You are on page 1of 1

May 4

Country Courier
S e r v i n g To d d C o u n t y , M N
VOLUME 22; NUMBER 10 - FRIDAY, AUGUST 9, 2013 CIRCULATION 6,000

The economics of corn


The economics of corn influences everyones daily lives
By Rin Porter Corn is an important part of Todd Countys economy and the daily life of every person who lives here. You may be surprised to see the many ways that corn influences your daily life. STATISTICS In Todd County, there are 1,910 farms, according to the USDA 2007 Census of Agriculture (the most recent one available). Those farms contain 378,734 acres, with the average farm size at 198 acres. Sixty percent of the farm acres (or 227,240 acres) are used to grow crops. In 2007, about 55,000 of those 227,240 acres were used to grow corn for grain, and 19,800 acres were used to grow corn for silage. On some of these 1,910 farms in 2007 were 920,800 turkeys, 62,900 cattle, 23,725 hogs and pigs, and 10,200 pheasants, according to the USDA Ag Census. In 2013, on 1,060 county feedlots there were 61,600 dairy cows, 54,600 beef cattle, 1,781,000 turkeys, 37,800 swine, and 76,600 chickens. Thats a lot of hungry animals. But in 2011, things started to change in the corn world. According to the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), in 2008, Todd County farmers planted 68,700 acres in corn. In 2009, they planted 67,900 acres in corn. In 2010, they planted, 67,500 acres in corn. But in 2011 that number increased to 73,500 acres, and in 2012 it jumped to 87,600 acres. Thats a 62% increase in the number of acres planted in corn, from 2007 to 2012. Bushels of corn harvested also increased. In 2008, Todd County farmers produced 6,140,000 bushels of corn, and in 2012 they produced 9,816,000 bushels a 60% increase in production of corn. And the price of corn increased as well. Over the past 10 years, from 2002 to 2012, corn prices have increased from about $90 per ton to nearly $350 per ton (USDA). $9 per bushel corn became a reality in 2012, and farmers with corn to sell made big money. When crop farmers make money, as they have for the last few years, they are able to spend money on new equipment, home improvements, pickup trucks, and other goods, helping the local economy. What happened to all that corn? USES OF CORN According to Jerry Ploehn of the Minnesota Corn Research and Promotion Council, in 2009, about 43% of corn was used for animal feed, 20% went to ethanol production, 17% was exported to other countries, 9% was used for human consumption and household products, and 10% was stored as surplus. The amount of corn diverted to ethanol production rose to nearly 40% in 2011 (USDA, ERS, wallpaper, and vitamins. And thats just the beginning. (http://theeconomiccollapseblog.c om/archives) CORN AND PEOPLE With so much corn around, and so many products using corn, every person is affected by it in multiple ways. Of course, the most obvious way we use corn is through eating it canned, fresh, or frozen. But corn affects the prices we pay for gasoline, meat, and many other items. And the way it is grown affects our health. Consider the widespread influence of corn: The average American consumes more than 1,500 pounds of corn each year, much of it indirectly through eating meat. Farmers feed corn to their pigs, chickens, and cattle, which become pork, bacon, chicken nuggets, hamburger, and steak. Dairy cows produce milk and butter. Chickens produce eggs. The corn that the pigs, chickens, and cattle eat is thus transferred to humans when the humans eat butter, drink milk, eat eggs, and eat meat. Most Americans own a passenger vehicle, such as a car or truck. People who dont own vehicles use public transportation like buses, subways, and trains to get around. These forms of transportation are

FREE

Feed Grains). According to Philip Abbott, Professor of Agricultural Economics at Purdue University, The share of U.S. corn production used to produce ethanol increased from 12.4% in the 2004/05 crop year to over 38.5% in the 2010/11 crop year, and remained at that high level in 2011/12. (NBER Conference, Seattle) Human consumption and household products provide many opportunities to use corn. Ploehn said that there were more than 4,200 uses for corn. (www.thehandthatfeedsus.org <http://www.thehandthatfeedsus.org> ,) According to an article published July 9, 2012, In the U.S. today, approximately 75% of all processed foods contain corn. A few of the best known corn-containing products are bread, breakfast cereal, buns, cooking oil, condiments, gelatin capsules, granola, ice cream, sauces, salad dressing, soda, spaghetti, and yogurt. And its use goes far beyond food. Corn is found in the following products: adhesives, aluminum, aspirin, cosmetics, cough syrup, dry cell batteries, envelopes, fiberglass insulation, ink, insecticides, paint, penicillin, powders, rugs and carpets, stamps, talcum, toothpaste,

fueled mainly by petroleumbased products. Minnesota requires that ethanol be added to gasoline. Some of Minnesotas corn goes to ethanol plants in Minnesota and other states, is added to gasoline, and helps reduce dependence on petroleum and keeps prices down. So far, its all good news. But thats not the entire story. For people, there are negative aspects to all this corn. When growing corn, all farmers who are not organic farmers use herbicides, pesticides, and commercial fertilizers routinely. They use genetically-modified (GM) corn seeds produced by Monsanto, which has a virtual monopoly on corn seed production. The herbicides, pesticides, and fertilizer end up in the mature ears of corn, as well as in the soil and in the surface water of the land. Thus, people are consuming herbicides, pesticides, fertilizers, and genetically-modified organisms daily, both directly and indi-

rectly. The chemicals build up in the fat in peoples bodies, and the GM food can cause changes in peoples DNA. According to an article summarizing a range of scientific peer-reviewed studies of the effects on human health caused by exposure to herbicides and pesticides, these substances may cause cancer (e.g. atrazine, 2,4-D,diuron, simazine), neurological conditions (chlorpyrifos), birth defects (atrazine, 2,4-D, diuron, endosulfan, MCPA), reduced fetal growth (atrazine, chlorpyrifos, 2,4-D,metolachlor), and metabolic problems leading to obesity and diabetes (chlorpyrifos). Fetal and early childhood exposures to pesticides are a key concern, with considerable evidence of links between such exposures to a wide variety of pesticides and a range of childhood cancers, especially brain cancer and leukemia. Prenatal exposure, particularly to However, Continued on page 3

Who's visiting your garden?

This time of year mother raccoons and their young are out in search of food. Your home sweet corn patch might be an easy target for them. Many people like to try to live trap them and release them elsewhere. There are many tricks to keep the critters out of your crops, but they can be pretty persistent as well. Above: one of three young raccoons is trapped in a live trap in rural Todd County. Subsequently, all three young raccoons were trapped and released. Trail camera photo.

You might also like