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IPPA delegates are concerned about higher corn prices Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Agri News staff writer
DES MOINES -- Iowa Pork Producers Association delegates are concerned about rising corn prices, but they want to work with the ethanol industry, not fight it.
At last week's Iowa Pork Producers Association annual meeting in Des Moines, delegates defeated a resolution that would have supported the phase-out of the ethanol blender's credit.
The resolution submitted by Chickasaw County delegates called for IPPA to support legislation to phase out blenders tax credits starting when the price per barrel of crude oil exceeds $50 and to be eliminated at $60 per barrel.
"We felt there should be a conversation about how this is affecting the livestock industry," said Joan Tupper, a pork producer from Ionia. "The blenders credit was put in place to help a fledgling industry. It is now growing by leaps and bounds. We wanted to start a conversation about if we should continue to subsidize the ethanol industry at the expense of the livestock industry."
Marc Van Peursem, an Orange City pork producer, said he would rather see producers work with Iowa State University to find ways to co-exist with the ethanol industry and use more byproducts.
Norman Schmitt, Rudd pork producer, said the ethanol industry is still a fledgling industry.
"It's just getting started," Schmitt said. "Tax credits are going to be needed to help it transition from a corn-based to a cellulose-based industry. It won't be corn-based for the long term."
Delegates also passed a resolution proposed by Delaware County against mandatory allocation of feedstuffs to the livestock industry.
"In certain things you need government, but in others you need to be careful what you ask for," said Larry Shover, a Delhi pork producer. "If we produce a little less pork because of higher feed prices that may not be all bad. My dad always said that we made a lot more money when corn was higher priced than when it was lower priced. If we can get through this adjustment period, we'll be OK and probably even better than before as producers and as an industry. Lets let the market work."
An IPPA survey of 607 producers found that 20 percent own shares or stock in ethanol plants, 14 percent own shares in biodiesel plants and 34 percent use distillers by-products in feed rations. |
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