Clothing from Corn Near Reality

Corn is getting a new image: it soon will be used in clothing, athletic gear and plastics in general. Farmers invested grants and checkoff funds from 20 grower states that allowed the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) to partner with Cargill Dow in researching a corn-derived substance called polylactide or PLA, which can be used for a number of non-traditional uses.

Cargil Dow is currently constructing a plant in Blair NE, scheduled to open later this year, which will produce plastic resin from corn. NCGA said corn growers were involved in many ways in supporting the development of this new product including funding research on various applications for PLA.

"PLA is the first of a new kind of corn-based product," said NCGA Customer and Business Development Action Team Vice Chairman and York, NE, corn grower Boyd Smith. "It is a polymer that can be made into fabric for clothing, carpeting, furniture, plastic films and containers for food and other product packaging. When used for clothing it has some great characteristics and can be used in athletic gear, among other applications. I think customers will be pleased with the performance of these products and their price."

The new product, PLA, is made by fermenting the starch in the corn into lactic acid, which can be made into a form of plastic. The plastic will be manufactured at the Blair plant, scheduled to come online in November as the first commercial-scale plant in the nation. Approximately 14 million bushels of corn will be utilized annually at the Blair plant.

"This research opens a whole new market for corn and corn growers," Smith said. "We're excited about the possibilities that PLA can bring. This will be the first major commercial product in a whole new renewable products industry.