In his groundbreaking 2006 book, “The Omnivore’s Dilemma,” Michael
Pollan devoted several chapters to exploring the vast role that corn has
come to play in the agricultural economy and in our diets.
Virtually
every processed food contains corn or a corn derivative such as corn
syrup. Farmers, taking advantage of $0.50-a-bushel subsidies, have made
it America’s largest cash crop. According to the EPA, farmers sold
roughly $64 billion worth of corn in 2011 (the most recent data
available). That’s roughly twice as much as all of the hay, wheat,
cotton, sorghum and rice that is sold -- combined.
So the utter collapse in corn prices, thanks to overplanting and favorable weather, is leading to a sharp drop in farm incomes. (more)
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