Response To John Stossel on Corn Caucus Project

The following post from Kevin Ross, ICGA President, is in response to an article written by John Stossel (http://www.foxbusiness.com/on-air/stossel/blog/2011/11/30/test-you-want-fail-1) about the Corn Caucus Project Presidental Report Card which was released last week. You can review that card at www.iowacorn.org/corn caucus.

In response to the Corn Caucus Project report card, Mr. Stossel wrongly associates the ethanol subsidy to corn farmers. Ethanol “subsidies” are in fact A TAX CREDIT given to the refineries owned by the oil industry. Corn growers did not ask the candidates about these tax credits, because it is not a key policy today. Other questions on the survey target the candidate’s support for a farm safety net, specifically on risk management programs and conservation cost share programs that require investments from the producer to participate in. Again, our corn grower survey did not ask about support for direct payments, because we are not advocating for continued implementation. Lastly, if Mr. Stossel did his research, he would see that corn ethanol is renewable, cuts greenhouse gas emissions, and helps keep our fuel domestically produced. Talking about a report card, Mr. Stossel gets a failing grade in my book because of his misinformation and his one-sided view on biofuels.