The development of industrial uses for cornstalks is dependent, in a large measure, upon an adequate supply of raw material at a reasonable cost.

Cornstalks, being light and bulky, are difficult to handle, and economical harvesting is essentially a problem of reducing labor.

The yield of cornstalks (15 percent water content basis) varies from 1 to 2 tons per acre.

Dry, wind-blown stalks in Iowa may be expected to yield from ¹/₂ to 1¹/₂ tons per acre.

Cornstalks cannot be harvested economically by hand.