GARNETT — An Ottawa ag expert who recently visited the northeastern Heilongjiang and Jilin provinces in China said that country will probably buy a lot more U.S. corn. Many Chinese farmers continue to plant and harvest corn by hand and they can’t keep up with rising Chinese demand, De-Etta Bohling, Kansas Corn Commission, Garnett, said. After many years as a significant export competitor in Asian markets, China has recently started importing corn, she said. The speed and scale of this shift — as well as Chinese efforts to crank up corn production — are major uncertainties for corn producers and traders around the world, she said. The Chinese are using corn for their booming hog market and to make ethanol from the growing number of plants, she said. Bohling said she was surprised by one wrinkle she saw at one Chinese ethanol plant. She said the plant made both ethanol fuel and liquor for human consumption, a no-no in the U.S. China continues to balance many contending factors such as modern technology, information technology, increasing mechanization and the aging agricultural labor force, Bohling said. There is a exodus of young people to the cities and the number of older farmers is increasing sharply, she said.
Thursday, June 16, 11 p.m.
