In the area of Value Added Development NCGA will help to ensure the technology is utilized by following basic principles in the licensing process that ensure the best possible outcome for growers. These principles are: growers will be involved in the negotiations, the technology will be utilized, a fair fee will be paid for the technology, and any royalties will be reinvested in corn grower research. The first such project, polyols, is near completion and licensing negotiations are beginning. In addition to commercializing or licensing technology, NCGA looks for opportunities in specialty corn markets. Genomics research has be a high priority for NCGA. NCGA has been successful at encouraging over two hundred million dollars in federal funding for plant genomics research, much of which is corn related research. NCGA also assists state checkoff boards and staffs by reviewing research proposals and making professional recommendations.

Bio-Products Development
Bioproducts, or corn-based industrial products, are the single largest potential growth market for corn growers. Ethanol currently utilizes 700 million bushels of corn. There is great potential in areas such as plastics, solvents, packaging and other consumer goods to provide very large markets for U.S.-grown crops. There are also tremendous opportunities for grower-owned processing facilities and rural development, which is a pressing issue for rural America and agriculture as a whole. Finally, developing and using products made from renewable, U.S.-grown resources are important to America’s energy security and environment. More info...

Maize Traits
NCGA and its state partners were extremely successful in focusing attention and resources towards the sequencing of the corn genome. This success has opened the door into the next phase of corn genomics, namely applying the information that we have gained to produce valuable corn crops. The Maize Trait Development program is in the initial stages of finding organizations that have discovered traits of interest to our growers and partnering with them to bring these traits to market. More info...

Technology and Commercial Development Center
The Technology and Commercial Development Center (TCDC) was created as a division of the NCGA to better address the need of the Research and Business Development program to provide additional resources to growers. The Center will help achieve the RBDAT vision of increased opportunity for grower profit by providing interactive tools and resources and will ultimately become a catalyst for rural business development. More info...

Livestock Programs
Collectively, beef, poultry, pork and dairy producers represent corn growers’ number-one customer, consuming 4.4 billion bushels annually. Corn used directly as feed represents nearly 60% of consumption, however, industrial co-products used as feed represents another 20% of corn usage. The co-products of industrial processing are largely fed to ruminants domestically and internationally. The ability to sell these co-products profitably can indicate the potential financial success of certain industrial processes, such as ethanol production. With the majority of U.S. corn being fed to domestic livestock, it is of utmost importance to work with this industry to address issues of mutual concern. More Info…

Last updated February 10, 2003