The Missouri Soybean Association and the Missouri Corn Growers Association showed their support for their biggest customers this week by opposing biofuel expansion in counties that restrict livestock production. Fact is, no matter how many new uses we might find for corn and soybeans, most of them are still going to be fed to cattle, hogs and poultry. In fact, over half of the soybeans produced in the U.S. are fed to livestock in the form of soybean meal and over 60 percent of the corn goes to livestock feed. So, according to MSA and MCGA leadership, soybean and corn farmers cannot afford to invest millions of dollars in biodiesel and ethanol production facilities in counties that refuse to support animal agriculture. In addition to limiting livestock and poultry production, county health ordinances also eliminate marketing potential for the high protein co-products that are created while processing corn and soybeans into biodiesel and ethanol. Without animal agriculture in close proximity to biodiesel and ethanol plants, the ability to utilize these co-products is diminished and the plants themselves become less viable.
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