This week, the IL Corn Growers Association (ICGA) announced that they will celebrate 50 years of outstanding service to their farmer members in 2022. All are invited to a formal celebration of their work on August 8, 2022, in Bloomington. ICGA was incorporated on July 30, 1971 by Rollie Main from Altona, IL. The first meeting of the association was held on February 18, 1972 in Galesburg with J.R. Block, Rollie Main, John Curry, Don Love, and Housel Roberts present. John Block was selected as the chairman of this initial meeting.
Mark Wilson, a farmer from Toulon, Illinois, was elected by his peers to serve as Chairman of the Illinois Corn Marketing Board (ICMB) for the 2021-22 term. Wilson, a Stark County farmer, has served on ICMB for seven years. As Chairman, Wilson will represent ICMB as a whole and will continue his obligations to corn farmers in District 4, covering Bureau, Lee, Marshall, Putnam, Stark, and Whiteside Counties. Also elected to officer positions were Jim Reed (De Land) as Vice-Chairman, Jon Rosenstiel (Pearl City) as Treasurer, and Jeff Scates (Shawneetown) as Secretary.
Join IL Corn and the Illinois Soybean Association at the Farm Progress Show to see The Power of Two associations working on your behalf! Whether you are interested in biofuels, trade, conservation or consumer education, both associations are harnessing The Power of Two to accomplish big things for Illinois farmers. We’ll be highlighting our work in these areas and so much more in our tent on lot 605 at the Farm Progress Show in Decatur. IL Corn will also have some corn-specific data on corn and corn-based ethanol exports, new uses of corn, and fun member benefits if you take the time to check us out.
Today’s Senate passage of a bipartisan infrastructure package included $2.5 billion of full federal funding to upgrade and modernize the inland waterways system, with specific projects to be determined in a work plan to be released later. The Illinois Corn Growers Association (ICGA) applauded the bill, after decades spent advocating for lock and dam upgrades on the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers. “Illinois corn farmers are desperate for lock and dam upgrades that keep us competitive in a global marketplace,” said Randy DeSutter, the association’s president from Woodhull, IL. “Seeing Senate movement to put some money behind the needed modernizations after seeing the House allocate funds 10 days ago is bringing us hope that we’ll finally see some construction on the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers.”
The locks and dams on the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers are one step closer to the renovation and rebuilding that they desperately need after the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill on July 29 that would allocate millions to these upgrades. The Upper Mississippi River System is vital to Illinois corn farmers, offering a competitive shipping advantage that is both efficient and clean, and making export the top market for Illinois corn. Specifically, the House bill is dubbed the FY22 Energy and Water Development appropriations and spells out overall funding for the Army Corps of Engineers Civil Works Mission to the tune of $8.66 billion. This is an increase of $863 million.
