WHAT IS HIGH OIL CORN?

Typical yellow dent corn contains around 4-4.3% oil (dry weight basis) while high oil corn generally has an oil content of 6% or more.

High oil grain can be obtained from single cross hybrids (typical production system), however, this method of production has traditionally carried a prohibitive yield penalty. Several seed companies are working on modern, improved, single cross hybrids and these are likely to be commercial within 2-3 years.

Virtually all of the commercial high oil corn grown today is via the TopCross® system.

The TopCross® system involves planting a blend (TC Blend® brand name) comprising a male sterile grain parent, which is a regular hybrid but does not produce any pollen, and 8-10% of a special pollinator line which has been selected for very high oil. In the field, pollen from the pollinator fertilizes the male sterile grain parent and this produces high oil corn. It is important to avoid cross-contamination with pollen from other sources, since this will not produce high oil corn.

WHY DOES HIGH OIL CORN HAVE EXTRA VALUE?

Energy is a key feed requirement, and energy density has become important with modern livestock genetics allowing high growth rate animals. Since oil contains 2.25 times the energy of starch then the gross energy content of high oil corn is improved. Essential amino acid levels are also higher and this contributes to the feed ration requirement.

The key question is "how much value is added?" Unfortunately, the answer is not straight forward. On the utilization side, there may be a different value per bushel "answer" for different types of livestock, and even for different growth stages within one type of animal. On the production side, both regular hybrids and high oil corn blends produce a range of yields, and a range of constituent levels -- depending on the genetics, the location, the weather conditions, and the cultural practices. With regular yellow corn, this variability in content was "hidden" because the grain was never sold on a value-added basis. For high oil corn, the premium value is related to a sliding scale on oil content and, therefore, the potential for variability in oil content (both per bushel and per acre) becomes an important consideration.

The value may be captured in one of several ways:

One particular driving force for the value of high oil corn is the competitive market price for fat/white grease. For feeders who have optimized the ration, using high oil corn is a straight substitute for choice white grease, or re-cycled animal fat. For feeders who have not optimized their rations, high oil corn may also add feed efficiency gains. However, in either case the financial impact must be viewed in relation to cost of fat/white grease, plus the cost of replacing a portion of the synthetic amino acids (or soybean meal used for that reason) that may have been in the ration.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS IMPACTING VALUE

High oil corn is distinct and must be kept separate from regular corn to maintain value, called "Identity Preserved" (IP) grain. There is a cost associated with IP grain and this will vary from location to location.

In general, high oil corn, has some additional benefits such as much lower dust levels in feeding operations, improved palatability, better uniformity in mixing, and easier handling of feeds. These attributes add value but are often situation dependent.

Additional costs and additional benefits must be judged for each situation.

EXPLORING RETURNS TO THE GROWER

This site contains input tables where you may enter values appropriate to your situation (or try out various scenarios), and shows the effect of these inputs on average returns per acre for various conditions. The models used allow you to ask some "what if" questions and the results provide insights to help you make a decision for each situation.