Chad Smith, NAFB News Service

Even during COVID-19, the National Corn Growers Association is working to help improve the economic situation for U.S. corn farmers. Shortly after the group held its first Virtual Corn Congress, the organization also hosted a virtual fly-in to Capitol Hill on July 22-23. NCGA typically hosts a fly-in for corn growers to Washington, D.C., in conjunction with the Corn Congress that normally takes place in July. The NCGA fly-ins allow farmers to provide members of Congress and their staffs first-hand accounts of how policies from Washington impact their farms. While coronavirus restrictions prevented producers from traveling to Capitol Hill for face-to-face meetings, the virtual fly-in allowed members to still share their stories and weigh in on current policy discussions. Growers talked about a wide range of topics, such as assistance for producers impacted by COVID-19, the benefits of ethanol and a strong RFS, along with the push for a Low Carbon Octane Standard. 42 corn growers and NCGA state staff took part in 109 virtual meetings with Congressional members and their staffs.