Roots March 2022

Roots IOWA CORN

A LOOK INSIDE: MARKET DEVELOPMENT

Where is Your Corn Going?

RESEARCH

Leveraging the Corn Genome: The Agricultural Genome to Phenome Initiative

ICPB DIRECTOR ELECTIONS MEMBERSHIP

The Value of an ICGA Membership

March 2022

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MARKET DEVELOPMENT

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C R N R N D B O O A R DP R S O P EM CO I TA I LO N E D BI OT A I O

Where is Your Corn Going?

Leveraging the Corn Genome:

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ach and every day, Iowa Corn is working to enhance corn farmer profitability through growing new demand for corn and its many co-products.

To help increase market opportunities for U.S. corn and co-products around the world, Iowa Corn Promotion Board invests checkoff dollars in the U.S. Grains Council (USGC).

USGC is a great partner with boots on the ground to further grow international markets and connect face-to-face with customers around the world. USGC works to promote the value of trade and continuous export expansion, advance food security through trade, serve as a resource for advancing trade policy and provide customer education on grain supply and reliability.

During the 2020/2021 marketing year, U.S. corn exports totaled an all-time record of 69.8 million metric tons (2.7 billion bushels), up 55% from the previous year, going to 73 countries around the world. The top five U.S. corn customers were China, Mexico, Japan, Colombia and South Korea.

Top Customers 1. China In 2020/2021 corn exports to China reached record highs at over 21.4 million metric tons or 845.2 million bushels, purchasing almost 1/3 of all U.S. corn exported. The U.S.-China Phase One trade deal led to huge growth in exports during 2020/2021, however China has still not reached the agreed upon amount. In January, the 2021/2022 Corn Harvest Quality Report was presented to buyers and end-users in China. Kale Petersen, a farmer from DeWitt, Iowa and member of Iowa Corn’s Exports and Grain Trade Committee as well as the USGC’s Asia Advisory Team, gave a virtual presentation to this group of Chinese customers about the past growing season.

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2. Mexico Last fall Iowa Corn along with USGC hosted three trade teams from Mexico.

Representatives of these trade teams experienced harvest first-hand, learned about corn and corn co-products, met with farmers and grain merchandisers, toured an ethanol plant and more. In addition, Iowa Corn’s Exports and Grain Trade Committee Chair Mark Mueller participated in a USGC Corn Quality Rollout mission in Monterrey, Mexico in January. In late February, three Iowa Corn representatives joined the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) on its Iowa trade mission to Mexico City and Guadalajara to promote exports of corn in all forms.

Japan $2,935,635

Mexico $3,961,147

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Colombia $935,608

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China $5,349,734

South Korea $923,139

Rank by Value ($Thousands)

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Taiwan

$451,650

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Canada

$319,700

10 Honduras $179,255

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Guatemala $297,130

Costa Rica

186,385

Numbers provided by U.S. Grains Council

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Rest Of The World $1,904,833

3. Japan Iowa Corn partners with USGC to expand U.S. ethanol opportunities in Japan by investing in specialized initiatives within the country to increase the use of ethanol blended fuel. The USGC currently maintains ethanol-specific staff and consultants in seven priority markets – China, India, Japan, Mexico, Brazil, Canada and Indonesia – in addition to ethanol-capable staff in several second tier and frontier markets.

4. Colombia Ranking as the fourth-largest market for U.S. corn, Colombia purchased 3.9 million metric tons or 154.9 million bushels in 2020/2021. USGC recently partnered with the Colombian feed association and the Instituto Colombiano Agropecuario to livestream sessions detailing the ins and outs of good feed manufacturing practices.

More than 1,000 buyers attended the virtual Colombia conference, including Iowa Corn staff and farmer leaders.

5. South Korea During 2020/2021 corn exports to South Korea were up 36%, totaling 3.8 million metric tons or 141.1 million bushels. South Korea remains a strong market for both DDGS and ethanol. Ranking number three for exports of U.S. DDGS totaled over 1.1 million metric tons and number three for U.S. ethanol with 137.3 million gallons equivalent to 48.7 million bushels in 2020/2021. Last fall, ICGA President Lance Lillibridge and ICPB President Kelly Nieuwenhuis presented at the USGC North Asia Virtual Crop Tour. They joined 250 corn buyers from Japan, Korea and Taiwan to share the farmer perspective on the 2021 Iowa corn crop situation and harvest prospects.

The Agricultural Genome to Phenome Initiative or more than twenty years, Iowa Corn has been a strong advocate of corn genetic research. The Iowa Corn Growers Association (ICGA) and the Iowa Corn Promotion Board (ICPB) are actively involved in many initiatives to ensure that longterm public plant science research continues to benefit corn growers.

To secure federal funding for plant genome research, ICGA worked with the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) and the public and private sectors to create the National Genome Initiative.

This Initiative resulted in the deciphering of the genetic code that controls the growth and development of the corn plant – sequencing of the corn genome. Since then, ICPB has invested in research to better understand the function of the genetic code as it relates to the corn plant how it leads to important traits, called phenotypes, such as standability, drydown and yield, how the genes of corn interact with environments and how this explains field-to-field and year-toyear variation. Understanding the functionality of the corn genome will allow researchers to accelerate the rate of genetic improvement, leading to more productive and more resilient corn hybrids. It will also allow the ability to predict which hybrids to grow on which fields to better match genetics with soil and weather conditions.

In 2013, ICPB helped establish and fund the Genomes to Fields Initiative, a multi-state corn trial collecting genetic, phenotypic and environmental data on hundreds of corn genetic lines at 30 locations each year. This trial aims to understand how genes control traits and how those traits are affected by the environment. Through the last nine years, ICPB has helped to engage other corn states and bring in millions of dollars to support this initiative, for every dollar Iowa Corn invested, someone else invested $9.10.

ICGA again worked with NCGA and several universities to obtain research funding for plant phenomics through the 2018 Farm Bill, securing $40 million of authorized funding for the creation of the Agricultural Genome to Phenome Initiative (AG2PI). ICGA secured $2 million for this initiative in the recently approved 2022 federal budget.

The objective of AG2PI is to assemble a community of researchers across plant, animal and computer sciences and engineering, to identify gaps in technology and identify solutions.

RESEARCH

The anticipated outcomes of AG2PI are: 1) benefit agricultural scientists through the understanding of genetics and apply those to commercial solutions, 2) benefit breeders by increasing the rate of genetic gain that can be obtained, 3) benefit livestock producers and farmers through increased productivity and profitability of crops and livestock, 4) benefit consumers through a continued stable and affordable food supply and 5) benefit society through more sustainable agriculture and environmental outcomes. The results from AG2PI will be able to help identify methods to predict future crop and livestock traits. Research like this will allow agricultural scientists to accelerate the breeding and genetic gain process, giving Iowa corn farmers access to new hybrids faster, enhancing their crop production and improving crops disease and pest resistance. Farmers will benefit and profit from growing high-quality crops for seed, feed, fiber and fuel.

Iowa Corn continues to leverage the corn genome to gain a better understanding of how the corn plant works, to improve efficiency and productivity while reducing the environmental impact of corn production.

IOWA CORN PROMOTION BOARD DIRECTOR ELECTIONS ICPB director elections are quickly approaching. Crop reporting districts 2, 5 and 7 are up for election. To request a petition or to learn more about the election process, please contact Iowa Corn: 5505 NW 88th Street, Johnston, Iowa 50131 or 515-225-9242.

Visit iowacorn.org for further details and more information.

ICPB ELECTION TIMELINE: March 25

Petitions will be available by request from the Iowa Corn office. Candidates who fill out petitions must also fill out the affidavit candidacy document.

April 5

Deadline for candidate names, district nominating committee forms and candidate bios are due to the Iowa Corn office.

April 22

All petitions for nominations are due to the Iowa Corn office by 4:30 pm.

May 25

Absentee ballots available for mailing.

June 20

Deadline for requesting absentee ballots.

July 12

Elections held at local county extension offices.

Absentee ballots must be postmarked on or before July 12.

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MEMBERSHIP

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G R O W E R S

A S S O C I A T I O N

The Value of an ICGA Membership

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he Iowa Corn Growers Association (ICGA) is one of the most effective, longest standing agricultural associations in the country. It serves as the collective voice for Iowa corn farmers, lobbying on agricultural issues at the state and federal level. We work on behalf of you and work on real issues you are seeing on your operation. The cost of a membership is $60 for one year or $140 for three years. A small investment for a large impact. Through your membership you get the power of Iowa Corn lobbying efforts and see real return on your investment to your farm. See a few of the Iowa Corn lobbying wins below.

The Market Facilitation Program (MFP): MFP provided direct payments to help producers (including corn growers) who were directly impacted by illegal retaliatory tariffs, resulting in the loss of traditional exports. The 2018 MFP paid one cent per bushel of harvested corn and self-certified corn production from harvest monitors. The real success was in the second round of MFP after Iowa Corn outlined to the USDA where improvements could be made, and the USDA restructured the payments on a per acre bases, which broke down to an average 33 cents per bushel. The total value of the second round to an average Iowa corn farmer was almost $20,000.

Derecho Wildfire and Hurricane Indemnity Program Plus (WHIP): The Derecho in August 2020 affected many individuals and farmers across our state. ICGA advocated for WHIP funding that was paid to farmers impacted by the storm on top of crop insurance coverage.

In impacted Derecho counties for farmers with 85% crop insurance coverage, they would get a buy up from the government to 95% coverage. More than 31,000 farms received indemnity payments due to the Derecho, at around $1.23 per bushel.

Harvest Weight Proclamation: For many years ICGA has worked to secure a harvest weight proclamation for farmers each fall. The 2021 Harvest Weight Proclamation specifically increased the weight allowable for shipments of corn, soybeans, hay, straw and stover by 12.5% per axle, up to a maximum of 90,000 pounds, without the need for an oversize/overweight permit. This means that a 500-acre Iowa corn farmer would require 12 fewer truckloads and a 1,000-acre Iowa corn farmer would require 25 fewer truckloads, which is both a time saver as well as a fuel saver. ICGA leads this request to the Governor’s office each year on behalf of our farmer members.

Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP): CFAP provided producers of agricultural commodities with financial assistance giving them the ability to absorb sales declines and increased marketing costs associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Through CFAP 1, an average 315-acre Iowa corn farmer received $12,000 or 33 cents per bushel. After ICGA’s lobbying efforts, Iowa corn farmers received just under $20,000 or 30 cents per bushel from CFAP 2 and top-up payments ($20/acre in 2021) related to the program. Between CFAP and MFP, ICGA’s lobbying efforts helped support Iowa corn farmers with approximately 97 cents per bushel of additional revenue to help keep your farms going.

Fighting for You and Your Farm on Fertilizer Issues The Iowa Corn Growers Association along with the National Corn Growers Association continues to fight for you and your farm on the fertilizer issue. We know this remains a top concern for many Iowa farmers and we continue to make sure that the Iowa corn farmer perspective is heard by having conversations with the top fertilizer suppliers. Your membership matters and when we work together, our voice is stronger. If you are not a member, we invite you join ICGA today at iowacorn.org/join. As farmers a united voice demonstrates strength when important issues like these arise.

Become an ICGA member today!

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FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: Iowa Corn | 5505 Northwest 88th Street | Johnston, Iowa 50131 | 515-225-9242 | iowacorn.org | corninfo@iowacorn.org

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