GRIDLEY, Ill. - Like a lot of Illinois farmers, Doug Wilson has had some extra things to fret about this winter while waiting for the spring thaw. The first was what type of corn to plant in the wake of last fall's controversy over genetically engineered corn not approved for consumption that ended up in the human food supply. Farmers have been repeatedly warned since then that they may have trouble finding overseas markets for some "biotech" corn varieties.

Then came an even bigger worry: Higher energy prices will make it much more costly to fertilize and cultivate the seed that is planted this year, while crop prices are not expected to rise.

"What are my prices going to be for nitrogen (fertilizer), for energy? What is the price of grain going to be?" asked Wilson, who farms about 640 acres in north-central Illinois. "Everything else has continued to go up, but (crop) prices haven't."

Illinois farmers, part of a $9 billion-a-year business in the state, can be assured of one thing as they ready for this year's planting season: Increased costs that cannot be passed on to consumers.

"At the end of the day, the question is, 'what's the alternative?' There is none," said Dan Zwicker, an analyst for Agrivisor, a subsidiary of the Illinois Farm Bureau.

The price of corn has averaged under $2 a bushel without a significant increase for several years, while costs to produce that same bushel have surpassed $1 and are expected to keep rising.

The high prices for natural gas that have homeowners complaining about heating bills present a double whammy for farmers. Natural gas is an essential component in making nitrogen fertilizer, and the prices forced several major U.S. plants to scale back production this year.

That means fertilizer prices will as much as double for farmers who didn't buy what they needed for this season last year, said Lisa Muirhead-Martin, spokeswoman for the Illinois Fertilizer & Chemical Association. But she said a feared shortage of fertilizer likely will not occur unless spring weather forces farmers in multiple regions to plant at the same time.

"As long as they get through in the South before we start here, we should be able to get enough supply," Muirhead-Martin said.

Zwicker said he does not expect increased production costs to affect crop ratios because most Illinois farmers are locked into a 50-50 corn and soybean rotation. The Illinois Agricultural Statistical Service said the state's farmers planted 11.2 million acres of corn and 10.5 million acres of soybeans last year.

The types of corn planted this spring will be influenced, in part, by last season's scare over StarLink, a brand of genetically engineered corn that was never approved for human consumption because of unanswered questions about its potential to cause allergic reactions. However, the corn was found in taco shells last fall, prompting nationwide recalls of those and other corn products.

That upset foreign markets already wary of bioengineered crops. Major shippers such as Cargill and ADM warned farmers not to plant corn varieties not accepted by all foreign markets this year. The Illinois Corn Growers Association published a manual listing which corn varieties are approved for all markets and which ones European Union markets won't accept.

"The advice is, stick with what you know they (consumers) will buy," said Bruce Chassy, a food biotechnology professor at the University of Illinois.

Chassy said the biotechnology issue can be misleading, because about 60 percent of the corn grown in Illinois is genetically modified in some way even if it's not classified "bt," and most bt corn varieties are approved for foreign markets.

However, he said, opponents who label genetically modified crops "frankenfood" have done a good job of keeping foreign markets wary, and incidents like the StarLink episode bring those fears to the forefront.

"In the short term, the farmer has to decide where to sell his corn. What are the benefits and what are the risks?" Chassy said. "I think what you're really seeing is a change in the marketplace that was coming anyway."

In the future, Chassy said, handling systems will have a greater ability to channel specific varieties of grain, eliminating chances of varieties not desired in one market being commingled with shipments headed for that destination.

Analysts say there is no great need for most bt corn seeds in Illinois this year because there is no expected outbreak of pests like the corn borer that those varieties are engineered to deter.

But some farmers who might plant at least some bt corn, like Wilson, are shying away from the seed this year just to make sure there are no problems when it's time to sell their crops. Without those concerns, Wilson said, he'd likely plant at least part of his acreage in bt corn as a hedge against an insect outbreak.

"I'd have assurances that I'd have lower yield loss if a pest impacts the crops," he said.

Should there be an outbreak, Wilson will spend even more money on chemicals to save his crops.

Details on which crops farmers ultimately choose should come in late March, when the U.S. Agriculture Department releases a survey of farmers, including how much genetically engineered seed they will use.

** NOTICE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed for research and educational purposes only. **