“Have you ever seen it this dry, Dad?” I asked my father as we walked out of our northwest Iowa corn field as dead grass crunched beneath our feet.

“Your grandpa says 1956 was pretty dry, and 1988 was the worst I’ve ever seen, but this year is not any better,” he replied.

Nonetheless, as you drive out of the farm gate and away from the agronomic discussion, there is an underlying concern for every consumer around the world: Will there be enough corn to produce both food and fuel?

When you evaluate the U.S. Drought Monitor, almost the entire country is blanketed in dry conditions. For the most part, the corn produced in fields across our state will either be used as feed for livestock or fuel in the form of ethanol. Currently, we are seeing extremely variable yields across the U.S. corn belt, resulting in a surplus. Last year, we saw corn yields with an average of 172 bushels per acre in Iowa, and 147 bushels per acre nationally. To put it into perspective, on my family farm in Calhoun County where we commonly see yields over 180, we saw just 75 to 130 bushels per acre.

Under drought conditions, the corn becomes stressed and begins to cannibalize the ear to save the plant. This means fewer kernels resulting in lower yields, ultimately putting stress upon our global supply. Fortunately — due to extensive genetic research, including the introduction of genetically modified organisms, — our corn is able to withstand the harsh conditions that come with a dry year. We saw increased corn rootworm pressure and shallow roots, just to name two of the agronomic problems.

A majority of corn produced for food in the U.S. corn belt is processed into foods such as Corn Flakes for breakfast cereals. What you may not realize is that only 13 cents worth of corn is actually found within that box of Corn Flakes . The other corn fed to livestock arrives at your dinner table after being fed to cattle, chickens and hogs. This corn consumed by livestock ends up on your plate as steak, pork chops or chicken breasts.

In contrast, the demand for corn being converted into fuel has increased dramatically in the past decade. With an administration that wants investments in renewable energy to reduce emissions to lower the amount of greenhouse gasses in our atmosphere, we look to corn as a savior. Currently, between 30 and 40 percent of the corn we produce is used for ethanol. This corn is taken to plants where it is processed into ethanol which is then blended into 10 percent, 15 percent or 85 percent ethanol and petroleum gas.

Ethanol plants across the Midwest are good for rural economies because they provide high-paying jobs in rural America, and in Iowa we produce 25 percent of the supply of ethanol for America, which is twice as much as any other state. 

The other positive aspect of ethanol production is the byproducts that are produced. The most common byproduct used from ethanol plants are dried distiller’s grains. These DDG’s are bought by farmers for $85 to $110 per ton to feed to their livestock.

So what’s the beef?

The problem is that even as agriculturalists, we can’t seem to agree at times. We currently have livestock producers fighting each other in Washington due to indecision over the RFS. The Renewable Fuels Standard was put into place by Congress in 2005. The purpose is to use a minimum amount of the biofuels we produce every year. 

The reason we have a disagreement is because this ensures a certain amount of our grain supply will not be used for feed. In turn, people believe this use of corn for fuel drives up corn prices, resulting in higher food prices. Many are currently calling for the removal of the RFS because of this belief while others advocate for it.

We need to sit down at tables across the nation and in Washington to talk as livestock producers, grain farmers and consumers. If we have discussions to understand the supply and demand of our products, along with the blood, sweat and tears it takes to put bread on the table as an American consumer, produce those bushels of corn as a grain producer or raise those steers for slaughter as a cattleman we will have a much greater appreciation for each other’s views.