Corn stover for bioenergy production: Cost estimates and farmer supply response

A linear programming model was used to estimate the willingness of corn growers to harvest corn stover at varying stover prices. Corn stover supply, farm profit, and land allocation was analyzed under multiple scenarios. At a price of 88.19 $ Mg−1, farms in the base case harvested corn stover at a rate of 2.49 Mg ha−1 using a 33% removal rate. At this price, stover provided enough additional profit to entice farmers to shift to more continuous corn production. Future research is needed to determine the overall impacts of a viable stover market on corn and soybean production and price.