As Iola deals with the loss of Haldex, we should focus on industries tied to agriculture and the Neosho River.
A plant that depended on soybeans, or wheat, or corn, or beef cattle as a primary raw material would be less likely to move once it became established. Food industries depen-dent on production from farms would be more stable than industries dependent upon imported parts and raw materials. The argument makes itself.
There are pharmaceuticals made from plants that could be grown in the rich soil of southeast Kansas, creating high-dollar jobs and high-value crops for the region’s farms. Specialty cheeses can turn milk into a gourmet product that brings in a steady income and requires expert labor, which earns good wages. (Not everyone likes a strong cheese such as Stilton. Those who do will pay $13 a pound for it, or more. And, take note, it doesn’t require 100 pounds of milk to make a pound of Stilton.)
Perhaps varieties of wine grapes suited to our soil and weather patterns could be-come the basis of another industry that couldn’t be packed up and moved to Mexico, Korea or Timbuktu.
We take the Neosho River for granted, but it is a source of fresh water that will become only more valuable as the use of water continues to grow along with the population. Water, like oil and natural gas, is a finite resource. While we sometimes get too much of it, Iola and the other Neosho River towns should do a better job of letting the outside world know it flows through them.
With these things in mind, Iola’s boosters should let the agricultural economists at Kansas State University know — often and with charming enthusiasm — that we’re eager to accommodate entrepreneurs who want to convert the discoveries K-State re-searchers are making into profits.
Perhaps there also will be biosecurity spin-offs from the new federal center at K-State that could sprout and grow here.
Taking what Kansas produces to create more jobs for Kansans seems like a natural approach. Allen County should give it the old college try.
— Emerson Lynn, jr.
