Farmers and Food System Leaders Speak Out on Immigration Enforcement’s Impact on Iowa Families and Communities
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Tommy Hexter | Executive Director
Email: director@iowafoodsystemcoalition.org
January 28, 2026 – Through its statewide network, the Iowa Food System Coalition is amplifying the voices of food system leaders from partner organizations, including the Center for Rural Affairs, Des Moines Area Religious Council, the Iowa Farmers Union, and Iowa Hunger Coalition. We strongly support human rights and believe in treating all people with basic human dignity and respect. We oppose actions that create fear or instability for families and people who live in Iowa, including workers who contribute so much to our state’s food system and communities. We are concerned for the safety of families, and for workers’ ability to show up without fear.
Recent federal enforcement activity in neighboring states has disrupted communities, local businesses, and essential work, including food sector workers and the services on which they rely, like hospitals and schools. We are concerned that similar escalations could negatively impact Iowa’s urban and rural communities, destabilizing families and the workforce that sustains our food system.
Grounded in our shared commitment to Iowa’s communities, agriculture, and food system, we stand together in support of the following principles:
Due process: No one in the United States should be subjected to detention or removal without full access to legal protections and due process.
Immigration reform: We support fair and expedient pathways for people living in the United States to obtain legal status, including citizenship or visas. This enhances and does not detract from national security goals.
Right to peaceful protest: American citizens and residents should be able to voice opposition to government actions they deem unjust.
Local law enforcement discretion: Consistent with constitutional principles, we support local decision-making and respect the authority of local law enforcement to determine the level of cooperation with federal enforcement.
Protected spaces: We support efforts to re-establish protected spaces free from fear of immigration enforcement, including schools, places of worship, and food pantries.
Immigrants and refugees bring deep agricultural knowledge and experience that are foundational to Iowa’s food system. Policies that create fear or force families to leave threaten food production, affordability, and economic stability statewide. Public investments should support clear pathways to opportunity that uphold the human rights of immigrants and refugees, protect their health and well-being, and strengthen Iowa’s food system and rural communities.
All of this is unfolding at a time when Iowa’s farmers, communities, and environment face significant challenges. Over the past year, funding for farmers was cut through the elimination of the Local Food Purchasing Assistance (LFPA) and Local Food for Schools (LFS) programs; conservation investments declined as water quality worsened and cancer rates increased; and SNAP funding was slashed, while funding for federal immigration enforcement efforts increased. We call upon our government to prioritize addressing the real issues harming everyday Iowans, rather than politically driven conflicts that undermine our workforce and food security.
In the coming days, weeks, and months, local food system leaders will continue to gather and share resources to support and stand in solidarity with the immigrant community in Iowa.
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The Iowa Food System Coalition (IFSC) is a community of over 50 organizational partners and 600 individuals with professional and lived expertise, united to advance a thriving, sustainable, and equitable food system in Iowa. Through Setting the Table for All Iowans, our strategic roadmap, IFSC is leading efforts to increase local food consumption, build resilient rural communities, create economic opportunities, and improve the health of Iowans.
