Well, I like corn bread. And corn tortillas. I don't mind corn flakes. I don't like corn dogs. There's lots of ways to utilize field corn for human consumption.

But sure, it's unlikely humans would keep growing that much corn if it wasn't going to ethanol or livestock.

Fair enough, but still a drop in the bucket compared to what is being grown. You said yourself that the vast majority was consumed by other animals.

> But sure, it's unlikely humans would keep growing that much corn if it wasn't going to ethanol or livestock.

Which is likely, and in line with what I was suggesting earlier. However, unless some unforeseen markets open up, that means leaving the land fallow every few years rather than growing corn, not growing more food for humans.

That is where I was going with my original post. If we stopped growing corn completely, that doesn't necessarily mean we gain 80 million acres to grow something else, you just lose the meat out of the nation's diet, putting more pressure on the land that is already growing other foods.

I'm not saying it is impossible to see such a transition through, but our agriculture system grew up with animals being a large part of it. To stop that over a short period of time would be a huge transition, and I could see it being an incredibly painful time for farmers and consumers alike. It won't simply be a matter of stopping the consumption of animals and starting to eat a vegetarian diet like small groups of people are able to do today.