Indiana’s corn checkoff program celebrates 15 years of service to Hoosier farmers

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Corn Advertising Council, the state’s corn checkoff program, celebrated its fifteenth anniversary with quite a lot of farm trade leaders, lawmakers and corn growers on Aug. 23 in Indianapolis.

In 2007, after years of debate within the Indiana Common Meeting, then-Gov. Mitch Daniels signed the Indiana Corn Market Improvement Act into legislation and thus the state’s corn checkoff program was born.

Within the final 15 years, the farmer leaders and workers of the checkoff program have completed many objectives for corn growers, mentioned ICMC CEO Courtney Kingery. A few of these accomplishments embrace:

• Increasing Indiana’s ethanol trade from six vegetation in 2007 to fifteen right this moment.

• Creating environmental packages, akin to INfield Benefit, to assist farmers undertake environmentally sound farming practices.

• Investing within the Indiana Corn and Soybean Innovation Middle at Purdue College establishing the primary subject phenotyping facility of its form in the US.

• Endowing two graduate scholarships yearly awarded to Purdue grad college students who’re conducting analysis immediately associated to Indiana’s corn trade.

• Sponsoring the Nationwide Corn Growers Affiliation’s Corn Utilization Expertise Convention which is vital in bringing collectively the worth chain keen on creating new makes use of for corn.

“With out the corn checkoff legislation that was handed in 2007, none of this stuff would have been potential,” Kingery mentioned.

She defined that the checkoff has partnered with a number of supporting organizations, such because the U.S. Meat Export Federation and USA Poultry and Egg Export Council, to assist enhance livestock and meat exports by working with nationwide companions.

“Yearly, we host commerce groups on Indiana farms to be able to present them firsthand how we develop the crops to feed and gasoline the world,” Kingery mentioned.

“We companion with the U.S. Grains Council to advertise and supply data to consumers around the globe concerning the worth of U.S. corn and corn exports. In 2021, corn exports had been estimated by USDA to be 2.7 billion bushels, which is a brand new document for corn exports.”

ICMC Board President Paul Hodgen, a farmer from Roachdale, mentioned he’s proud to observe within the footsteps of earlier checkoff leaders and to work alongside its present management.

“We’ve heard about a number of the issues that the checkoff has accomplished for Indiana farmers through the previous 15 years — however that’s the previous,” Hodgen mentioned.

“These of us who’re on the board right this moment are involved about the way to assist agriculture going ahead. Throughout the previous couple years, we developed a brand new strategic plan to assist information us into that future. I imagine it’s a good plan. It’s straightforward to grasp, and the plan helps us to maintain our deal with the issues that matter to Indiana corn growers.”

Hodgen defined the 4 key factors of the checkoff’s strategic plan, together with:

Market Improvement, which is, merely put, transferring the big pile of corn that Hoosier farmers produce annually to clients who pays a good worth for it. That is achieved by working with companions or finish customers to speed up the demand for corn in all types.

Worth Creation, which strives to enhance the worth of the corn already produced in Indiana. That is completed by supporting analysis for creating new makes use of for every crop and discovering markets for these merchandise.

Sustainability, which is characterised as a three-legged stool. These legs are environmental, social and financial sustainability. With out addressing all three elements of sustainability, Indiana agriculture will endure.

Producer Engagement, which includes sharing the message of checkoff tasks with the Hoosier farmers who pay for them and fascinating them in packages that assist enhance their farming operation.

“Principally via communications and program occasions, the corn checkoff is clear in its efforts to assist Indiana farmers,” Hodgen added.

Two present board members had been honored for gaining election to nationwide boards. Joshua Miller, a farmer from Anderson, was elected as USGC Board Chairman on July 27; and J.R. Roesner, who farms in Ferdinand, grew to become the third Hoosier corn grower elected to the NCGA’s Nationwide Corn Board on July 14.

Previous ICMC board presidents Dean Eppley, Mike Beard, Mike Shuter and David Gottbrath had been acknowledged for attending the celebration.

Additionally acknowledged had been previous and current state legislators Sen. Beverly Gard, R-Greenfield; Sen. Jean Leising, R-Oldenburg; and Rep. Don Lehe, R-Brookston. Leising served in voluntary Indiana corn organizations previous to the checkoff’s creation.

The lawmakers mentioned the Indiana Corn Market Improvement Act acquired overwhelming assist within the Home, however confronted some opposition within the agriculture committee within the Senate.

Gard, who’s retired from the Common Meeting, was among the many senators who superior the corn checkoff invoice in 2007.

“We had been seeing some resistance to the invoice within the agriculture committee,” Gard mentioned. “I believe there have been members who had been skeptical of the potential advantages of this system. So, I made a decision that this invoice was extra of an financial improvement invoice than an agriculture invoice. We moved it to that committee, and we had been capable of get it handed within the Senate.”

Simply this summer time, the corn checkoff program has developed packages to encourage world commerce, to increase the ethanol trade and to tell farmers and first responders relating to the risks of agriculture via grain bin security conferences.

By means of tasks like these, Kingery mentioned, the checkoff seeks to enhance the lives and economies of Indiana corn growers.

“As CEO of the corn checkoff, I do know that, as a board and workers, we’re working laborious to assist lives and incomes of the farmers we serve,” Kingery mentioned.

“A technique we gauge our success is thru the speed of checkoff refunds that we pay again to farmers annually. In 2008, as we started to serve Indiana’s corn growers, our refund charge was 21% of the paid checkoff. Immediately, our refund charge has dropped to only 4%.

“It is a honest image of our development as a corporation and the boldness that corn farmers have in ICMC to serve their wants. Behind these numbers, there’s a devoted workers who work on behalf of corn farmers day-after-day.”

For particulars about Indiana’s corn checkoff program, go to www.incorn.org.