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Home Care In Blairstown, IA

Home Care Blairstown, IA

They say that your golden years are the best years of your life. For most older Americans, that's how it should be - a time to relax, reflect, and live life in a familiar place. After all, senior citizens in the U.S. have worked tirelessly to build a better economy, serve their communities, and raise families.

However, as seniors grow older, completing daily tasks like showering and enjoying activities such as visiting the historic Blairstown Historic Preservation Committee gets harder without someone by their side. Unfortunately, many older Americans aren't able to rely on their adult children for help. The reality in today's world is that family members do not have the skills or time to dedicate to caring for their parents. That's where Always Best Care Senior Services comes in.

Our in-home care services are for people who prefer to stay at home as they grow older but need ongoing care that family or friends cannot provide. More and more older adults prefer to live far away from long-term, institutionalized facilities and closer to the place where they feel most comfortable - their home. Home care in Blairstown, IA is a safe, effective way to give your loved ones the care they need when they need it the most.

In-Home Care Blairstown, IA

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The Always Best Care Difference

Since 1996, Always Best Care has provided non-medical in-home care for seniors to help them maintain a healthy lifestyle as they get older. We are proud to have helped more than 25,000 seniors maintain higher levels of dignity and respect. We focus on providing seniors with the highest level of in-home care available so that they may live happily and independently.

Unlike some senior care companies, we genuinely want to be included in our clients' lives. We believe that personalized care is always the better option over a "one size fits all" approach. To make sure our senior clients receive the best care possible, we pair them with compassionate caregivers who understand their unique needs. That way, they may provide care accordingly without compromising their wellbeing.

The Always Best Care difference lies in life's little moments - where compassionate care and trustworthy experience come together to help seniors live a fruitful, healthy life. Whether you are an aging adult that can't quite keep up with life's daily tasks or the child of a senior who needs regular in-home services, Always Best Care is here to help.

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Elderly Care for James T.
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“Always best care provided excellent caregivers to us. I am really happy with the care”

Always best care provided excellent caregivers to us. I am really happy with the care and support they provided to my father. Highly recommended to all!
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In-home Care for Michael H.
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“On behalf of my family, I would like to thank Always Best care for all”

On behalf of my family, I would like to thank Always Best care for all the support your caregivers have provided to my mother. She was very pleased with the care she received. I confidently recommend Always Best Care to all.
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Senior Care for Melanie S.
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“Always Best Care in Cedar Valley IA realy helps me a lot. They have Reliable”

Always Best Care in Cedar Valley IA realy helps me a lot. They have Reliable Caregivers who helped me to take care of my loved one for several years. They are highly trained and managed well the daily routines and activities like bathing and dressing. Caregivers of always best care is dependable and passionate to their work. I am satisfied and so glad that I chose their service. Highly recommend whoever needs their caregiving service!
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TESTIMONIALS

“Always best care provided excellent caregivers to us. I am really happy with the care and support they provided to my father. Highly recommended to all!”

James T.
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TESTIMONIALS

“On behalf of my family, I would like to thank Always Best care for all the support your caregivers have provided to my mother. She was very pleased with the care she received. I confidently recommend Always Best Care to all.”

Michael H.
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TESTIMONIALS

“Always Best Care in Cedar Valley IA realy helps me a lot. They have Reliable Caregivers who helped me to take care of my loved one for several years. They are highly trained and managed well the daily routines and activities like bathing and dressing. Caregivers of always best care is dependable and passionate to their work. I am satisfied and so glad that I chose their service. Highly recommend whoever needs their caregiving service!”

Melanie S.

What is Non-Medical Senior Care in Blairstown, IA?

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Home is where the heart is. While that saying can sound a tad cliche, it is especially true for many seniors living in America. When given a choice, older adults most often prefer to grow older at home. An AARP study found that three out of four adults over the age of 50 want to stay in their homes and communities as they age.

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When you begin to think about why, it makes sense. Home offers a sense of security, comfort, and familiarity.

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The truth is, as we age, we begin to rely on others for help. When a family is too busy or lives too far away to fulfill this role, in-home senior care is often the best solution. Home care services allow seniors to enjoy personal independence while also receiving trustworthy assistance from a trained caregiver.

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At Always Best Care, we offer a comprehensive range of home care services to help seniors stay healthy while they get the help they need to remain independent. As your senior loved one gets older, giving them the gift of senior care is one of the best ways to show your love, even if you live far away.

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Senior Care Blairstown, IA

Types of Elderly Care in Blairstown, IA

To give our senior clients the best care possible, we offer a full spectrum of in-home care services:

Personal Care

Personal Care Services

If your senior loved one has specific care needs, our personal care services are a great choice to consider. Personal care includes the standard caregiving duties associated with companion care and includes help with tasks such as dressing and grooming. Personal care can also help individuals with chronic conditions like diabetes.

Common personal care services include assistance with:

  • Eating
  • Mobility Issues
  • Incontinence
  • Bathing
  • Dressing
  • Grooming
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Respite Care Blairstown, IA
Home Helper

Home Helper Services

Sometimes, seniors need helpful reminders to maintain a high quality of life at home. If you or your senior has trouble with everyday tasks like cooking, our home helper services will be very beneficial.

Common home helper care services include assistance with:

  • Medication Reminders
  • Meal Preparation
  • Pet Care
  • Prescription Refills
  • Morning Wake-Up
  • Walking
  • Reading
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Caregivers Blairstown, IA
Companionship Services

Companionship Services

Using this kind of care is a fantastic way to make life easier for you or your senior loved one. At Always Best Care, our talented caregivers often fill the role of a companion for seniors. That way, older adults can enjoy their favorite local activities, such as visiting Footbridge Park with friends while also receiving the care they need daily or weekly.

Common companionship services include:

  • Grocery Shopping
  • Transportation to Appointments
  • Nutritional Assistance
  • Conversation
  • Planning Outings
  • Completing Errands
  • Transportation to Community
  • Events and Social Outings
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Home Care Blairstown, IA
Respite Care

Respite Care Services

According to AARP, more than 53 million adults living in the U.S. provide care to someone over 50 years old. Unfortunately, these caregivers experience stress, exhaustion, and even depression. Our respite care services help family caregivers address urgent obligations, spend time with their children, and enjoy nearby activities. Perhaps more importantly, respite care gives family members time to recharge and regroup. Taking personal time to de-stress reduces the risk of caregiver burnout. So, if you've always wanted to eat at the local Gourmet Gallery or visit Ramsaysburg Historic Homestead, don't feel bad. Doing so is great for both you and your loved one.

At the end of the day, our goal is to become a valuable part of your senior's daily routine. That way, we may help give them the highest quality of life possible. We know that staying at home is important for your loved one, and we are here to help make sure that is possible.

If you have been on the fence about non-medical home care, there has never been a better time than now to give your senior the care, assistance, and companionship they deserve.

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In-Home Care Blairstown, IA

Benefits of Home Care in Blairstown, IA

Always Best Care in-home services are for older adults who prefer to stay at home but need ongoing care that friends and family cannot provide. In-home care is a safe, effective way for seniors to age gracefully in a familiar place and live independent, non-institutionalized lives. The benefits of non-medical home care are numerous. Here are just a few reasons to consider senior care services from Always Best Care:

Always Best Care offers a full array of care options for patients at all levels of health. With our trusted elderly care services, your loved one will receive the level of care necessary for them to enjoy the highest possible quality of life.

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Aging in Place: The Preferred Choice for Most Seniors

While it's true that some seniors have complicated medical needs that prevent them from staying at home, aging in place is often the best arrangement for seniors and their families. With a trusted caregiver, seniors have the opportunity to live with a sense of dignity and do so as they see fit - something that is unavailable to many older people today.

In-home care makes it possible for millions of seniors to age in place every year. Rather than moving to a strange nursing home, seniors have the chance to stay at home where they feel the happiest and most comfortable.

Here are just a few of the reasons why older men and women prefer to age at home:

How much does a senior's home truly mean to them?

A study published by the American Society on Aging found that more than half of seniors say their home's emotional value means more than how much their home is worth in monetary value. It stands to reason, then, that a senior's home is where they want to grow old.

With the help of elderly care in Blairstown, IA, seniors don't have to age in a sterilized care facility. Instead, they can age gracefully in the place they want to be most: their home. In contrast, seniors who move to a long-term care facility must adapt to new environments, new people, and new systems that the facility implements. At this stage in life, this kind of drastic change can be more harmful than helpful.

Institutional care facilities like nursing homes often put large groups of people together to live in one location. On any given day, dozens of staff members and caregivers run in and out of these facilities. Being around so many new people in a relatively small living environment can be dangerous for a seniors' health and wellbeing. When you consider that thousands of seniors passed away in nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, opting for in-home care is often a safer, healthier choice for seniors.

Aging in place has been shown to improve seniors' quality of life, which helps boost physical health and also helps insulate them from viral and bacterial risks found in elderly living facilities.

For many seniors, the ability to live independently with assistance from a caregiver is a priceless option. With in-home care, seniors experience a higher level of independence and freedom - much more so than in other settings like a nursing home. When a senior has the chance to age in place, they get to live life on their own terms, inside the house that they helped make into a home. More independence means more control over their personal lives, too, which leads to increased levels of fulfillment, happiness, and personal gratification. Over time, these positive feelings can manifest into a healthier, longer life.

More independence, a healthier life, and increased comfort are only a few benefits of aging in place. You have to take into consideration the role of cost and convenience. Simply put, it's usually easier and more affordable to help seniors age in place than it is to move them into an institutional care facility. According to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, seniors who age in the comfort of their homes can save thousands of dollars per month.

In-home care services from Always Best Care, for instance, are often less expensive than long-term solutions, which can cost upwards of six figures per year. To make matters worse, many residential care facilities are reluctant to accept long-term care insurance and other types of payment assistance.

With Always Best Care's home care services, seniors and their families have a greater level of control over their care plans. In-home care gives seniors the chance to form a bond with a trusted caregiver and also receive unmatched care that is catered to their needs. In long-term care facilities, seniors and their loved ones have much less control over their care plan and have less of a say in who provides their care.

Elderly Care Blairstown, IA

Affordable Care

In-home care is a valuable resource that empowers seniors to age in place on their own terms. However, a big concern for many families and their loved ones is how much in-home care costs. If you're worried that in-home care is too expensive, you may be pleasantly surprised to learn that it is one of the most affordable senior care arrangements available.

Typically, hiring an Always Best Care in-home caregiver for a few hours a week is more affordable than sending your loved one to a long-term care facility. This is true even for seniors with more complex care needs.

At Always Best Care, we will work closely with you and your family to develop a Care Plan that not only meets your care needs, but your budget requirements, too. Once we discover the level of care that you or your senior need, we develop an in-home care plan that you can afford.

In addition to our flexible care options, families should also consider the following resources to help offset potential home care costs:

If your loved one qualifies, Medicaid may help reduce in-home care costs. Review your IA's Medicaid program laws and benefits, and make sure your senior's financial and medical needs meet Medicaid eligibility requirements.
Attendance and aid benefits through military service can cover a portion of the costs associated with in-home care for veterans and their spouses.
Many senior care services like in-home care are included in long-term care insurance options. Research different long-term care solutions to find a plan that provides coverage for senior care.
Home care can be included as part of a senior's private insurance plan. Read over your loved one's insurance policy carefully or speak with their insurance provider to determine if in-home care is covered.
Depending on the life insurance plan, you may be able to apply your policy toward long-term care. You may be able to use long-term-care coverage to help pay for in-home elderly care.
Senior Care Blairstown, IA

Compassionate Care. Trusted Caregivers.

When you or your senior loved one needs assistance managing daily tasks at home, finding a qualified caregiver can be challenging. It takes a special kind of person to provide reliable care for your senior loved one. However, a caregiver's role involves more than meal preparation and medication reminders. Many seniors rely on their caregivers for companionship, too.

Our companion care services give seniors the chance to socialize in a safe environment and engage in activities at home. These important efforts boost morale and provide much-needed relief from repetitive daily routines. A one-on-one, engaging conversation can sharpen seniors' minds and give them something in which to be excited.

At Always Best Care, we only hire care providers that we would trust to care for our own loved ones. Our senior caregivers in Blairstown, IA understand how important it is to listen and communicate with their seniors. A seemingly small interaction, like a short hug goodbye, can make a major difference in a senior's day. Instead of battling against feelings of isolation, seniors begin to look forward to seeing their caregiver each week.

Understanding the nuances of senior care is just one of the reasons why our care providers are so great at their job.

Unlike some senior care companies, our caregivers must undergo extensive training before they work for Always Best Care. In addition, our caregivers receive ongoing training throughout the year. This training ensures that their standard of care matches up to the high standards we've come to expect. During this training, they will brush up on their communication skills, safety awareness, and symptom spotting. That way, your loved one receives the highest level of non-medical home care from day one.

Assisted Living Referral Services

While it's true that many seniors prefer to age at home, sometimes in-home care isn't the best fit. For those seniors and their families, choosing an assisted living facility makes more sense. Unfortunately, finding the optimal care facility is easier said than done in today's day and age. That's when Always Best Care's assisted living referral services begin to make a lot of sense.

Assisted living is a form of housing intended for seniors who require varying degrees of medical and personal attention. Accommodations may include single rooms, apartments, or shared living arrangements. Assisted living communities are typically designed to resemble a home-like environment and are physically constructed to encourage the independence of residents.

Respite Care Blairstown, IA

At assisted living communities, seniors receive help with daily activities such as bathing, dressing, and eating. They may also benefit from coordination of services with outside healthcare providers, and monitoring of resident activities to ensure their health, safety, and well-being. Caregivers who work at assisted living communities can also provide medication administration and personal care services for older adults.

Other services offered within assisted living communities can include some or all of the following:

  • Housekeeping
  • Laundry
  • Recreational Activities
  • Social Outings
  • Emergency Medical Response
  • Medication Monitoring
  • Family Visitation
  • Personal Care
Caregivers Blairstown, IA

At Always Best Care, our representatives can match your senior's emotional, physical, and financial needs with viable assisted living communities nearby. Results are based on comparative data, so you can select the best choice for you or your loved one.

Always Best Care works closely with local senior living communities to gain valuable knowledge that we then use to help seniors and their loved ones make informed decisions. This information can include basic care and rent, resident availability, and services provided. Because Always Best Care is compensated by these communities, we provide senior living referral services at no extra cost to you.

Some of the most popular assisted living communities to consider in our area include the following:

  • Forest Manor Health Care Center
  • Spring Village At Pocono - Personal Care & Memory Care
  • Clover Rest Home
  • Colonial Manor At Panther Valley
  • Riverwalk Village at The House of The Good Shepherd
  • The Chelsea at Brookfield
Home Care Blairstown, IA

For many seniors, moving into a senior living community revolves around how and when they want to make a transition to more involved care. Some seniors are more proactive about transitioning to independent living. Others choose to remain home until their care needs or other requirements are satisfied. Remember - our staff is here to help. Contact our office today to learn more about assisted living communities and how we can find a facility that exceeds your expectations.

In-Home Care Blairstown, IA

Taking the First Step with Always Best Care

The first step in getting quality in-home care starts with a personal consultation with an experienced Always Best Care Care Coordinator. This initial consultation is crucial for our team to learn more about you or your elderly loved one to discover the level of care required. Topics of this consultation typically include:

A discussion of your needs and how our trained caregivers can offer assistance in the most effective way

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A draft of your care plan, which includes highly detailed notes and a framework for the care that you or your senior will receive

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Discuss payment options and help coordinate billing with your insurance provider

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Our caregivers are trained to spot changes that clients exhibit, like mental and physical decline. As your trusted senior care company, we will constantly assess and update your Care Plan to meet any new emotional, intellectual, physical, and emotional needs.

If you have never considered in-home care before, we understand that you and your family may have concerns about your Care Plan and its Care Coordinator. To help give you peace of mind, know that every team member and caregiver must undergo comprehensive training before being assigned to a Care Plan.

At the end of the day, we only hire the best of the best at Always Best Care. Whether you need home care in Blairstown, IA 24-hours a day or only need a respite for a couple of hours, we are here to serve you.

When you're ready, we encourage you to contact your local Always Best Care representative to set up a Care Consultation. Our Care Coordinators would be happy to meet with you in person to get to know you better, discuss your needs, and help put together a personalized Care Plan specific to your needs.

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Elderly Care Blairstown, IA

Latest News in Blairstown, IA

Fiberight still working at MSW plant in Iowa

Despite delays, Fiberight’s plans to produce cellulosic ethanol from municipal solid waste (MSW) in Iowa are moving forward. In fact, an equity drive happening now is attracting quite a few interested people and money is starting to come in. “I’m highly encouraged,” Craig Stuart-Paul, chief executive of Fiberight told Ethanol Producer Magazine Oct. 22. “It is very tricky to get these financed and built. … You’ve got to everything buttoned up tight before you get the funding and that’s...

Despite delays, Fiberight’s plans to produce cellulosic ethanol from municipal solid waste (MSW) in Iowa are moving forward. In fact, an equity drive happening now is attracting quite a few interested people and money is starting to come in. “I’m highly encouraged,” Craig Stuart-Paul, chief executive of Fiberight told Ethanol Producer Magazine Oct. 22. “It is very tricky to get these financed and built. … You’ve got to everything buttoned up tight before you get the funding and that’s the point we are now.”

The company’s plans to build a MSW sorting facility in Marion, Iowa, and retrofit an ethanol plant in Blairstown, Iowa, haven’t moved forward as quickly as first hoped. However, now with major permitting completed, the company has been able to start the process to finance the project, which it hopes to have wrapped up by the end of November, he said.

The goal is to start construction at the sorting facility in October or November, with the goal of getting concrete in the ground before winter. At the ethanol plant, which is expected to have an initial capacity of 3.5 MMgy and will eventually be ramped up to 6 MMgy, work has been slow but ongoing. All major permits are in place and steel has been delivered to the site. In addition, a crew of four has been employed all year and once the company has completed recently required modifications to its $25 million USDA loan and moves from the conditional to loan guarantee phase, outside contractors will be brought in. “We can’t really go too crazy on construction until we get all of that buttoned up,” he said. “What we have done is a lot of work inside the plant. So if you went inside you wouldn’t recognize it anymore.”

In July, the U.S. EPA ruled that compressed and liquefied natural gas (CNG) produced from biogas now qualifies as an advanced biofuel and, therefore, is assigned a D3 renewable identification number (RIN).

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“That had a massive positive impact to us,” he said, adding that it was the catalyst in Fiberight’s decision to move the planned digester from the Marion MSW sorting facility to the ethanol plant in Blairstown. That decision triggered the modification to USDA loan paperwork.

The company now plans to digest C5 sugars in its anaerobic digester, to produce CNG, rather than covert them to ethanol. Digesting the C5 sugars means the company can take in more waste, meaning ethanol production levels may remain about the same. “What it definitely means is we are producing more digester gas,” he said, adding that a 900,000 gallon 30 million Btu per hour vessel has been purchased and is on the way. “We now know from our Virginia plant that food waste gives us very, very high digester gas, and the quality is such that you can get very efficient CNG fuel,” he said.

Biogas produced on site will be used to make CNG, some of which will be used to fuel the trucks that transport MSW for sorting and ethanol production, and power the ethanol plant. Used alongside biomass residuals produced during the process, the facility has the ability to be 100 percent self-sustaining, Stuart-Paul said. The company is also conducting stack emissions testing on the high-lignin content material, which is leftover at the end of the process, and has value as a clean burning energy pellet.

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In the meantime, the company has been focusing a lot of its attention on its demonstration facility in Lawrenceburg, Virginia. Fibertight is expanding the facility, which isn’t currently producing ethanol. Although he can’t name names, Stuart-Paul reveals that the company has an offtake agreement with an industrial company that is buying 100 percent of the sugars produced there.

The facility has now been in operation for a total of 5,000 hours. Some of the lessons learned at that facility have resulted in design changes at the Iowa facilities. “As you have seen from some of the commercialization attempts from some of the other plants in this space, plants were built and they’ve taken a long time to get running, because they’ve run into problems,” he said, adding that the company wants to learn as much as it can at the demo plant, to refine the process before full-scale startup.

The company is grateful to the city of Marion, which not only offered tax incentives and help in procuring land for the sorting facility, but was the first to stand up and sign a waste supply agreement. The city is working toward zero-waste and wants to recycle as much of its garbage as possible, he said, while in other areas of Iowa the landfill operators want to keep handling garbage in the same, traditional way. Once the process is working well for Marion, Fiberight hopes to bring other area cities on board with MSW supply agreements.

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Sleeping boy and his heifer draw much Internet love

Des Moines RegisterDES MOINES. IA - A 15-year-old boy and his heifer have spent nearly every day together for the last two months. They've developed an unspoken connection during that short period of time.So when a photo of the pair nestled close to each other sound asleep at the Iowa State Fair made its way to social media, it was evident to witness their special bond."She likes to lay down quite a bit," said Mitchell Miner on Monday. "I don't really understand the bond with my animal eithe...

Des Moines Register

DES MOINES. IA - A 15-year-old boy and his heifer have spent nearly every day together for the last two months. They've developed an unspoken connection during that short period of time.

So when a photo of the pair nestled close to each other sound asleep at the Iowa State Fair made its way to social media, it was evident to witness their special bond.

"She likes to lay down quite a bit," said Mitchell Miner on Monday. "I don't really understand the bond with my animal either. She just enjoys my company."

Mitchell, of Williamsburg, IA, and his heifer, Audri, have been preparing for the Iowa State Fair's youth dairy cattle show. He has led her, clipped her, walked her and bathed her nonstop up to last Saturday.

On show day, Mitchell and Audri woke up at 3 a.m. — his third straight early-morning rise — putting the final touches on Audri.

She ended up placing fifth out of the seven contestants, Mitchell said. But needless to say, the two were exhausted. So they took a nap after their showing together.

Mitchell's father, Jeremy, saw his son and Audri. He snapped a few photos and posted one on Facebook the next day.

"I was asleep. I think she was, too," Mitchell said.

Many of the responses have been from others sharing similar memories, as well as the typical and deserving "adorable" and "precious" comments.

Mitchell's mother, Laura, said people enjoy seeing that type of relationship with a kid and their animal.

"I think it's just when you spend that much time with them, they get really comfortable with you," she said.

Laura Miner added that the family borrows these animals for the summer. Audri will head back to a dairy farm in Blairstown, IA, later this fall — after the family's final showing in September.

Jeremy Miner said both he and his wife grew up on farms but are the first generation to be removed from living on one today.

"We learned a lot from the farm," he said. "We have those values instilled in us and we are trying to do what we can to preserve that."

Making Cellulosic Ethanol a Reality

Whether preparing to break ground, actively constructing a new facility or already producing cellulosic ethanol, these companies are making progress toward the same ultimate goal—commercialization.Poet LLC has focused much attention on feedstock handling and logistics research and has begun stockpiling bales of corn stover in the feedstock yard at Emmetsburg, Iowa. Construction has started at the 20 MMgy Poet-DSM Advanced Biofuels LLC, with the foundation and ring walls being installed in the fermentation area a...

Whether preparing to break ground, actively constructing a new facility or already producing cellulosic ethanol, these companies are making progress toward the same ultimate goal—commercialization.

Poet LLC has focused much attention on feedstock handling and logistics research and has begun stockpiling bales of corn stover in the feedstock yard at Emmetsburg, Iowa. Construction has started at the 20 MMgy Poet-DSM Advanced Biofuels LLC, with the foundation and ring walls being installed in the fermentation area and work on the biomass building about to begin in September.

ZeaChem Inc. has used a phased approach to the construction of its planned 25 MMgy plant at Boardman, Ore. Its demonstration plant came online in January, with the core facility fermenting sugars into acetic acid and ethyl acetate. Jim Imbler, president and CEO, reports construction of the ethanol conversion unit is nearly complete. “ZeaChem is on schedule to begin cellulosic ethanol production at the demonstration plant by the end of the year.” A further expansion will enable conversion to biobased jet and diesel fuels. GreenWood Resources received a Biomass Crop Assistance Program award to establish 7,000 acres of intercropped poplars on their existing plantation to supply ZeaChem’s commercial biorefinery.

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Enerkem Inc. began ethanol production from municipal solid waste (MSW) at its 1.3 MMgy demonstration facility in Westbury, Quebec, in June. “We’re very happy with the results we’re getting from our different test campaigns to confirm our process design before we actually deploy the full design in our full scale plants,” says Marie-Helene Labrie, vice president government affairs and communications. Construction continues on its first commercial-scale 10 MMgy plant in Edmonton, Alberta. The feedstock receiving buildings are completed and conveyers installed. Cement has been poured and key process equipment was being delivered in September. The company’s pilot plant has been operating since 2003, producing syngas and converting to methanol and ethanol. “The key in our process is to achieve the quality and stability of syngas—chemical grade syngas—from mixed materials,” she adds.

Another project planning to use MSW is Fiberight LLC, which received a key approval from the U.S. EPA this summer for its MSW handling process, and is now completing a $20 million expansion of its demonstration facility in Lawrenceville, Va., to 1 MMgy. Fiberight began exploring the feasibility of biochemical conversion of MSW to fermentable sugar with Novozymes in 2009, and developed a formal partnership in 2010. “Since work began, Novozymes enzyme technology has enabled Fiberight to reduce enzyme dosing by 80 percent and increase glucose conversion by 50 percent,” CEO Craig Stuart-Paul says. In the post-Solyndra era, the USDA is requiring more proof of process, he explains. Once its process has been successfully demonstrated, the company expects to receive a USDA loan guarantee and begin work on retrofitting its corn ethanol plant in Blairstown, Iowa, to produce 6 MMgy.

Fulcrum BioEnergy Inc. received a $105 million conditional loan guarantee from the USDA, putting its planned 10 MMgy Sierra BioFuels Plant closer to groundbreaking near Reno, Nev. “It will be early next year before we break ground, and 18 months after that before we’re ready to commercially produce ethanol,” says Rick Barraza, vice president of administration. The property has been acquired, the necessary permits are in place, and Fluor Corp., the EPC contractor, has completed the engineering plan. Fulcrum advanced to the final application stage for the USDA loan guarantee in November, 2010, about a year after it announced the successful demonstration of the conversion of post-sorted MSW to syngas and the catalytic conversion to ethanol.

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Mascoma Corp. is still in a quiet period as they seek new investors but provided a statement regarding the status of its planned 20 MMgy Frontier Renewable Resources Inc. hardwood-to-ethanol plant. The company’s consolidated bioprocessing process utilizes engineered microorganisms that produce enzymes and convert biomass sugars to ethanol in a single reactor. “Contractor bids for the Kinross, Mich., facility have been received and Mascoma is currently reviewing these bids and conducting final engineering design work,” the company said. “Mascoma plans to initiate construction activities by year-end 2012, shortly after the engineering design work is completed, the bids are awarded and the financing finalized.”

American Process Inc. brought Alpena Biorefinery online this summer, co-located with the Decorative Panels International Inc.’s hardboard manufacturing facility in Alpena, Mich. The company is utilizing a waste stream of wood hydrolyzate, a woody biomass extract from the mixed northern hardwood used by DPI. The Alpena plant produces 800,000 gallons of cellulosic ethanol, using fermentation and distillation, and a similar amount of potassium acetate, handled in a second process flow from the evaporator into a reactor followed by reverse osmosis, according to descriptions of the process on the company website. American Process is an engineering company serving the pulp and paper industry. The Alpena Biorefinery demonstrates its business model of adding cellulosic ethanol production to wood processing facilities, biopower plants and pulp mills.

The main story, Milestones Reached, includes more information about cellulosic ethanol projects.

—Sue Retka Schill

2024 International Biomass Conference & Expo

Organized by BBI International and produced by Biomass Magazine, this event brings current and future producers of bioenergy and biobased products together with waste generators, energy crop growers, municipal leaders, utility executives, technology providers, equipment manufacturers, project developers, investors and policy makers. It’s a true one-stop shop – the world’s premier educational and networking junction for all biomass industries.View More

2024 International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo

Now in its 40th year, the FEW provides the ethanol industry with cutting-edge content and unparalleled networking opportunities in a dynamic business-to-business environment. As the largest, longest running ethanol conference in the world, the FEW is renowned for its superb programming—powered by Ethanol Producer Magazine —that maintains a strong focus on commercial-scale ethanol production, new technology, and near-term research and development. The event draws more than 2,000 people from over 31 countries and from nearly every ethanol plant in the United States and Canada.View More

Biodiesel Summit: Sustainable Aviation Fuel & Renewable Diesel

The Biodiesel Summit: Sustainable Aviation Fuel & Renewable Diesel is a forum designed for biodiesel and renewable diesel producers to learn about cutting-edge process technologies, new techniques and equipment to optimize existing production, and efficiencies to save money while increasing throughput and fuel quality. View More

Carbon Capture & Storage Summit

Capturing and storing carbon dioxide in underground wells has the potential to become the most consequential technological deployment in the history of the broader biofuels industry. Deploying effective carbon capture and storage at biofuels plants will cement ethanol and biodiesel as the lowest carbon liquid fuels commercially available in the marketplace. The Carbon Capture & Storage Summit will offer attendees a comprehensive look at the economics of carbon capture and storage, the infrastructure required to make it possible and the financial and marketplace impacts to participating producers.View More

North American SAF Conference & Expo

Taking place September 11-13, 2024 in Saint Paul, Minnesota, the North American SAF Conference & Expo, produced by SAF Magazine, in collaboration with the Commercial Aviation Alternative Fuels Initiative (CAAFI) will showcase the latest strategies for aviation fuel decarbonization, solutions for key industry challenges, and highlight the current opportunities for airlines, corporations and fuel producers.View More

An Eastern Iowa Business is Now Offering Ice Cream Nachos

It's the ultimate ice cream creation!The next time you're over in Blairstown, you may want to make a quick stop at the Blairstown Quick Stop. According to a recent Facebook post, they have just debuted a new summer treat... Ice Cream Nachos! The post reads:"Can’t decide between nachos and ice cream? HAVE BOTH!! Introducing Ice Cream Nachos!"There are a few different ways you can make ice cr...

It's the ultimate ice cream creation!

The next time you're over in Blairstown, you may want to make a quick stop at the Blairstown Quick Stop. According to a recent Facebook post, they have just debuted a new summer treat... Ice Cream Nachos! The post reads:

"Can’t decide between nachos and ice cream? HAVE BOTH!! Introducing Ice Cream Nachos!"

There are a few different ways you can make ice cream nachos, but the way Blairstown Quick Stop has chosen includes waffle cone chips with various dips. The chips come with ice cream and whipped cream, and then customers can choose from caramel, chocolate, or strawberry sauce. They look SO good!

Ice Cream Nachos aren't exactly a new creation. In fact, they were one of the Best New Food finalists at the 2016 Iowa State Fair! Benoit's Nutty Bar and Root Beer Floats served them up little differently. The order consisted of crisp, sugared chips covered with two scoops of cinnamon ice cream, drizzled with hot fudge and caramel, and topped with chocolate chips, caramel bits, strawberries, nuts, whipped cream, and cherries. YUM.

After doing a little digging online, I also discovered that a place called Sweet Sally's Ice Cream Bar in Keokuk also serves Ice Cream Nachos, and look very similar to the ones at Blairstown Quick Stop. Scoop There It Is in Strawberry Point has them, too!

Speaking of ice cream creations, did you know that Black Cat Ice Cream in Des Moines sells Ice Cream NUGGETS? You can read more about those HERE.

Do you know of any places with Ice Cream Nachos or other interesting ice cream creations here in Iowa? Make sure you let us know by sending us a message on the app!

Awesome Outdoor Patios to Dine On This Summer Around the Corridor

Now that spring is here, patio season is right around the corner! With the help of Eastern Iowans in the Cedar Rapids Area Support Local Group on Facebook, I put together a list of great restaurant patios in the area where you can dine and/or drink when the weather gets warmer. Here are some of the popular places!

“Free house” sign attracts attention near Blairstown; home will be given away to move for Highway 30 widening project

Cindy Hadish/Homegrown IowanBLAIRSTOWN – Loren Dostal remembers the one that got away.The solid, two-story farmhouse was demolished to make way for a road-widening project in east-central Iowa.“It was a really nice, square house in really nice shape,” said Dostal, of Dostal Construction and Excavating in Toledo, noting that power lines in its path would have raised the cost of moving the building.He fared better in having a ranch-style home moved out of the way of road construction and i...

Cindy Hadish/Homegrown Iowan

BLAIRSTOWN – Loren Dostal remembers the one that got away.

The solid, two-story farmhouse was demolished to make way for a road-widening project in east-central Iowa.

“It was a really nice, square house in really nice shape,” said Dostal, of Dostal Construction and Excavating in Toledo, noting that power lines in its path would have raised the cost of moving the building.

He fared better in having a ranch-style home moved out of the way of road construction and is intent on seeing another house relocated that stands in the path of the Highway 30 widening project near Blairstown and Van Horne, west of Cedar Rapids.

“That’s what I’m trying to do,” Dostal said about the environmental reasons behind the “free house” sign he posted next to the building. “It saves it from going to the landfill.”

Dostal won the bid for the project and is responsible for having the home and barns removed before the Iowa Department of Transportation begins work on widening Highway 30 to four lanes in the 15-mile stretch of Benton County.

While that might mean demolition for many contractors, Dostal said giving away the house for free saves landfill space and the cost of demolition.

Since posting the sign with his phone number this summer, Dostal has received “a ton” of calls about the white, 1 1/2-story home on the south side of Highway 30.

“It’s a nice little house,” he said, estimating it was built in the 1950s.

One of his first callers planned to purchase a lot in Van Horne, not far from where the house is located.

When those plans fell through, however, the out-of-state resident became discouraged and gave up on moving the building, Dostal said.

Since then, he has taken hundreds of calls. Some mistakenly think the land comes with the house; it does not. Others are unfamiliar with the logistics and costs involved to have a building moved.

Among those would-be house-movers, one person wanted to relocate the home to Galena, Ill., a distance of almost 120 miles.

“She could have built the house three times over” for the cost of such a long-distance trek, Dostal said.

He noted that ideally, the house would be moved less than 20 miles from its location, about the distance to Cedar Rapids.

While the house will be given to the right person for free, costs of the move are the responsibility of the new owner.

The $54 million road construction project will widen Highway 30 to four lanes, roughly between Highway 21 to U.S. 218; around the Belle Plaine turnoff to the Blairstown area.

Doug McDonald, District 6 Construction Engineer for the DOT, said because the final design on adding the two lanes is just starting, the number of parcels needed to be purchased is unknown.

The DOT is not actively acquiring land at this time, but some homeowners, like the one near Blairstown, have approached the department for an early buy-out, he said.

Buy-outs will likely be pursued next spring for properties within a 200-foot range on the south side of the highway, where the construction will occur.

“Most houses along Highway 30 are probably in that range,” McDonald said, so those south-side homes and barns will eventually disappear.

Construction is expected to begin in 2016, with a 2020 completion date.

Dostal said the corn crib and other structures on the property near Blairstown also will likely be given away, but in pieces, as callers have asked about saving the boards.

That holds true for the concrete, which farmers use as riprap to protect creek banks from erosion.

“That usually goes pretty quick, especially with the wet spring we had,” he said.

Dostal noted that the house will probably need to be moved by November. Although grading for the road will not begin immediately, he said the DOT would prefer not to leave vacant homes sitting too long for liability reasons.

“It’s kind of getting down to the wire here,” he said.

This article also appeared in the Corridor Business Journal.

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