National Corn Growers Association leaders say the corn industry needs a better plan than hoping bad weather fixes weak prices, as some market analysts have suggested. This news release from the group says it has recommitted to boosting corn utilization as a key strategy in achieving a healthy and viable corn industry long term.
“To successfully address farmer’s income you have two paths, either decreasing input costs or growing demand,” said NCGA Research and Business Development Action Team Chairman Larry Hoffmann, a farmer from Wheatland, North Dakota. “We will continue to work on both, but with a renewed focus on new uses for corn as a means of raising the price per bushel.”
NCGA’s Corn Board, action teams and committees convened in St. Louis earlier this month to delve into the issues and opportunities that will impact corn farmers across the country during the coming year.
The Research and Business Development Action Team explored possible changes to team policies and activities that could help their respective programs improve efforts to create and maintain opportunities for growers.
“If it grinds another bushel of corn we are going to evaluate its potential,” Hoffmann said. “If it uses 25 million bushels or 100 million bushels it will put us one-step closer to our goal.”