Page 32 of 32 Exhibit 23 CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT AUDITORS The Board of Directors Mahaska Investment Company: We consent to incorporation by reference in the Mahaska Investment Company and subsidiaries Form 10-K, our report dated February 9, 2001, relating to the consolidated balance sheets of Mahaska Investment Company and subsidiaries as of December 31, 2000 and 1999, and the related consolidated statements of income, changes in shareholders' equity and comprehensive income, and cash flows for each of the years in the three-year period ended December 31, 2000 which report appears in the Proxy dated March 23, 2001. /s/KPMG March 28, 2001 Des Moines, Iowa