How much of the nation’s corn crop is used for ethanol production?
In 2004, 1.26 billion bushels of corn went to ethanol production – about 12% of the nation’s total crop. That figure rose to 14% for the ’05 corn crop – about 1.6 billion bushels of an 11.1 billion bushel crop. As the nation’s ethanol production climbs, some bushels from the export category will likely shift over into ethanol production. Also, about 11% of the nation’s sorghum crop was used as a feedstock for ethanol production in ‘04. Grain sorghum is used as a feedstock for ethanol production, mainly in areas on the periphery of the Corn Belt such as Kansas and western Nebraska.
