Des Moines Register: The U.S. Agriculture Department cut five Iowa cities from its short list of possible homes for two major agricultural research headquarters. The USDA chopped Ames, Ankeny, Council Bluffs, Des Moines and West Des Moines from contention to become its Economic Research Service and National Institute of Food and Agriculture headquarters. Its top locations are in Indiana, tied to Purdue University; the Kansas City region’s animal health corridor; and the North Carolina Research Triangle region.