from Woodstock Granola, and a trivet/cheese cutting board from Rock of Ages quarry... I considered buying a granite Lazy Susan for my mother, but I didn't want to chance the ~$60.00 without judging the movement mechanism first-hand.

I've already made (small) purchases from Maytag, Chambers Farms, and the Popcorn site that LOLAttorney2009 linked to.

I've decided not to discriminate based on the individual producers' views on gay marriage (unless their opposition is open and notorious), since even though the decision to allow gay marriage was made by the courts, the decision to preserve it will ultimately be made by the citizens of Iowa.
posted by The Confessor at 1:03 PM on April 8, 2009

Just a suggestion, but, instead of buying something, why not try to find a charity or foundation in Iowa that helps LGBT youth and donate to that?
posted by Hanuman1960 at 1:36 PM on April 8, 2009

First of all, thanks! As an Iowan I can't take much credit outside of regularly voting and supporting some of the politicians who have vocally supported our courts, but the sentiment is appreciated. Most of my immediate picks have been mentioned -- touristy stuff exists but I can't think of much else offhand, and many locally-produced items are aggregated farm products.

I'd recommend that if all possible, contact the companies or individuals you buy from. As you mentioned, supporting the citizenry is your goal but making sure they're informed why you're purchasing, whether it's from a comment form or from a personal email, would be great.
posted by mikeh at 1:49 PM on April 8, 2009

Response by poster: By way of explanation, I've never been comfortable with all-out monetary charity... but I'd rather not derail this question with a futile discussion of that particular eccentricity. :-)

Thanks, Dahlia; I bought some items from a few Amaya shops.

And I do leave explanatory feedback form comments wherever the option exists. :-)
posted by The Confessor at 1:56 PM on April 8, 2009

There must be a win/win way to support an Iowa universty and derive benefit from it. Academics or athletics? Many universties market their own "products" I buy "Cougar Gold" cheese from nearby Washington State University. MMmmm! It's famous and sold out every year. Made and sold by the Creamery at the College of Food Science.

What about university presses? Bookstores?

The Iowa Writer's Workshop is world famous. 40 Pulitzers by alumni and faculty. Perhaps the best MFA in the country.

Ways to be very creative here and support a very gay friendly institution.

BTW, I have no affiliation there. I'm in another 'I' state...
posted by private_idaho at 3:11 PM on April 8, 2009

What a great post and idea! (Full disclosure: I am an Iowan.) :)

I really like Northern Prairie Chevre. Their farm is about 15 miles north of me and we buy their cheese all the time. Online ordering available via the website.

Also, La Quercia prosciutto is awesome and it's locally made in Norwalk, Iowa, just south of Des Moines. Truly wonderful stuff. Online ordering available via the website and I think their products are fairly well distributed nationally, too.

iminurmefi: Niman Ranch is not an Iowa Company nor is it owned by Bill Niman anymore.

Sidenote re. the Iowa court decision: It's been very interesting watching all of the various political machinations around this case for the past couple of years here in Iowa and now the fallout. (I am proud to note that my law firm filed one of the many amicus briefs on the winning side of the Varnum case.) There was some fear that this case could end up as a lightning rod issue in the 2008 presidential elections here, but fortunately the court's timing was off. There was also another, less widely noticed, Iowa Supreme Court decision about a year ago that reversed a district court ruling that dismissed a child custody suit brought by two same-sex partners when they split up. In that case, the Supreme Court somewhat ducked deciding the direct question of whether same-sex parent adoptions are permitted under Iowa's adoption laws as the court was able to reach its decision on what was essentially a jurisdictional issue.

This MeFite is proud to be an Iowan right now!
posted by webhund at 7:39 PM on April 8, 2009