Niman Ranch wants to double the number producers willing to raise free-range, antibiotic-free pork, beef and lamb and has invested $300,000 so far to get young farmers started nationwide.

Niman now has about 750 U.S. independent farmers nationwide, including about 200 Iowa farmers, who mostly provide pork to the Colorado-based meat company.

"We have a concerted effort to bring in young and struggling farmers" and veterans interested agriculture but who are unable to afford the livestock, land, equipment and other costs needed to start, said Jeff Tripician, general manager of Niman Ranch, which has built a niche as a high-quality meat supplier.

"They want to go into farming, but the economic hill they have to climb is massive," he said. "The cost is burdensome."

Read the full article on the Des Moines Register website.