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CARD Iowa Ag Review Articles
The latest Iowa Ag Review articles from the Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD)

CARD: Center for Agricultural and Rural Development
  • Vol. 14 No. 2: Corn Belt Contributions to the Crop Insurance Industry
    As the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate work toward a compromise to pass a new farm bill, payments to crop insurance to support the farm sector are again in the crosshairs. Taxpayers have spent more than $22 billion since 2000 delivering about $11 billion in net payments to farmers through the crop insurance industry. Much of the gains in underwriting for insurance companies comes from Corn Belt farmers, and that may be one reason why is has proven so difficult for Congress to make reforms: industry profits generated in the Corn Belt allow farmers in other regions to pay lower insurance premiums.

  • Vol. 14 No. 2: The Outlook for Corn Prices in the 2008 Marketing Year
    Without knowing the 2008 corn yield, growing conditions, and demand from the ethanol industry, among other important variables, the outlook for 2008 corn prices is difficult to forecast, even for traders at the Chicago Board of Trade. But add into this mix the chance for a major drought and/or a relaxation of ethanol mandates by Congress, and knowing where prices are headed becomes a truly complex problem, one that researchers at CARD are trying to solve using a detailed computer model of the corn market.

  • Vol. 14 No. 2: Options for the Conservation Reserve Program
    With crop prices at record highs and demand pressures from livestock producers, consumers worldwide, and the biofuels industry continuing to build, attention has turned to the land held in the U.S. Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). While CRP acreage could be used to expand aggregate supply, the program also provides environmental benefits and protects environmentally sensitive lands. Here, we look at current CRP policy and potential changes that could address current production needs in a way that upholds conservation priorities.

  • Vol. 14 No. 2: Agricultural Situation Spotlight--A series on important topics in production agriculture
    The U.S. dollar has been weak against the currencies of many of the country's trade partners and trade competitors for quite some time. And this helps explain why record corn exports are projected for 2007-08 despite record high corn prices in the United States.

  • Vol. 14 No. 2: Boom Times for Crop Insurance
    For corn, soybeans, wheat, and cotton, three line graphs of the "total crop industry revenue," "policies serviced and associated total agent commissions," and "agent commission per policy sold" from 2000 through 2007 tell the story of an insurance industry that is benefiting greatly from higher crop prices.

  • Vol. 14 No. 1: When Will the Bubble Burst?
    Current high commodity prices seem to be defying the principal laws of market economics. Biofuels mandates may be creating an unprecedented era. But what about after the ethanol mandate is met? A few supply and demand scenarios that take into account key variables in ethanol markets and policy as well as crude oil prices illustrate some possibilities for prices once the target 15 billion gallons of ethanol has been reached.

  • Vol. 14 No. 1: Steady Supplies or Stockpiles? Dried Distillers Grains and U.S. Beef Production
    Ethanol production has shifted into high gear to meet a new mandate, and surpluses of dried distillers grains, a by-product, will accompany that production. Author Roxanne Clemens summarizes the latest information on nutrient content and optimal inclusion rates of distillers grains for use as a feedstock for beef cattle.

  • Vol. 14 No. 1: A Billion Gallons of Biodiesel: Who Benefits?
    The U.S. Energy Independence and Security Act mandates enormous growth in the use of biodiesel -- from 500 million gallons in 2009 to one billion gallons in 2012. But will the biodiesel industry capture the spoils?

  • Vol. 14 No. 1: Agricultural Situation Spotlight--The Outlook for Corn and Ethanol
    Since the passage of the 2007 energy act, which set a higher renewable fuels standard, the prospects for ethanol look bright, and corn prices remain on an upward trajectory. How might energy and agricultural sector developments affect these markets, including corn exports, over the next few years?

  • Vol. 13 No. 4: Is Corn Ethanol a Low-Carbon Fuel?
    Whether corn ethanol can be considered a low-carbon fuel has been a question of much speculation and the object of quite a few studies. The studies present different answers, however, because they use different assumptions or frame the question in different ways. Here, we explain the process researchers follow to calculate greenhouse gas emissions and share the results of a new CARD life cycle analysis for Iowa corn that takes land use changes into consideration, both in the U.S. and abroad.


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