Gettin' Kind of Corny

[Val Strate]

Today I was reading an article on corn prices in my local newspaper. According to the article it states that the demand for Ethanol would make corn prices raise. This is due to the fact that the current ethanol program has had a 3 million acreage decrease! The government doesn't plan to extend new contracts out to make up for that missing acreage. They are using the money they have to take care of the existing contracts that they have.

This move concerns many of the wildlife organizations, livestock associations and several other organizations and businesses that have high demands for corn and are tied to agriculture. Wildlife organizations feel that using the dropped acreage for conservation is the wrong idea because they should be more concerned about producing more cheap clean fuel like ethanol rather than making corn prices increase. Livestock producers are concerned because it causes their feed prices to increase and cutting into their profits.

I know this isn't fun, party stuff, or directly related to Dukes, that's why I put it in the Swamp area. But it kind of concerns me and I was wondering what others thought about this issue.

Let’s face it, corn prices have been low in the past and the increase could give farmers that need the extra boost a lift. However, it causes ethanol prices to rise. If we're trying to get the market to buy ethanol because it's cleaner don't you think the best way to get consumers to buy it is make it more availed and less expensive?

If ya ask me, it sounds like there is a 'little Boss Hogg' in the USDA when it comes to corn prices.

Any comments or thoughts from the Hazzardnet peanut gallery?

Game Warden

Val Strate

[Meadowmufn]

Think about what products that would affect! It's staggering. Cooking oils, meat, popcorn, ears of corn, sweeteners, starches, any food product that includes high-fructose corn syrup (which is damn near everything. LOL), will be more expensive.

Just for fun, go through your kitchen and see what has corn or corn products in it.

[RogerDuke]

Here's another thought to throw into the mix. Whenever people think about how ethanol is going to save us all, they don't consider the ammount of energy used make it. Farms don't run on sweat, hand tools and Maudeen the mule anymore (thank goodnes at least Uncle Jesse is still doing it like that). They need lots of oil and oil based products. If ethanol replaces some of that oil then more farms are going to be needed to make more corn and it will spiral from there. I remember a quote from Waylon in an episode from season two that went something like this, " If you're going to sell your pig feed to buy more pigs then you're not going to be in the pig business very long." Possum on a gumbush. I'm gone.

[JESSI DUKE]

But you know what the goverment has us over a barrel. They know we use these thing whether to eat or drive your car r run your farm. Where I live it's almost $3.00 a gallon for gas. Why does the goverment care they are getting richer why the poor get poorer.

[Julieduke]

But you know what the goverment has us over a barrel. They know we use these thing whether to eat or drive your car r run your farm. Where I live it's almost $3.00 a gallon for gas. Why does the goverment care they are getting richer why the poor get poorer.

I thought all of all would appreciate with Easter joke here from Ohio.

What did the Egg say to the boilin water?

Be patient, it may take me a while to get hard ... I just got laid by a chick.

This come from a real good friend named Myke.

[Lukas_KD]

But you know what the goverment has us over a barrel. They know we use these thing whether to eat or drive your car r run your farm. Where I live it's almost $3.00 a gallon for gas. Why does the goverment care they are getting richer why the poor get poorer.

You're lucky, Jess, if it's only almost $3.00 a gallon. Same here, but I also know it's a lot higher in other parts of the country, especially toward the coasts. If people like us think we have a problem, some people really have a problem.

I'm not sure what a good answer is, or if there is one, yet...

[Val Strate]

Well the point of ethanol is to make what fossil fuel sources we have go further. The thing with corn is, this country produces way more corn than what it needs to feed people and livestock. Believe it or not, most of the corn that is produced in this country goes to feed animals, not humans.

On top of that in theory the world can produce enough food that no one should have to ever go hungry. Then why do people go hungry? It's a problem of getting food to people, not a problem of do we have enough.

As far as selling the pig feed to buy pigs, it's not that way because the corn produced every year exceeds our country's needs. Years ago, I don't know if it's still true today, the government would buy corn from farmers so that the markets wouldn't bottom out. They would then end up with a surplus of grain that was going unused and would eventually have to dispose of it. Tell me now, if we're making all this unused product, why not put it toward good use like ethanol? Corn is grown in every one of the fifty states, this is a fact I know of from my years in FFA. It's probably the number one grown crop in the US. We have a ton of the stuff; why not use it for fuel? That's one reason why farmers are losing their farms is because there is all this supply and little demand, driving the price of corn lower and lower. How can anyone pay their bills if the price of the product they are selling keeps decreasing by ten cents a bushel all the time? So maybe ethanol is a good thing, a new demand for an old supply?

However, if you're a livestock producer and you have to feed your animals you want the price of corn to be low so you can fatten that calf up very cheaply. If you have to pay more for corn, you're losing profit on your cattle unless you're looking at trying to ask a higher price for your animals. Plus if you're making ethanol you want the corn you buy to be a lower price so you can pass that onto your costumers.

So I guess in a way Roger, maybe you are right on the spiral argument, however I don't think giving up on ethanol is the answer. I think ethanol is a good alternative to help us extend out what we got in order to find something better.

Researchers are now looking at alternative energy and it's a field that is opening up more and more each year. In my opinion, research in alternative fuel sources should have had more funding years ago, but like ya say, they have us over a barrel, of oil that is....

Val