Charlotte, North Carolina
February 27, 2003

The National Corn Growers Association unveiled today at Commodity Classic a new online education initiative focused on educating commodity producers on the true costs associated with signing high-value grain contracts.

The program "Making Identity Pay: Calculating Producer Cost of High Value Grain Contracts" is an online calculator created in response to a growing trend of producers underestimating their true costs for items such as time, labor, yield drag, segregation, handling as well as additional production costs and risk. The calculator can be accessed at www.ncga.com . 

"There are costs involved with delivering to the requirements set by high- value grain contracts and that's why processors will often pay a premium," says Tom Slunecka, director of development for NCGA. "But we want producers to understand that a 25-cent premium may not be enough to justify the additional risk and expense that these contracts require."

Slunecka says the "Making Identity Pay" calculator breaks costs into five core categories: time and labor; production; yield; segregation and handling; and risk abatement. The calculator provides producers an average cost-per- bushel for each category and allows for costs to be manipulated according the specifications of a producer's operation. Once costs have been entered for each category, the calculator provides a bottomline cost-per-bushel that producers can use as a basis for their contract negotiations. And "Making Identity Pay" is intended to be as much a negotiation tool as it is an education vehicle.

Wisconsin corn producer Jim Zimmerman, who also is a member the NCGA biotech Working Group and partner in a grain merchandising operation, says producers need more leverage in contract negotiations and "Making Identity Pay" will provide them a starting point.

"Producers need a bargaining chip," says Zimmerman. "'Making Identity Pay' lays out the true costs of contract expectations so if they're not being offered enough, they have a vehicle that explains why."

"Making Identity Pay" can be accessed for no charge on the NCGA web site and will also be made available on a CD-ROM for purchase after April 1, 2003. For more information, interested parties may contact Tom Slunecka at National Corn Growers Association at 636-733-9004.

The National Corn Growers Association mission is to create and increase opportunities for corn growers in a changing world and to enhance corn's profitability and usage. NCGA represents more than 32,000 members, 25 affiliated state corn grower organizations and hundreds of thousands of growers who contribute to state checkoff programs.