Near ALDEN — Of all the farms riders will pass by on RAGBRAI 2025, Tony Wall’s may be the most unique.
Instead of the usual Iowa livestock — it’s the nation’s top producer of pigs and eggs — Wall grows ostriches. He’s one just a handful of farmers raising the world’s largest birds in the Hawkeye State.
On Wednesday, July 23, Wall and his parents were selling ostrich jerky to cyclists on the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa. Hundreds were drawn to try the delicacy and enjoy the shade and free water — straight from a hose— that Wall offered as they battled heat and stiff headwinds on their way to Iowa Falls.
Wall said his parents purchased the farm in 1994 and the ostriches came with it. He took over in 2018, moving from more conventional agriculture.
Ostrich farming requires bigger fences than other kinds of livestock husbandry, he said, and there are fewer resources to support it in Iowa. The closest U.S. Department of Agriculture inspector for ostriches is 300 miles away, he said.
Wall knows of only four other ostrich farmers in Iowa. There are no slaughterhouses in Iowa for the birds so he has to take them to Illinois for processing, he said.
In addition to jerky, Wall sells ostrich meat sticks, summer sausage, burgers, steaks and filets.
His 22-bird flock supplements his more conventional crops of corn and soybeans. He said it takes about a year for the birds to reach their market weight of 250 pounds, which yields roughly 80 pounds of meat.
An ostrich egg has the white and yolk volume of about 24 chicken eggs, he said. Typically, he sells them for $30 apiece.
Wall said customers are always surprised that he charges for shipping. It may be exotic, but “it’s not Amazon,” he joked.
Philip Joens is riding his 20th RAGBRAI. He has completed the river-to-river trek eight times. He covers retail and real estate for the Des Moines Register and can be reached at 515-284-8184 or at pjoens@registermedia.com.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Amid the pigs and chickens, an ostrich farmer provides a change of pace for RAGBRAI riders
Reporting by Philip Joens, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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