Corn Commentary

Iowa Corn Sets Record Straight

Radio Iowa did a story today on corn and food prices allowing the Iowa Corn Promotion Board to tell the real story.

Julius Schaaf, chair of the Iowa Corn Promotion Board (ICPB) says those who say corn prices at “record” highs should get the facts straight.

Schaaf says when you look at the price of corn in past years, there were times when corn got over three-dollars a bushel - and when plotted against the rate of inflation — that equates to over seven dollars a bushel. “So in real dollars, you can’t say that we’re setting record prices,” Schaaf says, “one thing you can say is that we’re setting record prices with oil, when you plot that (oil prices) against the inflation rate, we are setting records.” He says for example: in mid-1984, corn at the farm gate sold for $3.05 a bushel in Iowa, but it would take $6.27 in today’s dollars to equal that.

Schaaf also notes that transportation and packaging are really driving up the cost of the food.

Congrats to Iowa Corn and Radio Iowa for telling “the rest of the story.”