Researchers identify thousands more Iowa livestock facilities than state database shows

Iowa’s official database of animal feeding operations, which serves as the state’s primary regulatory inventory of livestock facilities, does not include thousands of facilities that researchers say contribute to the state’s growing manure burden and potential water pollution.

After spending about a year reviewing aerial photographs, satellite imagery and state records, researchers with the Environmental Working Group (EWG), an environmental advocacy organization, identified 15,309 livestock facilities across Iowa using data current through July 2025, …