Boone County Economic Growth Corporation

08/31/2026

Hear from Boone County Economic Growth Corporation Executive Director Brenda Dryer as she celebrates two exciting milestones driving Boone County’s growth!

She shares: Unemployment in Boone County continues to trend lower month over month as compared to 2025. We know that the retention and attraction of workforce is important our Boone County Economic Growth Corporation investors and businesses across Boone County.

Earlier this month we received the Boone laborshed results from Iowa Workforce Development. Laborshed studies are supply-side, labor availability studies. They are designed to provide community leaders, economic developers, site selectors and existing or prospective employers a flexible tool for understanding the workforce characteristics of their local labor market.

A “laborshed” is defined as the area or region from which an employment center draws its commuting workers. The report shows the distribution of these workers regardless of political boundaries. Laborshed studies also address underemployment, availability of labor and likeliness of the employed or not employed to change or accept employment. Other topics covered within a Laborshed analysis include current and desired occupations, wages, hours worked, job search resources and distance willing to commute to work.

Key takeaways from the report:

- There is an estimated 480,428 working age population in the Boone laborshed.
- An estimated 62,201 are willing to consider accepting or changing employment.
- An estimated 2,520 people are considered “underemployed”; meaning they are working less than their desired number of hours each week, have a mismatch of skills, or are making less than the national poverty level.
- Employed people within the laborshed are commuting an average of 14 miles / 20 minutes one way each day for work.
- 3,702 people live in Boone and work elsewhere; the study indicates that 31.3% or 1,159 are willing to change employment.

If you want to know, more check out https://workforce.iowa.gov/laborshed-studies and search Boone.

We’re excited to see this momentum continue and can’t wait to see what’s next for Boone County!

08/28/2026

08/25/2026

Construction activity at the Daisy Brand project continues to accelerate, with more workers now on the job site. The Hancock roadway extension is expected to be paved yet this year, marking another important step in preparing the site for the company’s operations. Daisy Brand has already made 10 hires in 2026 and plans to add approximately 100 more employees in 2027. The continued construction progress and growing workforce demonstrate that the $1.2 billion project is moving from development into a significant phase of implementation for the Boone community and region. Aerial photo courtesy of Gray Beard Drones LLC.

08/06/2026

Executive Director Dryer was out this morning doing BRE (Business Retention and Expansion) visits, first stop Besser Co. This longtime Boone business is hiring! Help us get the word out.

07/31/2026

Hear from Boone County Economic Growth Corporation Executive Director Brenda Dryer as she celebrates two exciting milestones driving Boone County’s growth!

She shares, “Boone is honored to be named a Thriving Iowa Community, a designation that will help us attract new investment and showcase the incredible housing and economic development happening here. We’re also excited to see continued progress from Daisy Brands, with hiring underway and construction moving forward on their future Boone facility.”

We’re excited to see this momentum continue and can’t wait to see what’s next for Boone County!

07/29/2026

BCEGC Executive Director Brenda Dryer, Boone County Supervisor Erich Kretzinger, and Dan Culhane with the Ames Regional Economic Alliance joined Director Durham and staff from the Iowa Economic Development Authority in getting a sneak peek of the new Ingios manufacturing, research, and training facility in rural Boone County. We’ll celebrate with an official ribbon cutting in the near future!

07/28/2026

Check out this job opportunity with longtime BCEGC investor Moffitt's Ford!

🚗 Looking for more than just a job?

Come be part of something that’s been built on trust, family, and community since 1928.

Moffitt’s Ford is growing, and we’re hiring!

⭐ Sales Representative
🔧 Used Car Technician

We’re looking for positive, motivated people who enjoy working with a great team and take pride in what they do.

Here’s what you’ll find at Moffitt’s:
❤️ Family-owned for nearly 100 years
🤝 A team that genuinely supports one another
📈 Opportunities to learn, grow, and succeed
💰 Competitive pay
🏥 Medical, Dental & Vision Insurance
💼 401(k) Match
🌴 Paid Time Off
🎉 Profit Sharing
🎓 Paid Training
🚙 Employee Vehicle Purchase Plan

If you’re ready to build a career with a dealership that believes in taking care of its employees just as much as its customers, we’d love to hear from you.

📧 Send your resume to [email protected]

Join a team where your work matters, your effort is appreciated, and every day is a great day to be at Moffitt’s.

07/28/2026

Collaboration is a great thing!

BUILD A BETTER BOONE ✨

Today marked our first Quarterly Meeting for the revamp of the Build a Better Boone Initiative 🫱🏻‍🫲🏾 Representatives from The Chamber, City of Boone, Iowa, Boone County, Iowa, Boone County Economic Growth Corporation, Visit Boone County, IA and Downtown Boone attended.

All provided Partner Updates on Key Initiatives, Events & Projects and discussed initiatives they need assistance or support for. The Discussion ended with a Brainstorming Session 🧠 on Relocation Efforts to attract new Employees to reside in Boone County 🏠

Grateful for this group of amazing Leaders working together to grow Boone County 💪🏼 and provide a vibrant & flourishing Community for the next Generation ❤️

Thank you to the Boone FLEX for hosting!

07/24/2026

Learn more about the Daisy Brand project that is now under construction in Boone. Thanks to The Des Moines Register for the coverage.

Its population stagnant, Boone sees Daisy's new $1.2 billion sour cream and cottage cheese plant as a 'game changer' that will bring jobs, residents.