New Ballgame Since USDA Changed Corn for Ethanol Category

USDA got it right in its April 8 World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates by changing the reporting category that identifies how corn is being used for ethanol. When the department first began reporting corn used for ethanol in 2004, gross corn bushels were lumped together as “ethanol for fuel,” giving the impression that every bushel of corn is used to produce ethanol. USDA reported that 5 billion bushels out of 12.5 bushels will be used by the ethanol industry, making it seem like 40 percent of the U.S. corn crop went to ethanol production. The new category, named “ethanol and byproducts” clarifies that one-third of every bushel used in the ethanol process returns to the animal feed market in the form of distillers grains, corn gluten feed or corn gluten meal. This reduces the use of U.S. corn for ethanol to 23 percent. Read more (Delta Farm Press).