Almonds can be grown in Iowa, according to the document you cited, but in the next section (Which ones should I grow, or should I grow them all?) after your quo

Almonds can be grown in Iowa, according to the document you cited, but in the next section (Which ones should I grow, or should I grow them all?) after your quote one finds: "Almonds—Unreliable in bearing due to susceptibility to late frosts and numerous diseases" So I would say no to commercial production of almonds on Iowa. The California central valley is probably the best place on Earth to grow almonds, so it's a good place to do that. The US needs to trade something for those Chinese goods. Deserts are good places to grow things, if you have the water, because the mentioned diseases are much less prone to develop and spread.