Corn is all around you.

Corn farming in Kentucky provides food and fuel while protecting natural resources.

Food

From cornflakes to steak and eggs, corn plays a role in making most meals possible.

Fuel

Grown in fields across Kentucky, corn ethanol is today’s renewable fuel.

Natural Resources

Corn is grown by family farmers who care for the environment.

Food

From cornflakes to steak and eggs, corn plays a role in making most meals possible.

Fuel

Grown in fields across Kentucky, corn ethanol is today’s renewable fuel.

Natural Resources

Corn is grown by family farmers who care for the environment.

Why does corn matter? Corn is important to Kentucky.

Kentucky corn farmers are currently producing between 200 and 250 million bushels of corn annually, achieving record average yields the past several years. Corn is among the top crops grown in the Bluegrass, recently providing more than $1 billion in cash receipts.

Corn in Kentucky.

Livestock Feed

Between 40 and 50% of Kentucky’s corn crop is fed in-state to livestock. Poultry in Kentucky consume about 45 million bushels alone. Beef and dairy cattle and hogs are also important corn consumers.

Ethanol

Over 17 million bushels of Kentucky corn goes into fuel ethanol every year. Leftover from the process, is a product called distiller’s grains which is used to feed livestock, primarily poultry.

Bourbon & Spirits

Another 15-20 million bushels of corn is utilized by Kentucky’s bourbon and spirits industry.

Food Processing

Kentucky is also home to a thriving food processing industry, where corn is ground for grits, corn bread mixes, tortillas, and taco shells.

Corn Means Food

Corn feeds people (and LOTS of animals). Kentucky farmers produce sweet corn, popcorn, and white corn. These types of corn are ground for foods like grits, cornbread, tortillas and taco shells. But the vast majority of the corn grown in Kentucky is field corn.

Most of our field corn goes to feed animals. Poultry farms are the number one purchaser of corn in Kentucky. But we don’t discriminate! If you enjoy steak, bacon, chicken nuggets, milk, eggs, or bourbon, there’s a good chance corn makes your meal possible.

Ethanol is Engine Smart & Earth Kind

Corn ethanol is a renewable motor fuel that’s cleaner for the air and the environment than petroleum.  It reduces prices at the pump and allows us to be less reliant on oil from both foreign governments and drilling at home.

Learn more

Corn Farmers Care

Corn farmers care about the environment. Conservation practices, like grass waterways and no-till are commonplace on Kentucky farms. Corn farmers also use technology like GPS to protect groundwater, which enables them to apply nutrients and other crop health products in a precise way so that the plants only get what they need in specific areas of the field. These efforts preserve natural resources for future generations of farmers as well as their neighbors in the city.

How is corn used?

From food to fuel to more than 4,000 products you use every day, here are just a few of the ways corn is used.

Tacos

Americans eat more than 4 billion tacos every year, many of which are wrapped in corn tortilla shells.

Bourbon

Corn is milled into a crushed powder to unlock the sugars vital to making bourbon. Milled corn is then mixed with other grains and hot water to create a mash that gets fermented, distilled, and aged to make bourbon. 

Pet Food

Corn and corn gluten meal are the top two most used plant-based ingredients in pet food, providing carbohydrates and protein.

Hand Soap

Everything from the color and smell, to the cleaning ability of hand soap is thanks to corn, which accounts for about 1/4 of its ingredients.

Carbonated Beverages

Corn syrup is often used to sweeten your favorite carbonated beverages, and the CO2 made from the ethanol process is bottled and used to create carbonation.

Ethanol

Ethanol is a high-octane, low-carbon, corn-based fuel that is often blended with gasoline for use in a variety of vehicles.

Tires

Tires are what keep businesses moving. Cornstarch is added to tire molds before pouring the rubber to prevent sticking.

Chalk

Corn is used as a binding agent in chalk, helping kids explore their creativity and making your community colorful.

Fireworks

Corn is commonly used to make dextrin, a binding compound used to help fireworks burn properly.

Cereals

Corn Pops, Corn Flakes, Corn Crunch. Corn is such an important part of a balanced breakfast, many cereals put it right in the name.

Toothpaste

Corn is used in toothpaste as a gentle abrasive to help clean your teeth. It’s also a natural source of fluoride, which can help prevent cavities.

Plastics

Cornstarch-based materials are used to make biodegradable packaging products such as compostable containers.

Paint

Corn is used in paint as a binder and thickener through derivatives like cornstarch and dextrose. 

Adhesives

Many adhesives, like those found on Post-It notes, envelopes, and stamps, contain corn-derived ingredients.

Cosmetics

Cornstarch appears in various cosmetics products, including face powders, eyeshadows, and other products.

Antibiotics

Some antibiotics are fermented using corn-derived products.

Batteries

Corn is used in the manufacturing process of batteries as a sustainable binding agent.

Shampoo

You can thank corn for giving your hair smoothness and shine with every wash.

Cough Syrup

Making medicine more palatable, corn syrup is used in cough syrup to soothe sore throats

How corn is a part of your daily life.

Take a scroll to see how corn plays a role in your everyday life – starting from the time you get up in the morning to just before you retire for the night.
woman washing hair with shampoo

You wake up and take a shower using SHAMPOO which has ingredients derived from corn

toothbrush with toothpaste

You brush your teeth with TOOTHPASTE containing sorbitol, an ingredient derived from corn

makeup and brush

Next, you put on MAKEUP, containing zea mays, which is also known as corn

bowl of corn flake cereal

Then, you pour the kids a hearty bowl of CORN FLAKES for breakfast, made from corn

car tire

Driving the kids to school, the TIRES on your car use cornstarch instead of oil-based rubber

gas handle filling up car

After dropping the kids off at school, you head to the gas station to fill up your gas tank with ETHANOL, fuel made from corn

washing hands with soap

You order carry out for lunch and wash your hands in the restroom with HAND SOAP, which contains corn ingredients, before checking out

white plastic container

You pick up your order in a corn-based PLASTIC container that's biodegradable

bowl of popcorn

After school, you pop some POPCORN, a type of corn, in the microwave for a snack

pile of sidewalk chalk in different colors

The kids then head outside to draw with CHALK on the sidewalk, which utilizes cornstarch

paint can with paint brush

While the kids are outside, you work on a DIY project with PAINT using ingredients from corn instead of oil-based

bowl of pet food

Before making dinner, you feed the dog its favorite PET FOOD, using corn for a balanced diet

three pieces of corn bread

You serve CORNBREAD with the chili soup you made, which is made from corn meal

ground beef

And speaking of chili soup, the ground beef you used was made possible thanks to CORN-FED CATTLE

medicine bottle with white pill tablets

Before going to bed, you make sure the household has taken their MEDICATIONS, which utilize corn ingredients in their coatings

two batteries

You end the day watching a show, turning on the TV with the remote powered by BATTERIES than often use cornstarch

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