Key Topics
Today, corn is what you eat and tomorrow, what you wear
Thanks to modern biotechnology, corn has come a long way since the days of teosinte, an ancient Mexican grain producing a few mealy corn-like kernels.
Thanks to modern biotechnology, corn has come a long way since the days of teosinte, an ancient Mexican grain producing a few mealy corn-like kernels.1 Today, a cob of corn is more than just a barbeque stable. It's a sunshine capsule used as feed for livestock, as sweeteners for processed food, and as fuel for cars. Surprisingly, it's also being used to make hi-tech fibres for clothes, carpets and other household products.
About half of the Canadian corn crop is now planted to biotech varieties, primarily because of their pest-resistance benefits. These corn varieties offer pest resistance thanks to genes from Bacillus thuringiensis(Bt), a soil bacterium that produces proteins fatal to specific insect species.2 Since 2004, farmers have benefited from Bt corn varieties with stacked traits that protect against two yield-reducing pests: corn borer and corn rootworm. Without corn borer damage, the stalks and ears are not open to infection by moulds, which produce mycotoxins dangerous to livestock and humans alike.
Almost all of the corn grown in Canada comes from Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba, with about half being used to feed cattle, poultry and pigs. Another 20 percent goes to processors to produce starches, sweeteners and oils. According to the Ontario Corn Producers' Association, of the 10,000 food items found in a typical grocery store, at least 25 percent use a corn derivative. For instance, high-fructose corn syrup is a base for soft drinks and jams while dextrose is used in cookies.
With ethanol production plants sprouting up across the country, the remainder of the corn crop is increasingly in demand as the preferred feedstock in producing ethanol. Genetically modified corn varieties with starch profiles specifically tailored to ethanol processing are now being grown and sold at a premium to commodity corn.3 And for good reason according to Kory Teneycke, executive director of the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association, "With world oil prices peaking at over $150/barrel and ethanol at under $50/barrel, ethanol is now very competitive."4 On top of its cheaper cost, ethanol helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions because its 35 percent oxygen content means it burns cleaner than gasoline when used in flexible-fuel engines, a factory option available on a broad range of new cars.
Not surprisingly, the push towards plant-based solutions away from petroleum-based products has moved beyond the energy industry to textiles. Manufacturers such as DuPont have perfected a process using the tools of biotechnology to produce "smart" fabrics from cornstarch. The starch is processed into sugar then fermented, separated and refined through a series of patented reactions into polymers, the building blocks of synthetic fibres. This new bio-fibre, called Sorona®, has exceptional stretch-and-recovery characteristics and is easier to dye than either polyester or nylon. A new plant in Tennessee will be using starch from both biotech and non-biotech corn.
This product reflects an integrated approach by DuPont and its subsidiary, Pioneer Hi-Bred, to capitalize on their biotech science and to generate 25 percent of total revenues from renewable resources by 2010.5 It's conceivable that biotech corn originating from Pioneer Hi-Bred seeds could end up as the feedstock for its parent company's fabrics.
All of these new products are making inroads into daily life in seemingly innocuous but important ways. To illustrate the trend, the Council for Biotechnology Information in partnership with BioProducts Canada has launched the "Green Kitchen: Taste and Touch the Future." Dow AgroSciences supported the concept by modifying the Green Kitchen components to fit inside a round Twister granary bin. The storage bin for seeds is an apt place to demonstrate how biotech seed can be programmed for food, feed, fibre or fuel.
Corn plays a central role in the exhibit in Ingeo carpet, Sorona fabric, and Natureworks biodegradable cutlery. A new element for the exhibit will be sample Ingeo-fibre shirts made available from Milan, Italy. In the fashion capital, designer labels are proudly touting Ingeo fibres in their new lines and the lifestyle media are responding with headlines of "Green Sleeves". Come and see the myriad ways that corn is transforming lives with convenient, environmentally-friendly products. You are what you eat, and tomorrow, what you wear.
1 American Association for the Advancement of Science Ancestors of Science; Prehistoric GM Corn. Science, Vol 302, Issue 5648, 1158-1159, 14 November 2003.
2 Ontario Corn Producers' Association, Increased Disease Control. Tenuta, Albert, Field Crop Plant Pathologist, OMAFRA, Ridgetown College, March 2000.
3 Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc., Technology that Yields Ethanol, 2003.
4 Canadian Renewable Fuels Association, Presentation to the Industry Committee hearings on Gasoline Prices in Canada, Kory Teneycke, Executive Director, CRFA, September 22, 2005.
5 DuPont, Sustainable Growth 2004 Progress Report.