Several corn producer and processor groups are grappling with the touchy issues of marketing biotech corn.  The so-called “transgenic” corn is more and more preferred by farmers, but marketing the products has run into snags, especially in the European Union.

In a communication to the National Grain and Feed Association, the groups said about 40% of this year’s corn crop could be planted to genetically modified varieties.

But in markets outside the United States, “the review process for genetically modified products has proven to be lengthy and unpredictable,” they added.  “This has caused loss of some markets for U.S. corn producers and tension in trade in products produced in America.”

The most critical region is the European Union where import approval for some products submitted in 1996 remains under consideration.

“Because of this tension, we have supported the efforts of seed companies to work with their customers to develop plans to market corn that has not received EU import approval in the domestic feed market,” the groups said.

Each company marketing the products should inform producers that they should market harvested grain from these varieties for domestic feed use only.  Farmers also will need assistance from commercial grain merchants to implement effective channeling of the grain.

“Seed companies are prepared to supply you with information on their communications with individual corn producers, and we would request that you provide farmers with any assistance you can offer in securing domestic feed markets for grain from the…seven specific (biotech) corn varieties,” the groups said.

The memo was from the Corn Refiners Association, National Corn Growers Association, North American Millers’ Association, U.S. Grains council, AgrEvo USA Company, Monsanto and Pioneer Hi-Bred International.

In the memo they also listed the products offered for planting this year that have yet to obtain import clearance in the EU and those that have been cleared and approved for use in the EU.

Separate marketing of corn varieties might require more extensive “identity preservation” than has been traditional in U.S. grain marketing, and could put strains on current system capabilities.