Posted on 06/09/2011 8:23:00 AM PDT by Qbert
FREDERICK, MD - One local industry that is peaking during this down economy is field corn. According to the Maryland Office of Economic Development, the price of a bushel of the cash crop is the highest its ever been.
Eddie Mercer's 4,500 acre farm has been his livelihood for nearly 45 years and he says he has never seen the price of corn reach this level.
"This is the ultimate high," says Eddie Mercer, President and Owner of Eddie Mercer Agri-Services Inc. "The most time we've ever sold corn is maybe in the $5, but never in the $8 range."
A local agriculture expert says there are a few reasons for this never-seen-before boom. Most striking is the grain industry's globalization. There's a demand for corn all over the country and the world, and Frederick County is a major exporter.
[Snip]
The corn and livestock industries are linked. As corn goes up, so will the price of meats, and ultimately, that cost is passed on to the consumer.
"The livestock people, whether is poultry, hogs, or beef, cannot sustain a loss, you know, for an indefinite periods," says Mercer.
Mercer may be enjoying being in the green right now, but he's concerned for his friends in the business of raising livestock.
(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.msn.com ...
I’m not sure of your motive but don’t call it “value added” when the govt is subsidizing it. We have been selling grain overseas for a long time. This spike in corn is something else. The govt subsidies - over a dollar a gallon for ethanol - has thrown this way out of balance. Perhaps you are a friend to the farmer who rationalizes the good money of taxpayers going to make farmers rich, maybe not, but you don’t really have a standing here to lecture.
An average vehicle consuming gasoline which contains 10% ethanol removes as many calories from the food chain in a year as it would take to keep two people alive for that same year.
pure-gas.org
thanks
Just remember this pal, The price of fertiliser, seed corn, Diesel fuel , they are all at record prices too, and you cannot raise the corn without the other expenses.
Thank you for being a voice of reality.
Evil windfall profits from Big Corn to be taxed?
“Just remember this pal, The price of fertiliser, seed corn, Diesel fuel , they are all at record prices too, and you cannot raise the corn without the other expenses.”
Hey, I’m just the messenger!
No offense meant.
Field corn. Think wood.
Dayton Cargill bid line
1-800-448-1285
Corn closed Thursday july delivery $8.30
/bingo
So you're saying 1 bushel of corn will get you across the Bay Bridge in 2013???
Maryland "Freak State" PING!
We can get it around here. And we've learned our lesson about using it for the lawn/garden equipment, but can't afford it for driving.
It makes absolutely no sense to me, but when we went by one of the places we know that sells it this afternoon, the price was $4.19 a gallon, and the ethanol added stuff was $3.53.
And if there is no significant rain soon there will be no corn from Eastern Virginia and the entire DelMarVa peninsula. We're not in as bad shape as you folks in Texas, but it is getting there. If we don't get a major rain event before the end of the week, there will be no corn crop from my county. Both sweet and feed corn are pretty much toasted at this point.
This thread is leaving me stunned.
WHERE are the posts about ‘paying farmers not to plant’?
Surely they can’t be a thing of the past?
If they are, why isn’t everyone rejoicing?
Corn is not the only crop that is going to hit our pocket books. I heard a news story the other day that said Texas produces over 50% of the US cotton, and almost all the cotton farmers haven't planted one seed due to the drought. Look for cotton products to increase in price by winter.
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