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Nov. 3, 2009

White Gives Comments on EPA Meeting for Atrazine Science Advisory Panels--Urges Agency to Follow the Science
Kansas Corn Executive Director Jere White urged EPA to follow its long standing policy to rely upon sound science rather than politics and rhetoric as it embarks on a hastily assembled series of Science Advisory Panels on atrazine. EPA held its "kick-off" meeting for the newly announced Science Advisory Panels on atrazine on Nov. 3. The SAPs were announced shortly after a media push on atrazine orchestrated by environmental activists. Read White's comments here.

Bad Seed is Bad Indeed!

Kansas Grower Groups Respond to CSI: Miami's Error Laden Anti-Agriculture Episode
In a letter to the General Manager of WIBW TV, a CBS affiliate, Jere White, executive director of the Kansas corn and grain sorghum associations, and the Kansas Corn Commission expressed his disappointment with the "Bad Seed" episode of CSI: Miami, which aired on October 19.

White said in the letter, "I have been a huge fan of all CSI shows since day one. The usual combination of a plausible storyline with reasonable science is a mix I find entertaining and at times educational. This week's episode was neither. In fact it was a slap in the face to your rural constituents.

A key element of the storyline dealing with genetic modification of crops was completely off base. While a single gene is inserted into a seed, an entire organism is not. Every day, millions of people in the United States and around the world consume GM food. It's no less healthy or nutritious than non-GM food. We know this from years of experience as well as extensive scientific and regulatory testing." READ MORE

Oct. 1, 2009--Grower Leaders Voice Atrazine Support
Growers from Kansas and four other states left their combines this week to talk to leadership from Syngenta Crop Protection about the importance of atrazine to their farming operations. A roundtable meeting was held at the National Corn Growers Association office in Chesterfield, MO, followed by an informal meeting at the Keith Witt farm in Warrenton, MO.

While atrazine was successfully re-registered by EPA in 2006, recent attacks by environmental activists including the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) have brought the issue to the forefront. Trial attorneys also continue their efforts for legal action against the makers of atrazine.

Growers represented at the meeting included four past NCGA Presidents: Ron Litterer, Iowa; Ken McCauley, Kansas; Dee Vaughan, Texas and Fred Yoder, Ohio. Three past presidents of the National Sorghum Producers were present: Greg Shelor, Kansas; James Vorderstrasse, Nebraska, and Bill Kubecka, Texas. READ MORE

Kansas Growers Continue to Meet Customers Needs with Record 2009 Crop
Kansas corn producers are expected to harvest a record 518 million bushel corn crop this year as part of the nation’s 13 billion harvest. The projected US harvest will just about tie the record 2007 harvest of 13.1 billion bushels. Farmers continue to prove they can meet the needs of their customers, according to Kansas Corn Growers Association Executive Director Jere White.

“What is interesting is that in 2008, the year of the so-called corn shortage, we produced 12.1 billion bushels which at the time was the second largest crop in history,” White said said. “So in the last three years, we are seeing the three largest corn crops in history in the United States.” MORE

Even Without Clunker Program, Car Buyers
Can Save with Flex Fuel Tax Credit READ MORE!

Where to find E85 Fuel in Kansas                Information on the Kansas E85 Tax Credit

NEWS ALERT-- Kansas Growers Say Activist Groups Twist EPA Atrazine Data to Alarm Consumers 8-25-09--Three media events on August 23-24 highlighted activists’ efforts to raise public concern about the herbicide atrazine. The New York Times, Huffington Post and National Resources Defense Council all release reports about atrazine on Sunday and Monday. The stories were based on data from a monitoring program that Syngenta, the maker of atrazine, entered into with EPA in 2003. The Atrazine Monitoring Program (AMP) is an intensive monitoring program currently focusing on about 100 community water systems located primarily in the Midwest. The Environmental Protection Agency’s maximum contaminant level (MCL) for atrazine at 3 parts per billion (ppb) based on an annual average in public drinking water. Atrazine is among a list of 87 drinking water contaminants routinely monitored by the EPA. Jere White, executive director of the Kansas Corn Growers Association and Kansas Grain Sorghum Producers Association said results of the two testing programs should not be used to confuse consumers. “The focus of the AMP program is different than the normal water sampling that is done to determine the annual MCL for drinking water systems,” White said. “This study is focused on areas with higher atrazine usage—basically a closer look. The EPA set a guideline under this program of 37.5 ppb atrazine plus three metabolites (breakdown products) over a 90-day period as a benchmark for a level of concern.” The activist groups used two sets of data to cause concern among consumers, White said. . . .READ MORE! For more information and background on this issue, visit this Atrazine Blog

Kansas Corn Commission Partners in Effort to Expand Ethanol Fueling Infrastructure The Kansas Corn Commission is partnering with several corn states, National Corn Growers Association, the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) and the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) to install 5,000 blender pumps across the nation over the next three years. Consumers can enjoy more choices at the pump, gas station owners can experience product flexibility, and the nation can achieve its renewable fuels targets – all thanks to the blender pump and the wider distribution of E85 and mid-range ethanol blends. The program was announced at the 22nd Annual Ethanol Conference & Trade Show in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on August 11. “This spring, corn grower groups from across the country asked the ethanol associations to work together to give us a proposal for a comprehensive effort to increase the market for ethanol by adding blender pumps to key areas across the nation,“ KCC Chairman Mike Brzon of Courtland said. “This effort goes well beyond just giving retailers money to add an ethanol pump. We will benefit from the expertise of ACE and RFA working together to provide technical and marketing assistance to fuel retailers to help them see the benefit to offering ethanol blends to their customers. They will also help them take advantage of existing state and federal incentives.”    more

September 11, 2009

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March 25, 2009

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Top photo: About 200 vehicles came through the Manhattan Coop for the E85 Challenge event on Monday, March 2. Middle photo: Several KSU students made video clips explaining what "renewable" means to them. Bottom photo: Kansas Corn Commissioner Mike Brzon of Courtland (on right) was one of several people who helped with the promotion.

Updated March 3, 2009

What's Renewable to You? E85 Challenge Brings 100s of Students to Manhattan Fuel Station for Free Fillup!

KSU Students with a student ID got a free tank of E10 or E85 on Monday, March 2 at the Manhattan Coop,  The Renewable Fuels Association along with the Kansas Corn Commission hosted the opening event for the E85 Challenge. After filling up with ethanol blended fuel and a free hot dog lunch, many students opted to cut a video of  "What's Renewable to You?" The focus of the effort is to start a dialogue on college campuses about renewable fuels like ethanol. Visit e85challenge.com to participate on line. Enter the video contest and be eligible to win an Apple Macbook or one of several 500GB Passport hard drives. For contest details, visit e85challenge.com. 

Visit the Facebook fan page for the Flex Fuel Challenge!

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