Education ‘priority mission’ for corn checkoff

Originally published in the January 22, 2010, print edition.

By Dick Hagen The Land Staff Writer

The Land — Established by a statewide referendum vote of Minnesota corn producers in 1990, the Minnesota Corn Research and Promotion Council has a record of funding projects that have helped make Minnesota farmers more productive, more efficient and more profitable.

To that end, the MCRPC has often partnered with other agribusiness firms, the University of Minnesota and the Agricultural Utilization and Research Institute to leverage checkoff funds for more “bang for the buck.”

Early on, much of that emphasis was geared toward development of the ethanol fuels industry in Minnesota. Today the emphasis switches more toward development of an entire biomass energy industry with Minnesota farmers the primary seedstock provider. In the process of getting more and more into the public eye, countering the often-negative attacks on Minnesota energy is an ongoing challenge.

“And with the growing disconnect between the non-farm audience, and even more and more members of Congress, education becomes more and more a priority mission of the MCRPC,” said Mickey Peterson, a Renville County producer who chairs the MCRPC.

“By law, we cannot use checkoff dollars to lobby. The primary use of funds is for research and promotion so we work hard to see that facts, science and common sense become the basis for debate, rather than emotional language by those who simply don’t understand, or care, where the food chain starts in America.”

Interviewed at the recent Minnesota Ag Expo at Jackpot Junction, Peterson shared his thoughts on a variety of issues, including the recent message of corn being blamed for America’s obesity.

“That really is a joke. Unfortunately for some in the food business, or those opposed to animal agriculture, it’s easy to pass the buck. You can’t blame corn. But you can blame the face you see in the mirror each morning. It’s a simple matter of over-indulgence and lack of exercise.”

300 bushels by 2030

Is that a doable goal? Peterson thinks so and mentions the several 300-bushel yields in 2009 National Corn Yield Contest as proof that top producers are already there.

“Looking at my home county, we did about 170 bushel average this past year. And that means lots of farmers on lots of fields went considerably over 200 bushels. Check the genetics coming down the line and it seems like an achievable goal.”

The biggest variable of course is weather. “As we know that can easily be a 15 to 20 bushel per acre variable right on your own farm. But see where we were 10 years ago and you recognize the progress.”

Checkoff dollars for funding specific research projects will help speed the course. “Already for 2010 we have over 60 different proposals for expanded usage,” said Peterson. “We’ll analyze that down to maybe 12 to 15 that seem most expedient and beneficial, both short-term and long-term for Minnesota corn producers. A continuing ambition is to get EPA to mandate a nationwide 15 percent, or even 20 percent ethanol fuels program. That would be great for everybody, producers, processors and consumers.

“We’re bumping up against the blend wall right now, despite testing evidence by engineers at Minnesota State University, Mankato, that autos work great on blends of 15 percent, 20 percent, even 30 percent. And often get even improved mileage at that 30-percent blend level.”

The current blenders credit of 45 cents per gallon of ethanol blended into the gasoline pump goes to the petroleum distributor, not the Minnesota farmer, or the local station pumping blended fuels.

In Brazil, which has been operating on ethanol fuels (made from sugar cane) for over 20 years, the government extended a special subsidy to both the producer and the consumer who purchases the fuel at a Brazilian fuel pump.

Peterson traveled to Brazil and Chile as part of Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s November trade mission. A spokesperson for the Brazilian ethanol fuels industry thinks subsidies for both producer and user will soon be history.

“He told us that neither the United States or Brazil could produce enough ethanol fuels to meet the growing demands in both India and China.”

Peterson said imports of Brazilian ethanol into the U.S. market have virtually shut down basically because sugar prices have gotten strong enough so that virtually all the sugar cane goes into sugar rather than ethanol.

California continues to push for Brazilian ethanol into their state because of their indirect land use claim. “But the Brazilian people we talked with said indirect land use is a non-issue because deforestation in Brazil is done for the forestry industry, not for production agriculture.”

The Minnesota corn checkoff is 1 cent per bushel payable by the first purchaser at the time of sale. However refunds are granted upon request to individual growers who simply choose not to participate.

The Minnesota Corn Growers Association is looking for “Field Activists” to speak up for Minnesota farmers and agriculture. Anyone interested should call the MCGA office at (952) 233-0333 or e-mail to info@mncorn.org. If e-mailing, type “Activist Farmer” on the subject line. You do not need to be an MCGA member to participate.