From Farm to Fortune: Meet Iowa’s Only Billionaire

Each year, Forbes Magazine releases a list of the richest people in the world. It is a list of billionaires. With Iowa's population ranking 32nd in the U.S., only one billionaire lives in the state, and he is from a small town of just 6,000 people.

Who Is the Richest Person in the State of Iowa? 

That person would be Harry Stine. He is the richest person in Iowa, and the state's only billionaire, according to the Des Moines Register. And as you might imagine, Stine's story centers around agriculture.

The Register reports that Stine began working on the family farm at just five years old! He still owns a small house just down the road from his business headquarters in Adel, Iowa. The Register reports that Stine is 83 years old and married with four children.

How Did Harry Stine Become the Richest Person in Iowa? 

The Register reports that Harry still owns Stine Seeds and thousands of acres of farmland in Iowa. Forbes reports that Stine built his billion-dollar empire by licensing corn and soybean genetics to companies like Monsanto and Syngenta.

How Much is Harry Stine Worth?

2025 has been a good year so far for Stine. The Register reports that his net worth has surpassed $10 billion. That number ranks Stine in 246th place among the more than 3,000 billionaires worldwide. Tesla CEO Elon Musk continues to top the list with a net worth of $342 billion.