Who would have thought the lowly kernel of corn would carry so much weight over fuel pump prices? If you think gasoline is high now, consider this factoid from the American Farm Bureau Federation: fuel could cost as much as 10 cents more a gallon if it were not blended with ethanol, a corn-based fuel.

Last year, the U.S. ethanol industry produced 32 percent more of the corn-based fuel than in 2006. As usage went up, so did corn prices, rising from $2 per bushel to more than $5.50 per bushel. Still, farmers aren’t getting rich. 

Tony Banks, a commodity and marketing specialist for the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation, notes in a recent statement that “corn producers’ production costs for expenses like fertilizer and fuel have doubled, gobbling up most of any added income from the higher crop price.”

And just to set the record straight, the American Farm Bureau says that increased ethanol production is not responsible for higher food prices, although it has had a role in higher prices for certain foods such as meat and dairy.  The major factors affecting prices of U. S. crops, says the bureau, are investors’ growing interest in commodity-focused funds, rising world demand (particularly in countries such as China and India which have a growing middle class), the declining value of the U. S. dollar and , of course, record-setting oil prices, which have already reached more than $100 per barrel.

Virginia now has about 900,000 residents who are 65 or older. That number will double by 2030. Getting ready for that “age wave” is the aim of Older Dominion Project, a task force of representatives from business, government, nonprofit groups and community foundations.

It’s goal is to broaden awareness of aging issues and prepare a statewide strategy for accommodating the state’s graying population, says John Martin, president and CEO of Richmond-based Southeastern Institute of Research (SIR). Other states, including Texas, Kentucky and Pennsylvania, already are addressing these issues, he says. “We’re behind. We need to catch up fast.”

About 60 people involved in the project gathered today in a meeting room at the Richmond Times-Dispatch to examine SIR’s initial research on aging issues in Virginia. The group included observers from Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi.

SIR’s research found that many businesses already are trying to accommodate aging workers by offering flexible scheduling and job sharing. Respondents also acknowledged that their employees’ care-giving roles for family members have an impact on their organizations.

The research echoed the comments of Hugh Keogh, president of the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, who said the aging work force is a top concern of the state’s business community. He noted that 40 percent of the welders and shipfitters at Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding are expected to retire in the next 10 years.

In addition, the availability of a qualified work force has been the chief determinant in a company’s decision to locate in a community, Keogh said. He believes many Virginia companies likely will turn to recent federal government and military retirees in their efforts to find employees. “Virginia can only be a strong as its work force,” he said.

Marilyn Tavenner, Virginia’s secretary of health and human resources, stressed to the group the importance of a broad-based approach in planning strategy. “I don’t think that any of this will work without private sector involvement,” she said.

The daffodils are blooming, the robins are singing, and the state’s largest utility company has filed what could become an annual rite of spring: a report on corporate responsibility.

In a first-ever report mailed to a small group of media professionals (and available on the company’s Web site), Thomas F. Farrell II, Dominion’s chairman, president and CEO, makes this point in his opening message: “Straight talk about all aspects of making, moving and selling energy has never been more urgent … Accelerated economic growth, which raises the demand for energy, lives side-by-side with heightened scrutiny, even skepticism, about the way utilities produce power and the effects upon the environment.”

That certainly seems to be the case in Virginia. Dominion Virginia Power has an application pending before the State Corporation Commission for a new coal-fired plant in Wise County. The company says the plant is needed to meet increased energy demands. Yet, it’s opposed by some area residents and environmental groups who say it will be a major polluter in a region that depends heavily on ecotourism.

The proposed plant is one of several initiatives Dominion mentions in its colorful, 36-page document titled “Dimensions 2008: A Report to Stakeholders on Values, Goals & Performance.” There’s plenty of charts and data. Dominion serves more than 5 million customers in 11 states with a $39 billion energy network supplying 26,500 megawatts of electricity — or enough to serve nearly 7 million households — and 1 trillion cubic feet equivalent or natural gas reserves.

Besides the obvious public relations value, the report contains helpful and informative tidbits.  For instance, readers are told they can check the company’s political contributions at the Web site of the Federal Election Commission at http://www.fec.gov/index.  The report also discloses how stakeholders can communicate with company directors. 

It lays out the business plan for responding to more market demand for renewable energy sources. And readers can see where Dominion stands on everything from safety (there were three fatalities in 2007) to diversity (minorities represent 16.8 percent of its 16,989-member work force) and philanthropy (its foundation donated nearly $16 million to nonprofits last year). 

You can see the report on the Internet at http://www.dom.com/dimensions.

As if the economic news isn’t bad enough, wholesale power prices are going up, too. They rose 6 to 11 percent in most regions of the country in 2007. That’s the word from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in its annual State of the Markets Report released yesterday.

The biggest increases came in the Midwest, boosted by higher loads and congestion. Not much new electric generation came online this year, the report said, with wind and natural gas accounting for three-quarters of new capacity.  Across the country, proposals for several coal-fired plants were dropped, reflecting uncertainty about the future treatment of carbon-dioxide emissions.

In Virginia, the fate of a new $1.8 billion, 585-megawatt coal plant proposed by Dominion Virginia Power remains unclear. The state’s Air Pollution Control Board voted yesterday to take control over the permitting process to ensure strict limits on pollutants, a move Dominion fears will lead to costly delays.

“Virginia is the second-largest importer of electricity in the country, behind only California, and there is an urgent need to build dependable electric generation facilities in the state,” Dominion responded in a statement. “Building more generation … is essential to stabilizing costs for customers over the long run and enhancing energy security.”

Price caps have kept electric costs relatively stable here. However, they will be reviewed next year by the General Assembly and could come off by 2010. In July, Virginia Business will do a special report on energy, updating readers on issues in the fast-changing power industry.

If two minds are better than one, then leaders from 15 businesses should be a formidable group.

Companies in the Tidewater and Richmond regions have formed the Virginia Business Excellence Consortium – Southeast to share best practices and promote economic growth in the commonwealth.

The group, which includes companies such as Ukrop’s, Capital One and Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding – Newport News, formed to help businesses improve their own processes, operations and employee skills through the advice of their peers.

The idea came from a recent survey commissioned by Virginia’s Philpott Manufacturing Extension Partnership and conducted by Chmura Economics & Analytics. It revealed that many Virginia manufacturers said they could not meet some of their most vital needs, such as business growth and quality management systems, through traditional measures.

The group has 15 founding companies and is self-governed and self-funded. It is open to companies of any size and in any industry. The group expects other consortia to be formed in other regions of Virginia.