Aerospace engineer and author Robert Zubrin has been getting some media attention lately for his book, “Energy Victory,” in which he outlines a simple plan for “winning the war on terror by breaking free of oil.” Most recently, he was featured on a segment of the Business News Network, a popular nationwide TV show in Canada.
Zubrin believes the American public is getting tired of being beholden to foreign oil interests and he advocates Congress passed a law requiring that all new cars sold in the USA be flex-fueled.
We’ve been happy to feature some video content here on Corn Commentary. It’s been noticed too.
I got an invitation from Energy Policy TV to upload the video with NCGA Chairman Ken McCauley talking about the energy bill. I got that done this morning and you can find it here.
Check it out. You’ll find quite a few video clips uploaded in the biofuels category. Here’s how they describe themselves:
The mission of Energy Policy TV is education.
Until now, the way to learn about policy-creation was to subscribe to expensive journals. These journals told you how they viewed the events they cover, often quoting original sources.
This is no longer sufficient. Transparency in the policy process is required to assess complex and urgent issues such as energy and the environment.
Energy Policy TV is changing the way you get your news and information by delivering ONLY original sources–thousands of them. You will never see us “reporting” on what someone said; instead you will see that person saying it. It is significant that we deliver these original sources in video. This allows you, for the first time, to get a true sense of the context in which events transpire. No journal or transcript can do that. We do not comment or editorialize on any content. That is up to you. We have no agenda other than providing as much relevant news and information as possible, which we offer as a free public service with no requirement for subscriptions, passwords or logins.
While we’re on the subject of video clips from the recent National Association of Farm Broadcasting here’s my final one with NCGA Chairman Ken McCauley. With the Senate back in session and expected to consider new energy legislation I thought it was timely to provide his perspective on where things stand.
Ken says he’s really optimistic about getting new energy legislation, especially a new Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS). He thinks that the price of oil is sending a strong message that we need a renewable fuel source. That’s creating a sense of urgency on Capitol Hill that may move things forward quickly. He says that corn growers want to do their part in helping America become energy independent.
Here’s another installment of our Corn Commentary videos that were recorded at the recent National Association of Farm Broadcasting Convention. In this one I interview NCGA CEO Rick Tolman and University of Missouri ag economist Dr. Ron Plain. They point out that our corn growers have produced to meet demand for both needs of our corn. It’s also interesting to note that higher corn prices haven’t really impacted food prices much. In fact, it’s really things like transportation costs that have driven food prices up.
As they point out, no one is starving anywhere because of biofuel production. The fact is our corn production has a lot of opportunity to grow due to demand and new technologies and that’s good for our farmers, our economy and our country. So that’s the word on this “renewable fuel” issue!
While we’re still in a thanksgiving spirit it’s good to know that there are a lot of people who think America’s corn growers are doing a good job. They’re willing to speak out and say so too. For example, take James Garner:
“Many Americans don’t realize that we enjoy the safest, most affordable food supply in the world, thanks to our country’s farmers,” Garner says. “This year, our corn growers are also helping us to solidify a more secure energy future by also producing corn for cleaner-burning renewable ethanol. I hope others will join me in thanking corn growers for helping fill our grocery shelves and still filling our cars with renewable fuel.”
If you haven’t already told everyone in your personal contact list about it then please make sure you direct them to Farmers Matter. It’s a place where there’s lots of good information and consumers can also leave their own message thanking farmers this holiday season by participating in a video contest and entering to win $1,500.
A subject that is very misunderstood when it comes to growing corn is fertilizer. Here’s another installment of our Corn Commentary video series that was produced at the recent National Association of Farm Broadcasting convention. In it NCGA CEO Rick Tolman helps you better understand what’s going on in corn production as it relates to fertilizer. For example, Rick says that people hear that corn uses more fertilizer than any other crop. He says that’s because corn is planted on more acres than any other crop. That’s why the totality of fertilizer usage is higher. However, if you look at fertilizer use on a per unit basis corn is really middle of the road compared to other crops.
Rick also points to a white paper on corn production sustainability that you can download from their website. Here’s an excerpt relating to this topic:
The latest advances in agriculture technology enable farmers to apply fertilizers with pinpoint accuracy, minimizing their impact to soil, water and air. For example, the use of enhanced efficiency fertilizers, such as slow- and controlled-release fertilizers and stabilized nitrogen fertilizers, are helping to protect the environment by reducing nutrient losses and improving nutrient efficiency while improving crop yields.
One of the clearest measures of sustainable agriculture production is increasing efficiency, with the ability to swell output while decreasing inputs. According to USDA, growers use less nitrogen to produce over 50 percent more corn than in 1980. Furthermore, over the past 15 years, farmers experienced a 17 percent increase in nitrogen efficiency as measured by bushels of corn produced per pound of nitrogen applied which in turn means less nutrients lost to runoff.
At the National Association of Farm Broadcasting convention NCGA’s Rick Tolman took time to dispell some myths about the use of water by the corn industry. He’s got some great facts and figures to explain why the numbers being bantered about as doomsday speak are really meaningless when put in perspective with the information those same people don’t say or want you to know.
* More than 85% of all corn produced in the United States is non-irrigated. So, that 4,000 gallons per bushel is mostly rainfall. That rain is going to fall on the land whether it has corn on it or asphalt or marijuana. According to the USGS (U.S. National Geological Survey), if that same land was instead in wheat, it would take 11,000 gallons per bushel. If it were in alfalfa, it would take 15,000 gallons for a similar amount. If it is a paved parking lot, the same amount of rain still falls. So, one perhaps important point left out by the good bug doctor and the headline writers is that most of the water corn needs is not being sucked from the ground or from rivers, but it actually falls from the sky.
* And, looking even deeper, according to the same USGS, an acre of corn actually gives off 4,000 gallons a day in “evapotranspiration,” the combined result of transpiration and evaporation. Over the course of a growing season that would equate to turning that acre of corn into a lake approximately 11 inches deep. Corn is a very remarkable plant. It gives back much of that water it takes up. That water goes up into atmosphere to start the precipitation cycle all over again. In aggregate, the corn crop actually returns more water to the atmosphere than is withdrawn from ground or surface for irrigation.
* Some other USGS statistics that might be of interest and add perspective:
It takes 1,500 gallons of water to produce a barrel of beer
It takes 1,851 gallons of water to refine a barrel of crude oil
It takes 62,600 gallons of water to process a ton of cane sugar to make processed sugar
It takes 62,600 gallons to make a ton of steel
It takes 2,075 gallons of water to make four tires
At last week’s National Association of Farm Broadcasting convention, NCGA President Ron Litterer did a number of interviews including one with me about the farm bill.
In the picture Ron’s being interviewed by one of the many farm broadcasters that came by the NCGA booth.
I asked Ron where things stand from a corn grower perspective. It was really dark in the room so I apologize for the quality of the video but it works. I’m also posting the audio of the interview separately for you.
Listen to Ron Litterer Interview here:
Ron says he feels good that the Senate ag committee has put forward a revenue based proposal but that it would have been nice to see crop insurance integration included. Ron mentions the cloture vote that failed last week so it looks like it’s time for some more debate after the holiday.
The next episode of Corn Guy TV is now available. See all the action as Corn Guy goes mano-a-mano with Taco Lady. You’ll get a really good chuckle out of this video. Especially when Corn Guy has to “make some ethanol” in a plastic cup. It’s funny and educational.
Aerospace engineer and author Robert Zubrin has been getting some media attention lately for his book, “Energy Victory,” in which he outlines a simple plan for “winning the war on terror by breaking free of oil.” Most recently, he was featured on a segment of the Business News Network, a popular nationwide TV show in Canada.
We’ve been happy to feature some video content here on Corn Commentary. It’s been noticed too.
At last week’s National Association of Farm Broadcasting convention, NCGA President Ron Litterer did a