Why The U.S. Government Is (Still) Obsessed With Corn

There’s a reason people refer to corn as yellow gold. In 2021, the United States’ corn crop was worth over $86 billion. According to the USDA, the U.S. is the largest consumer, producer and exporter of corn in the world. It’s not just what we eat. Corn is in what we buy and how we fuel up. Now, the rest of the world relies on U.S. corn, too. At $2.2 billion in 2019, corn is the most heavily subsidized of all crops. Here’s how the U.S. started fueling its economy with corn.
Produced by: Andrea Miller
Graphics by: Alex Wood, Christina Locopo
Additional Camera by: Charlotte Morabito
Supervising Producer: Lindsey Jacobson
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Why The U.S. Government Is (Still) Obsessed With Corn

[@MeagerBeaver]

I’m most upset that there was a chance to title this “The US Ecornomy” and it was missed

[@Pernection]

Would you prefer Cornography?

[@Fabdanc]

These are the types of comments I live for.

[@mrbello1962]

that's corny

[@dertythegrower]

because the food industry operates huge income off the sugar from corn. also fuel rebates

[@paxundpeace9970]

86 billion is only 0.4% of the US economy it is only a tiny cornerstone of the US economy.

[@ronkirk5099]

The U.S. decision to subsidize the corn to ethanol industry will go down as one of the worst most shortsighted decisions ever. It provides only a miniscule net energy gain and is using up groundwater and topsoil at unsustainable rates. Growing a food crop to convert it to energy is very misguided.

[@jordanbuckau4242]

You really dont know what you’re talking about

[@Headassss]

I agree mostly. What would an alternative be? I have seen that flex fuel vehicles and the use of e85 or higher octane fuels to be something a lot of people are interested in. I think it’s a good direction considering the affordability of this type of “sustainable” practice.

[@aaronfield7899]

Actually it's a net energy loss, not gain. upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Energy_density.svg/400px-Energy_density.svg.png

[@Bloated_Tony_Danza]

Corn got the lead out of leaded gasoline, just playing devil's advocate for a moment but what would the alternative be?

[@aaronfield7899]

@@Bloated_Tony_Danza how?

[@jdrancho1864]

There is a political aspect that this report missed entirely. Think of what happens every four years in Iowa, where the production of corn and ethanol, and the subsidies and regulation on corn play a tremendous role. Any politician or party that dares upset a status quo in a state with a first-in-the-nation caucus can expect to pay a price.

[@yougonnaeatthat9889]

I live in Iowa and I would agree to a point. But I also see things changing as voters become informed. And as the news reports farms are getting bigger but actual farmer numbers are decreasing so it's a game of attrition. I'm afraid with what appears to be a realignment with Green Policies the ethanol industry is taking to garner support for this CO2 capture and pipeline, they may be shooting themselves in the foot.

[@sellwill]

@@yougonnaeatthat9889 "...the ethanol industry is taking to garner support for this CO2 capture" That is hilarious. They only support the CO2 pipeline/sequestration scheme because of the HUGE federal tax credits which reward virtue signaling make work and add absolutely nothing of value.

[@positivityplace]

I guess Mexico contributed more than just the Tortilla and Chips to the US…corn was developed in central Mexico corn at least 7000 years ago. It was started from a wild grass called teosinte…

[@mns8732]

@TM : 7000 years ago it wasnt mexico.

[@angelgallegos199]

@@mns8732 not the modern country. Tribes that contributed to the modern United Mexican states.

[@theuglykwan]

A chunk of what we eat originated from the new world.

[@carlosmante]

The first use of corn was in the form of popcorn, bacause the first type of corn was the crystalline type.

[@frankjoz2803]

Corn is not just one plant and although we Mexicans are attributed to be the original corn, and avocado consumers. These crops and their variants were wide spread around the continent. Mexicams only want to feel important.

[@johnbee7729]

Corn had a great lobbying effort to thank for everything.

[@communitygardener17]

They also had a pet congressman, Colin Peterson, D, MN, who wrote the Farm Bill for years that made life good for corporate farms and destroyed family farms.

[@TLM860]

I eat lots of food with corn syrup listed as an ingredient, now I'm applying for a corn subsidy!

[@NeoMokgabo21]

😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@ericgeorge7874]

If you historically have been eating that food then you can apply for the subsidy :)

[@htaukkyanmyo4437]

To make ethanol, grains must contain sugar. Raw sugarcane has 15-18% sugar, beet has about 7%, and corn has 2-3 %. Thus, corn is not an ideal starting material. But the corn lobby is very powerful and thus we use heavily subsidized corn derived ethanol as octane enhancer.

[@davidadcock3382]

False, Subsidies ended in 2013.

[@GilmerJohn]

Well, starches can be converted to sugars fairly easily.

[@v1n1c1u55anto5]

We use sugarcane in Brazil and our cars can run on ethanol or gasoline or any mixture of them. Brazil is the worlds firts bioeconomy

[@davidadcock3382]

@@EggEnjoyer FALSE Farmers like me quit receiving direct subsidies with passage of the 2013 farm bill. Please get an education on this subject before spewing out your ignorance !!!!!

[@davidadcock3382]

@@EggEnjoyer FALSE, Corn farmers like me quit receiving direct subsidies with the passage of the 2013 farm bill. Farmer can receive money if they have a disaster but otherwise getting a subsidy payment every year ended with passage of the 2013 farm bill. I wished google knew what it was talking about because the wife would like new curtains..

[@velotill]

amazing to read all those comments with about three of them mentioning EVs and PV and none mentioning the word biodiversity. We must be crazy over in Europe worrying about stuff like crop rotation, lowering nitrate in ground water, going organic, trying out agrovoltaics not to mention exploding wild boar populations. So glad we put a hard end to new "bio gas" plants years ago.

[@mattcraztex9940]

Europe in general is much more about long term Sustainable production where as the US just looks for as many tons or bushel it can get per acre. Organic food production is slowly becoming a larger % but it will be a long while before it overtakes conventional especially since in the US Organic and proper Crop rotation is not used much nor encouraged much because the big companies are only looking to make as much money as possible quickly.

[@MyBacktrail]

I agree generally and I'm a fan of biodiversity and permaculture on my own property, but most US corn farmers rotate corn and soybeans. And while you may be making progress in Europe, the US is a net exporter of food to Europe. And the Dutch are literally shutting down their own farms. And you may have shut down your bio gas plants, but you also shut down all the coal mining, oil drilling and nuclear power and put all your energy dependency on Russia, which the former US president warned you about, and you laughed at him. (I hope you can keep warm this winter). So, the US has it's problems but the problems are everywhere. The main problems in the US being the lobbyists.

[@mattcraztex9940]

@@MyBacktrail Not all European States were stupid enough to be exploited by Russia. Poland and many eastern Bloc states were REALLY happy seeing Trump grill Germany France among other European countries for directly funding Russia's lingering war machine and becoming way to over reliant on It's energy imports. Agriculture is much more diverse in Europe and healthier then in the US but that's also in part because it has many more small farmers then massive farmers like in the US and Canada. None the less, there are short term benefits for the states while Europe seeks a more long term plan. Different challenges and different approaches.

[@lookoutforchris]

The same concerns exist in the US and are a big deal. You don’t get a full picture from a news piece like this.

[@mattcraztex9940]

@@lookoutforchris no you don;t but you do have companies who are more then willing to hire lobbyists and get there way regardless.

[@fabiogoncalves9728]

Interesting. We also cultivate quite a bunch of corn in Brazil (mostly to feed livestock such as swine and chicken), but our "Pro-Álcool" (Ethanol production program launched in the 80's by the military regime) is 100% based in sugar cane culture. Corn and sorghum are not very efficient on ethanol production.

[@Optimusprime_683]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/n5yli4xmZZiCa8U

[@jacobhollar9292]

It's an energy negative system here in the USA, our 10% ethanol mandates are essentially another form of funding for our unsustainable corn industry as there are essentially no environmental benefits (more energy is needed for ethanol production than it provides). By forcing it's consumption, it's driving up demand and ensures farmers can sell their corn crop so Monsanto gets paid.

[@thekat9593]

Giant farm bills destroyed small farmers, small towns, destroyed soil bank acres, there used to be a farmyard light on every 160 acre homestead site across the Great Plains, now they are long gone, just giant acreage ethanol factories, schools have to combine with others just to get minimal class size, grocery stores gone from ghost towns, churches closed as the small farm families gave way to mega farmers, progress.

[@greymann]

Sad but true. The government always sells out the little guy because he is incapable of the bribes and kickbacks required for our representatives and senators. Thomas Jefferson vision of a nation of small landholders/farmers once existed but no more.

[@tralt135]

They went to the same place as all the horse breeders who were put out of business by the internal combustion engine, and all the dockworkers who were put out of business by the shipping container. No matter how hard we want things to stay the way they've always been, things change. That's just how our world works. Adapt or die.

[@thekat9593]

@@tralt135 suppose the only question left is will the robots stun us when they bale us to be fed through the liquefiers or stuff us kicking and screaming?

[@serafinacosta7118]

Now you know why Europeans ban our food stuffs.

[@praetoriancorps]

My body doesn't respond well to corn, sadly corn these days is present in more and more products. If it keeps up avoiding corn will be harder than avoiding gluten is for some people.

[@praetoriancorps]

@@MayorMcC666 No, its been like that way before covid. It is because a form of ibs.

[@lengould9262]

@praetoriancorps No-one but you mentioned covid, or anything related.

[@praetoriancorps]

@@lengould9262 It was a response to a comment that the original poster apparently deleted.

[@only2genders02]

Go grab a handful of crickets for dinner. Lemme know if its good. And post it online. Post a vid of you eating crickets for dinner

[@webaccess11]

I have extreme intolerance to corn and it is increasingly very difficult to avoid. Even things like vanilla essence, caramel colouring, vit c, citric acid, thickener 1442, etc... will make me very sick. I have to cook everything entirely from scratch. As I have become more sensitive, I also can no longer tolerate lentils or beans of any sort either. This makes navigating food aisles like a war zone. I suspect, even equipment cleaned with a corn-based solvent is becoming problematic for me. There is nowhere near enough recognition either.

[@matthewknobel6954]

if corn is so profitable, when why is the government subsidizing it??

[@putheflamesoutyahoo1503]

they want brainwashed soil killing chemical users....go NASCAR...we'll all pay

[@putheflamesoutyahoo1503]

water wasting to,,,just so we feed China a increase fuel/shipping profits and pollution...we'll pay

[@dawnkeckley7502]

Great question. It is touched on.

[@howardbartlett3026]

We enjoyed the video. Thank you for producing it.

[@jaredhill8721]

US taxpayers should not be subsidizing the massive companies growing GMO corn. Lobbyists have altered the farm bill to pay big companies with public dollars. The production of ethanol yields less energy than it costs to produce. Ethanol production creates artificial scarcity of farm land and raises prices. The soil is degraded by big-AG using chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Cheap corn syrups in American foods make us sick and fat. The American addiction to corn is harming our land's health, and it makes Americans poorer and sicker, while costing a fortune.

[@grjoe4412]

There is no better example of speaking with one's eyes closed than your comment.

[@jakeboynton]

@@grjoe4412 how so

[@nutsackmania]

I bet you an "urbanist"

[@badboybs98]

@@grjoe4412 he's right on all accounts

[@grjoe4412]

@@jakeboynton Did anyone ever think why people are living a good life? Here is the answer. Cheap energy and food prices.

[@SirArkoutha]

" I love corn! The look of it! The smell of it! The taste of it! The texture! I love corn so much that I lost my genitalia in an unfortunate harvesting accident." 🤣

[@kamolhengkiatisak1527]

Over the years, Europe, Japan, China and the US continue to subsidize crop productions as part of food security in one form or another whereas few developing countries offer to do so, notable exception is Thailand. Paddy/rice production was/is the main stay of Siam since the Ayutthaya dynasty upto the present Chakri dynasty when the country always produces more rice than it can consume, the surplus is exported. In the 60s, the Thai government implemented premium tax to collect tax from rice exporters as part of the country's revenue, making it hard for Thai farmers to make end meet as rice exporters in turn lower the grain price they bought from Thai farmers. In the 60s, industrialization began in Thailand, starting from import substitutions led by Japanese investors. Gradually, industrialization begins to be more productive and can compete in the global market. The government finally abolished premium tax on rice exports in the 80s. Yet the plight of Thai farmers did not improve, still mired in increasing debts as the world rice production kept increasing year by year, depressing export prices. When Thailand began to earn more income from industrial goods exports as well as inbound tourism, the govt finally decided to subsidize Thai farmers, starting from rice and later extend to other cash crops such as cassava and sugar cane. The height of subsidy reached its apex when the populist govt of Thakin Shinawatra led by his sister Yingluck decided to subsidize upto twice the global rice price, nearly bankrupted the Thai economy as till today after 15 years later the present govt still have to allocate a budget to pay off principal and interests which will last decades more. Yet the succeeding govt still provides crop subsidy in the so-called price insurance program which costs less than 1/20th of the Yingluck's rice mortgage program.

[@serafinacosta7118]

If you are going to bother in lecture us all, at least break it down into readable paragraphs. Your big chunk is unreadable.

[@Riley_rolo]

How was that unreadable?

[@madsam0320]

I think Thaksin and his sister done a lot for the farmers who are biggest earners of foreign revenues, but exploited by the rice merchants. They were climbing out of poverty until the coup by military that are sponsored by the big business families and foreign entities. It’s a myth that the debts are from subsidies when most are because of corruptions and embezzlements from all sides of the big political parties. Whenever there is military involvements in government, there will be corruption, instability and poverty. It’s only when the military is forced to step back, that there will be hope for the Thai people. With the return of tourism, war in Ukraine, India ban on rice exports and the rail links in BRI, Thailand is going to be fine.

[@ricardodcsilva]

Twitter format isn't a universal standard. His answer is perfectly readable. @@serafinacosta7118

[@c.rutherford]

As a Central Illinoisan who has lived in the smaller towns I feel that I have spent my life surrounded by corn. Our towns and cities are mere oasises we drive between what I have often called the corn ocean lol. Its in much of our food, its in our festivals... people even decorate stores and our front doors with the stuff. We all hate the high fructose corn syrup, which is in everything; we eye the fuel pumps and prices for ethanol content, and muse over whether it will give us better or worse mileage. We make cute quips like "knee high by Fourth of July", "we all ran off into the cornfields", and remark how its higher or lower than normal this year, or how its doing as if the endless stands around us were some kind of almanac. CASEIH, John Deere dealers and machinery and silos dot the landscape, they're everywhere. In fact no matter how small a town is.... you can almost guarantee there will be a huge corn silo, if that isn't the center of it. So obsession? Yeah, I can believe it.

[@TheNativeTwo]

Thanks for this comment. It’s interesting to hear what your experience is like. Living in California, we have a lot of agriculture here too, but it’s very mixed and depends on the area. You’ll find vineyards, orchards, strawberries, sunflowers, rice, wheat, barley, and even sometimes corn. So much variety. I did run through the corn fields a few times, and we always make mazes out of the fields for halloween. It’s difficult for me to imagine that basically every farm in the middle of the country is producing just one crop, corn.

[@42base13]

@@TheNativeTwo It's commonly rotated with soybeans, so the fields alternate between the two, but, yeah, those two are probably 90% of the acres.

[@jrstf]

Decades ago when my Iowan grandma would visit us in Pennsylvania where there are only a few corn fields, it was the corn she would comment on. Us locals hardly noticed the corn fields.

[@davidadcock3382]

@@TheNativeTwo It is about evenly split between corn and soybeans with a little wheat. Crop rotation is used in the Midwest.

[@c.rutherford]

@@42base13 ohh yes soybeans but frankly in my area I can't remember the last time I noticed a soybean field. Though I'm not driving out in the country a lot these days. Maybe they pay less per acre, and they figured out how to skip rotation? Decatur used to have "Soy Capital" banks all over the place they seem to have disappeared too.

[@Stebokanebo]

I work on farm equipment doing fast services and speedy diagnostics and repair. Lemme tell you about the fat bonuses and all the equipment was used to harvest corn. After a harvest or two my boss tells me that [redacted] farms left me a thank you check.

[@R3dhawk95]

these same farmers who get these subsidies will then go on to complain about the govt providing funding for absolutely anything else

[@vikker8274]

Well at least they produce some actual GDP. Unlike an ever growing percentage of our population who produce nothing (except “awareness!” lol)

[@guardianoffire8814]

Large corn farm corporations campaign finance politicians to the amount of hundred thousand dollars and in return get billions in corn subsidies which is a great return on investment. Smaller corn growers have to fight to get corn subsidies every year while the big corporations don't.

[@roberthinsch4088]

Actually the subsidies are based on a per acre formula. So naturally the larger the farm, the bigger the subsidy. Their really isn’t any obstacles whether you are big or small to be in the program.

[@brianjones9254]

I guess you don't know there is a cap to how much a farm can receive in "corn subsidies"? This means a large "corporate" farms max out quickly, a rule that ensures smaller farms get just as much benefit as a big farm.....or usually more.

[@Blaqjaqshellaq]

One factor is that having two Senators per state gives the small states greater clout per capita, and those states tend to be agricultural states in the West. (They also tend to vote Republican: thus the Senate is often under GOP control despite the fact that overall more voters consistently choose Democratic Senate candidates than Republicans!)

[@brianjones9254]

@@Blaqjaqshellaq yes....I mean, what an outrage the 1% of the US population that grows the food 100% of our country eats have 2 Senators to represent us 1%......jeez.

[@scwirpeo]

@@brianjones9254 To be fair, most of the farmed food is processed by non US citizens in basically any state regardless of what side they vote. So maybe fix that before you guys claim to be the most important percentage of the US population. Because using your own logic the hundreds of thousands of illegal and H-2A workers you guys use because you refuse to pay working Americans to do the work is as destructive to this nation as the stinky city democrats you hate so much. Arguably they are as essential to the food production in the US as that 1% are, so should we be giving them senators too? I think not.

[@yashshah5971]

Am I missing something or at 8:30 CNBC just points out this is correlation and not causation and literally right after a couple of the experts state how the corn subsidies are tied to the value of the land (which would clearly imply that it is a causation that the valuation of farmlands is increasing?)

[@onehorsetoomany8006]

Corn prices are definitely tied to land value in the places where corn is grown. But subsidies are only a part of that. For example, they stated that no subsidies would be triggered this year, so they're not a factor at all. Subsidies only help in bad years. If land prices did drop, the real losers would be the states, some of whom tax farmland at exorbitant rates.

[@stewiesaidthat]

The value of corn subsidies are also tied to the value of seed, fertilizer, chemicals equipment and buildings/storage. It's not just the farmers getting these subsidies but the whole ag sector.

[@Kaice88]

im happy to see the tip of DE is part of the corn belt because we have SO MUCH CORN! crops. lol they're a staple in my mental image of DE as a whole, not just the Northern part but I do see a lot more up here.

[@onomatopoeia162003]

Southern MN here :)

[@jeanandre6129]

I like this documentary. It is very interesting and instructive

[@TheBigdutchster]

A very good report.

[@dertythegrower]

Fuel rebates they shouldnt get. Farmer rebates they shouldnt (over paid) get. And then food companies use the syrup to sweeten almost all food in a box

[@bighands69]

I they are not getting of all that would you support tax cuts?

[@baymax001]

Its not just the Corn kid , The Whole US is obsessed with corn 🌽😂

[@thomasgrabkowski8283]

Well it's America's main crop. Same reason why Asian countries like China and Japan are obssessed with rice

[@baymax001]

@@thomasgrabkowski8283 Oh, But It's Corn 🌽

[@dragons_hook]

@@baymax001 * crunch! *

[@danielramirezgarcia2104]

@@dragons_hook A big lump with knobs

[@user-eg3zs6oi7c]

not fit people.

[@ChristophfromSchwiiz]

Just a heads up. They left soybeans and wheat out of their graph, making it a graph of "feed grain" production. These two crops should have been included in the graph, with soybeans roughly the same acreage as corn and wheat about half the acres of corn grown. Very misleading. Soybean is an "oil seed", but it and wheat go into feed. Wheat is a grain as much as barley is. That being said corn should not be subsidized for ethanol production in my opinion.

[@jimurrata6785]

There wasn't any rice either. But the chart said grain, and beans are a legume, not a grain It's pretty obvious how propagandist the producers of this video are.

[@enigmathegrayman2953]

I’ve got an obsession with corn chips particularly served with salsa! 😋

[@dertythegrower]

mhm

[@thomasschaefer9312]

Monocultures of perennials, such as African palm oil,[7] sugarcane,[8][9] tea[10][11] and pines,[12] can lead to soil and environmental problems such as soil acidification, degradation, and soil-borne diseases, which ultimately have a negative impact on agricultural productivity and sustainability

[@adamalbright2020]

We are the first monoculture

[@shaider1982]

Nikita Khruschev also has a thing for corn, trying to grow in in places too cold for it in the Soviet Union. Was inspired when he saw all the corn planted in the US

[@serafinacosta7118]

Thry grow potatoes and beets there. Khrushchev was an idiot.

[@amosicronery7730]

We grow corn in Tanzania and feed Kenya, DRC, South Sudan etc

[@jaylittleton1]

Good report, Andrea. This is a cycle that really needs to be addressed with practical decisions, not speculation of profit.

[@Optimusprime_683]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/n5yli4xmZZiCa8U

[@fraaggl]

i do agree and it's the main reason why it will never change...

[@coupdsantana206]

Someone send this to "Corn Kid" ASAP!!! 🤣🤣🤣

[@jamess6853]

I'm obsessed with them, too! "Freaks on a Leash" is a killer song!

[@approofarm]

This is amazing.

[@cliffontheroad]

Great video. I oppose foreign ownership of US land. That is a worry. Separately, The middle-eastern country leasing US farms and lowering the water table (dry wells result) is continuing - in a drought S.W. state while their own country limits watering due to their own drought. I said continuing, and the grain is exported to feed their cattle. It not the grain, it is the WATER they use to farm which is hurting US citizens. The state can not control H2O pumped out of the ground. (river water elsewhere is in the news.)

[@eligebrown8998]

I'm 100% with you. Bill Gates and foreign country's should not be aloud to buy food farms in the United States

[@GilmerJohn]

Well, I don't have much of a problem with foreign ownership of farm land. This can easily be address by causing farmland to be taxed at fair market value rather than at some artificial "farm use" value. When farm land is fairly taxed, owners will lease land to the larger farmers.

[@friedzombie4]

No mention of Monsanto's break through of Field Corn at all? Was a great way to blackmail farmers to pay them as their crop through the process of seeds getting kicked up and carried by the wind overtook the natural corn crop of a neighbor who wasn't using their seeds. The only true benefit of the crop is that it's much more resistant to cold snaps.

[@Optimusprime_683]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/n5yli4xmZZiCa8U 🥰

[@davidadcock3382]

Your post is ignorant. Corn seeds are NOT carried by the wind!!! Monsanto does not exist!!!

[@friedzombie4]

@@davidadcock3382 Yes they were acquired by Bayer in 2018

[@davidadcock3382]

@@friedzombie4 Today there are many companies even foreign companies producing and selling EVERYTHING that Monsanto use to produce and sell.

[@f1s2hg3]

I live in the Corn Belt and I eat corn 🌽 it’s the best nutritious grain of all others combined. Corn is a SUPERFOOD!

[@leonardcollings7389]

The problem with corn alcohol is it takes 11 gallons of water to manufacture 1 gallon of ethanol.

[@alenollstibe]

Yeh sure, here in Brazil ethanol is produced with sugar cane is most efficient then corn

[@YangLeee]

Not just government, Americans. I love corn. Everyone in my family loves corn. We even grow our own corn in our garden. Its amazing and delicious. Just wanted to mention how much I love corn :). Also, hello from Denver Colorado

[@specialopsdave]

Olathe sweet > all other corn

[@julioramirez3944]

The government doesn't let farmers plant their own seeds. They are genetically modified. And the Pesticides they use are bad for the soil. Draining it of nitrate and not allowing other plants to grow its nutrients to the fullest. We should all be growing our own veggies .

[@specialopsdave]

@@julioramirez3944 By "the government", you mean the corporation named Monsanto, right?

[@julioramirez3944]

@@specialopsdave lmao that's exactly right, who do you think allows them to do what they do what does the FDA do, they dont regulate nothing! That's why they don't want farmers to raise livestock on a grass-fed diet. Look into Phalates and the effects it has. We as humans need to do better to take control of what we put in our bodies, just stop eating processed food.

[@davidadcock3382]

@@specialopsdave Monsanto was bought out over 5 years ago and does NOT exist today.

[@Wolvious]

“It’s corn, a big lump with knots! It has the juice(it has the juice)”

[@42boombox]

when life gives you lemons you make lemonade. ask the same question in the title and replace it with Asia and rice. makes a lot more sense

[@brantcox3107]

A huge reason farm land values have skyrocketed is due to out of state investors, corporations, or individuals like Bill Gates buying up land. Myself, a young aspiring farmer went to a local land auction the other day. After a small piece of non-irrigated land was sold for over $750,000 to an undisclosed online bidder, an older farmer came up to me and said, “I’m sorry. It is nearly impossible for people your age to start a family farm.”

[@42base13]

Somebody bid it up that far. Around here, it's farmers bidding each other up. And the investors wouldn't be paying that much if there weren't farmers will to pay all the profits into the rent. Bill Gates isn't farming that land himself.

[@serafinacosta7118]

Move overseas. Komrade Putin was begging South African farmers to farm the Russian wasteland. Once they get rid of that thief in charge and his sycophants , things might improve. Brazil too. The state of São Paulo is auctioning off land. Banco do Brasil hás farm credit lines. Why you would bother to buy land to start a farm in America is beyond me. Unless land is generational owned , you are out of luck.

[@brandonearly2963]

Sounds like a made up story. Doubt there was even an old man

[@user-zp7jp1vk2i]

@@serafinacosta7118 Georgia, the country, not the state, has really nice agri. land/soil and temperatures, and is English language friendly.

[@0x0michael]

Isn't Yellow Gold just Gold? 😂

[@rylandorr]

no

[@alexm566]

White and rose gold are a thing (white gold is also cotton tho..)

[@zefrum3]

Corn is called yellow gold? Huh? 😂

[@heraldomedrano1417]

I'm going to grow white and green gold.

[@BrendanGeormer]

Crazy that there is no other yellow-y item that is known for being valuable!

[@bradIeyyy]

Fun fact: most of europe and Asia buy their fruits corn and vegetables from the great USA 🇺🇸 we run the world 🌎

[@Shredxcam22]

Velveeta is liquid gold

[@darylporter5962]

As opposed to black gold or Texas tea.

[@onomatopoeia162003]

I'm in the Corn area. Southern MN. :)

[@scottschaeffer8920]

Let’s do a documentary on the impacts/costs-to our soils, reliance on synthetic fertilizers, unleashing chemical tolerant weeds, neo-nics and insects, loss of grasslands and regenerative pastures, I could go on and on.

[@tomaszcz_k]

John Desmond Heppolette is truly impressive! His professionalism and expertise in financial planning have been invaluable. He took the time to understand my financial goals and provided personalized recommendations that have proven to be successful. Thanks to his guidance, I'm making monthly returns from investing in assets and mutual funds. I really look up to him and appreciate his online presence.

[@suzannewheat9607]

When I was young in the '50s and '60s my mother was an enemy of corn. She said it's what they feed to hogs. So true.

[@lingth]

As they said there is Field Corn for feed..and Sweet Corn for humans.

[@lingth]

Pigs eat soy beans or rice or wheat too.. so I guess you dun eat what pigs eat..they eat truffles too.

[@GoneCarnivore]

I'm not sure anything should eat corn...

[@haterfansclub3490]

You’re mother was racist then because that’s our ancestors food that we have ate precolonial

[@WolfHeathen]

Yes. There's a difference between feed corn and food corn. Feed corn feeds livestock, which then feed us.

[@sirchuti]

Corn flour to make mashed delicacy is our staple food in Kenya. Aka Ugali

[@diegofortuna3923]

It's nixtamal or maza the original native name. Flour is what you make white bread and european.

[@sacramentocheesehog9195]

I can't imagine a more beautiful thing

[@patrickfiorito]

👍👍👍👍👍 I will never support removing farmer subsidies. Never. Food supply is the #1 importance.

[@josephchaneyiii]

Any federal subsidies going to grow corn for ethanol production need to end. Ethanol from corn is not efficient. Overall it takes more energy input from start to finished ethanol then ethanol provides when burned.

[@42base13]

The Obama administration looked into that, and found that there was a 2X energy gain with ethanol production. www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2015EnergyBalanceCornEthanol.pdf

[@josephchaneyiii]

@@42base13 thru the use of ethanol yes. Not thru the use of using corn to produce ethanol. Sugar cane and switch grasses are less energy intensive to produce the same ethanol. This is my point, not getting rid of ethanol production completely.

[@blackhawk7r221]

Ethanol is a cheap nontoxic octane booster that also chemically reduces emissions. And we get to keep our strategic reserve of farmers.

[@josephchaneyiii]

@@blackhawk7r221 not debating those facts. But several other crops are less energy intensive to produce the same ethanol being touted, but as long as corn is the crop being subsidized then farmers have zero incentive to grow ethanol producing crops that are more carbon neutral and therefore more productive.

[@tiamarie1226]

High fructose corn syrup keeps the corn industry going.

[@davidgerardstack4799]

And contributes to obesity

[@tiamarie1226]

@@davidgerardstack4799 exactly

[@benjamin7114]

Addictive stuff = $$$$

[@stevechance150]

1. Who sells High Fructose Corn Syrup? 2. Who spends Millions lobbying Congress? Archer Daniels Midland. Yep, that company that committed the largest price fixing crime in history.

[@dragomilosevic4823]

And keep the american/canadian people fat and all the people they donate and sell it to

[@mpccenturion]

And all of the factory farms pump inputs into the soil - And because the inputs drain into the water - this subsidy is seen in the water at the exit of the Mississippi. The Blue Algae.

[@risonetetatiana9432]

Corn is a blessing

[@adamalbright2020]

Farmers complain so much about spending but benefit so much from subsidized crops

[@camd6102]

Get the guvmint regulations and taxes off my back so I can pollute and continue non-sustainable AG practices but I'll take the subsidies, price supports, artificial markets that keep me going. Ag & ethanol industry schizophrenia. No wonder their politics run the same way.

[@razielgonzalez7497]

There’s not a lot of profit in the crop

[@johndoh5182]

@@razielgonzalez7497 Yes, there is. It's why countless acres were converted to growing corn. There isn't a lot of profit in growing field corn for feed, but since ethanol became big business corn is a cash crop.

[@Beyonder8335]

You do realize that direct crop subsidies have been pretty rare for the past 10 years or so right? Most modern subsidies are aimed at crop insurance and risk management, the idea being that it creates a more stable food economy and keeps things cheap on the consumer end of things. I think most of us would probably prefer to be left alone in the end but not accepting that stuff is idiotic and puts you at an immediate competitive disadvantage with other farms.

[@davidadcock3382]

subsidies for farmers ended with the 2013 farm bill 2020.

[@doncelladurant7221]

Corm is such a complex yet interesting crop. To imagine that thousands of year a man in Central Mexico created the crop from a plant. It is one of the few man made crops. Now, there is a worldwide fascination of corn!

[@marvinecksteincool]

I like the its corn meme thanks, did not expect

[@RicondaRacing]

My car runs on corn, E85 and a turbo are a great combination

[@Reezy884]

I’m definitely OBSESSED with corn

[@callmeosho7792]

Ofc you are with ya yellow turtleneck wearing ahh

[@Reezy884]

@@callmeosho7792 LMAO😂😂

[@Delosian]

Why the obsession? Because corn produces 15 million calories per acre, which is more than pretty much every other food with the exception of potatoes, palm oil, and a tiny handful of other foods.

[@roordjaxk]

And it’s so easy to grow and the US Midwest is prime for corn.

[@wsipittsburgh]

Are you talking about the calories consumed by livestock or people? Field corn is only fed to animals.

[@se6550]

Didn't see any actual farmers giving an opinion. You might want to hear their point of view on things.

[@mochiebellina8190]

They are getting rich on the corn subsidies. Gotten richer.

[@42base13]

There are a few on this thread. I'm one of them.

[@davidadcock3382]

@@mochiebellina8190 Farmers stopped receiving direct subsidies with the passage of the 2013 farm bill.

[@jayt1828]

@@mochiebellina8190 I definitely wouldn’t say subsidies make us rich. Subsidies are there to get the farmer through tough times! We don’t receive payments on solid years! Please ask more questions!

[@jayt1828]

What would you like to know? 1400 acre corn and soybean farmer here.

[@irfanazim6696]

I got a question.. in the US, they seem to farm large acreages. Do they water them all? How is the irrgation being done? I dont really see any watering on most videos ive seen

[@rm26367]

What is ironic to me is that the taxpayers pay the farmers for their short comings and then we buy what companies produce with corn products which is becoming health crisis in the US. So basically we (taxpayers) are keeping the farmers farming, keep the few billionaires in the farming industry richer while we are dying from this over processed toxic grain? Everything we eat made with corn is unhealthy, keeping us a fat nation and killing us as a result, not to mention the health insurance problems we have. All these is with the blessings of our USDA - Amazing, we all need to weak up.

[@Ascending4111]

Toxic roundup ready corn. Garbage. Stay home and grow your own herbicide free.

[@user-gl8tv8pb8k]

The US reliance on corn = high vulnerability and catastrophic consequence when monocultures become diseased

[@hurrdurrmurrgurr]

@@SunriseLAW If all your food sources equal "one" food (and fuel) source for thousands of square miles, yes. If you instead plant a verisimilitude of non-cash crops you'll be less vulnerable to disease price shocks. The US could subsidize the growing of a wider variety of crops instead the government continues to subsidize this one crop to the detriment of the country's future.

[@aaronfield7899]

Corn is not a monoculture.

[@bighands69]

People are talking crap.

[@bigoof9486]

@@aaronfield7899 having acres on acres of one type of crop is a monoculture. So yes have alot of corn on the field with no other crops is a monoculture

[@bigoof9486]

@@SunriseLAW it is a problem. That's why it's high vulnerability. There's encouragement for farms to have a a variety of different crops so it'll be less prone to loosing all their crops to one disease. The banana industry disease is rampant and because most banana farms use the same banana for commercial sale it is a world wide phenomenon.

[@ArthurHuizar]

Americans: Wait... it's all corn? Native Americans: Always has been.

[@anman424]

Pretty sure he got "ARC" wrong. And folks can get arc/plc and RMA crop insurance at the same time.

[@winmugaru6347]

Because it's used in alot of processed food, they also sell it to Africa in various different form products

[@CharlesBWillz]

John Desmond Heppolette is truly impressive! His professionalism and expertise in financial planning have been invaluable. He took the time to understand my financial goals and provided personalized recommendations that have proven to be successful. Thanks to his guidance, I'm making monthly returns from investing in assets and mutual funds. I really look up to him and appreciate his online presence.

[@elmernagui744]

the corn industry that demonised the coconut oil in the 80s

[@johnwebber750]

Deforestation due to corn is ok because it was done by the west. 90 million acres for just corn where probably millions of other species could have thrived. Where its inconvenient to the west, do not talk about it, like here.

[@davidgerardstack4799]

Massive CO2 producer and consumer of water, not friendly to biodiversity. The idea that the US has some advantage in growing corn or maize is a myth

[@onehorsetoomany8006]

No, yes, qualified yes, and no. All plants take up CO2 while growing and release it again when they decay, are burned, or are eaten. They do not produce CO2. Corn used as ethanol actually displaces some petroleum use (though the process of producing ethanol does release some CO2). Corn does use a lot of water. It's even irrigated in many places that have decent rainfall if the summer temperatures are on the warm side. No crop is favorable to biodiversity, and row crops are worse than some other methods. But they are less labor intensive and far cheaper. People have to eat something unless we want to go back to hunting and gathering. Living in corn country, there is still a ton of biodiversity in the hedgerows, swales, forests, etc. It's mostly a non-issue here. Due to topsoil and climate, the US has a huge advantage over most other places. Even other countries that grow a lot of corn, such as Brazil, require far more fertilizer, insecticide, etc. per bushel of corn produced than the US corn belt does. That is not a myth.

[@WolfHeathen]

But essential to human survival nontheless.

[@smylebutta7250]

Factually incorrect statement. In fact the Midwest during the summer while the corn crop is growing removes more CO2 than the Amazon rain forest.

[@davidgerardstack4799]

@@smylebutta7250 that is a nonsense

[@davidgerardstack4799]

Do an LCA

[@jirhoud]

because it’s keeping private healthcare and agricultural corporations wealthy.

[@herrunsinn774]

11:18 "The report outlines six steps for rethinking and repurposing subsidies." It shouldn't be surprising that actually asking for input directly from American farmers is included anywhere on the list."

[@arislopes1924]

Corn isn’t even native most of the US it’s not even supposed to grow in temperate climates with 4 seasons. Corn was domesticated by the natives of Mexico and Central America and until this day there’s still new variations being discovered and developed in that area. Corn was also not just corns to the people of mesoamerica it was as their lifeline and themselves as well since the story of creation talks about the first humans being made of corn and parts of the plant. Mesoamericans are the original children of the corn

[@bighands69]

That is the innovative nature of humans. We do not fly naturally either or communicate over long distances naturally as hour arms are not wings and our voices carry for only a few yards.

[@daviddejager7877]

Cool story, what’s your point?

[@arislopes1924]

@@daviddejager7877 learn the some of the story of how the US stole corn has lots to do with the US Mexican wars and all the thousands of indigenous ppl they displaced

[@scipioprime69]

And then what? You want to stop the US for planting corns?

[@kong4679]

I plant more corn in one day then the USA does in a WHOLE year

[@jerolvilladolid]

“Corn” is actually a european term used to describe all carbohydrate crops like wheat and barley. The ribbed yellow tube you see grown is actually “Maize” and it originated in central and south america.

[@danjosephson6910]

Actually "Corn" by definition is the most prevalent grain in a region or country.

[@YT-BenG]

If you be making a billion you'd be calling it corn 🌽

[@KA-uv8gq]

Mexico is in North America.

[@jayt1828]

Wow! You know some history! Congrats! But we use the term corn here!

[@ericktellez7632]

It didn’t develop in Central nor South America it was developed in North America in the center of Mexico, near the valley of Mexico.

[@andrew7825]

Will electrification of vehicles tank (see what I did there) biofuels? Next, what percentage of farmland is farmed by the owner? What percentage of rural farmland is owned by people who live elsewhere?

[@echutch]

I know how strong the corn belt is in corn production… but come on… North central MO… southern Carroll Co… MO River bottom ground we had fields averaging 290+ bushels…

[@mikvan9849]

"For me... Ever since... ever since they told that corn was real, it tasted good!" -- US Government

[@andrewhernandez3750]

I do hope one day we as a country can get rid of all tax subsidies for all corporations and let the free market truly be free

[@tira2145]

Yep, would be great. But never going to happen. Our only hope is term limits for all elected officials.

[@FirstLast-vr7es]

We've let companies get so big and powerful that the prospect of one failing is unthinkable. The entire economy could go with it. Consumer choice is also an aspect of the free market that often gets overlooked. We don't have much of it anymore, and it shows.

[@1wun1]

Then get priced out of the market?

[@Blaqjaqshellaq]

@@FirstLast-vr7es A corporation that's "too big to fail" is too big to be allowed to stay in one piece, at least in the private sector...

[@onehorsetoomany8006]

@@1wun1 Yeah, for some odd reason, the government considers the ability to feed its people a matter of national security. Giving up that security would be great, right up to the point when it isn't. The conflict in the Slavic countries has increased food prices here (Ukraine and Russia produce much of the world's wheat, fuel, and fertilizer), but the brunt of any starvation that results from it will be borne by countries that can't feed themselves. How bad that is will depend on how long the conflict lasts and how much it affects the growing season. Wheat should be planted by now, I haven't heard how much the war affected it.

[@as14j]

Just coincidentally, I'm watching this video while eating cut corns😂🤣.

[@mexica8759]

Welcome to Ancient CemAnahuac we are the children of the corn 🌽 ✊🏾

[@driley4381]

Most of the modern corn derived products you know of were invented just deal with the surplus of corn. Why have we always had a national surplus of corn? Government subsidies. Imagine if we subsidized fruits and veggies instead. Alot of much healthier food would become alot more affordable for alot more people.

[@MHPAM]

Sadly the us government doesn’t really want to pay attention to health

[@smylebutta7250]

Tell me you don't know what you're talking about without telling me.

[@davidadcock3382]

You are clueless driley4381 !!

[@SerpkoBakotiinii]

That is why sweets in Europe are much better, than in US. Because with this corn syrup all taste the same!

[@roberthinsch4088]

Also sweets in Europe cost many times more. There is nothing that says candy makers in the USA must use corn sweeteners. The consumer choice is what drives the product and cost is a large concern for consumers.

[@bighands69]

Pure nonsense.

[@dypiseth6662]

Agriculture is the life

[@mr.cc97]

I think oil palm is more efficient in term of yield and land usage

[@chuckkottke]

I'm not sure we can grow oil palm in Iowa. 🌴 🌽

[@ralphgreenjr.2466]

Corn is a crop with many uses. Motor fuel, oil, canned corn, fresh corn, lubricants, cereal, animal feed, fuel for heating stoves, corn syrup. My entire crop went for corn syrup.

[@QuizmasterLaw]

All hail the corn goddess!

[@rboz4637]

Lot of square miles for ethanol and cattle feed. 100 mi x 100 mi solar installation will provide all the energy with surplus for the USA. That would solve a few problems.

[@allyoucanseef9033]

Fructose can only be metabolized in the liver. This is what causes Americans to have big bellies, and visceral fat. There is no way to work out and burn off corn high fructose.

[@GilmerJohn]

Sure you can. But you have it "processed" by cows or pigs.

[@IHWKR]

Thing about corn producing ethanol is that hemp/marijuana produces 10% more ethanol per acre that corn does.

[@muskrat1782]

Hemp is difficult for many farmers to grow or profit from bc it takes a lot of water to produce hemp. A farmer told me that.

[@brantcox3107]

Hemp is one of the most difficult crops to grow in America. There are immense amounts of regulations, pests, and diseases. If the THC level in hemp is .01% too high when inspected, they are forced to burn the whole field by law.

[@andyjohnson3790]

​@@brantcox3107 this is because more money can be made with for-profit prisons. Hemp and marijuana laws need to be rewritten. Just imagine what the hemp plant could become if it had a tiny fraction of the R&D and support that corn has had over the past 70 years

[@efrentorres4422]

Who owns the big corn farms? Families or big corporations?

[@tira2145]

Still mostly families, but corporations are buying more farms out.

[@emmakai2243]

Both, and they're not necessarily mutually exclusive. Family owned doesn't automatically means good product. Big corp doesn't automatically means bad. It's not a binary situation.

[@Carewolf]

Corporations.. You can't pass on a private firms on in a family, so they need to be corporated.

[@roberthinsch4088]

@@emmakai2243 Well said! I am a farmer and that sums it up well

[@paxundpeace9970]

Doesn't mater but it is not helpful because it relies on subsidies and tax payer money . It harms the environment and needs a lot of water to grow all this crop. Families can be big cooperations too.

[@mokhtar_One_u_Key]

The people call corn Yellow gold!!??? wow that's very innovative.

[@thefryinator7774]

We need to find something to grow besides corn. My husband and I buy grass fed beef and milk whenever we can. If there's no grass fed available, we at least try to go for organic, but we know that cornfed beef is just not as healthy. They use corn to quickly fatten up livestock for slaughter sooner. Grass fed livestock and free range chickens are generally leaner and healthier meats. We need to get rid of corn and grow healthier crops and feed our livestock a healthier diet

[@blackhawk7r221]

Corn fed meat tastes a hell of a lot better.

[@duprog]

First, we should stop subsidising what should never have been subsidise in the first place, like corn for ethanol. Next, we should limit the size of subside available to any farmers so that we don't end up with a limited number of big farmers who are farming subside rather then useful crops. By limiting the maximum amount of money a farmer could receive, you limit the size of the farm he would be willing to own. That would make it more affordable for other farmers to get started and would have a better chance of achieving the diversity of crops and practices we need.

[@smylebutta7250]

We already do that.

[@duprog]

@@smylebutta7250 Well, if you already do that, you're not doing a good job of it!

[@socialanarchy081]

End subsidies.

[@Blaqjaqshellaq]

The effect of subsidizing corn is to subsidize meat that's produced through corn fodder...

[@jayt1828]

In other words you’re saying “end farmers”. About subsidies many farmers would not make it through drought years.

[@Blaqjaqshellaq]

@@jayt1828 An alternative is to change the subsidy system so it'll benefit small farmers more than the big ones...

[@socialanarchy081]

@@jayt1828 there needs to be a more discriminating application for subsidies, can't tell you how many times I've driven past farms that from the highway appear destitute and run down, but along the back road they've got a million dollar home, with a boat, RV, and 3-4 trucks. Farmers get zero sympathy from me.

[@jayt1828]

@@socialanarchy081 I don’t think it’s your place to judge how people spend their money. Learn to keep your head down.

[@georgiaguardian4696]

I like to eat buttery corns and corn tortillas. They are super yummy.

[@nonyadamnbusiness9887]

Field corn is subsidized. Very little of what you actually eat of any crop is subsidized. Even most corn meal is a contract crop that's not subsidized.

[@smmuajhossain9910]

Let's create a corn revolution. It's the new gold in the modern time✌

[@d.s.7411]

Ethanol is not the best fuel made from corn. When they first started adding corn alcohol to the the gas I thought that was a good thing, but when you compare the gas mileage between pure gas and then mixed, your gas mileage decreases. You will find you gas mileage drops about 15 percent. Would it not be better to sell the corn for food, and use the tax revenue to subsidize better forms of alternate energy sources, hydrogen, etc. Democracy's are good, but they do not always make the best decisions, especially if you look at the real efficiency of ethanol.

[@Bloated_Tony_Danza]

Less gas milage is worth it when the exhaust isn't fuming out vaporized lead chloride. Ethanol got the lead out of leaded gas. Buying 3-4% more gas is always better than trying to figure out why your child grew up to be a violent moron. Edit: I mean from the hazards of lead exposure in young children, I did not mean that in any way as a personal attack 😅

[@onomatopoeia162003]

I can understand that. Like for example E-85. Since I am from here in southern MN :)

[@bighands69]

Ethanol is a by product of the corn industry. And it has industrial usages.

[@scottdougherty4251]

Your absolutely right there is nothing to be gained from ethanol production when you consider the reduced gas mileage. The whole industry is a farce

[@davidgolf3245]

I found this CNBC video to be very corny!!! Thanks I am here all week.

[@dcjgt2]

Old habits are hard to break.