Corn & Red Meat: A Win-Win Partnership Feeding the World

By Tara Desmond

Illinois corn has long fueled more than American livestock it plays a critical role in feeding global consumers through a nearly 50-year partnership with the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF). In a new episode of IL Corn TV, host Lindsay Croke sits down with USMEF’s John Hinners to unpack how red meat exports deliver real value back to Illinois farmers.

Since 1976, IL Corn has served as a founding pillar of USMEF, investing checkoff dollars to promote U.S. beef, pork, and lamb around the world. Those efforts directly benefit farmers at home. In 2024 alone, red meat exports utilized more than 525 million bushels of U.S. corn adding an estimated 59 cents of value to every bushel. Soybean farmers benefit too, with over 100 million bushels of soybeans going to feed hogs tied to export demand.