August 14, 2002

National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) Corn Board member Bill Horan and Vice President of Public Policy Jon Doggett represented the nation's corn growers at the American Sugar Alliance's (ASA) 19th Annual International Sweetener Symposium last week where they discussed the effects of the high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) tax on corn growers.

"I tried to put a personal face on the issue and not make it political," said Horan. "I wanted the sugar and beet people to see what this means to the average corn grower."

And what it means is money, or the loss of it. Horan said while the Mexican government is happy with their imported corn and their exported corn and sugar growers are content, a lack of access is shutting corn growers out of the market.

"According to the NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement), the Mexican government is supposed to provide us with access to that market and it isn't happening," Horan said. "We can't build a sweetener plant in the Corn Belt because of that lack of access -- and it's costing us money."

The Rockwell City, IA, corn grower estimated with current lack of availability to the HFCS market, the average corn grower is losing approximately 10 cents per bushel, which would be a net of $12,000 per year for a grower who farms 800 acres.

"It's critical that we find a solution to this problem," Horan said.