I saw a documentary on TV in mid-May titled, “King Corn.”  (Here’s a review.)  In it, two guys farm an acre of corn in Iowa.  Sounds boring…right?  Hardly. 

Like all the other farmers, they planted engineered corn that grows 4x as many plants in an acre as grew a generation ago.  Of course, they all need a little help from loads of fertilizers and a herbicide that is a not so distant cousin to Agent Orange. 

They trace where their corn will end up.  Like all the other farmers, one third of their crop will become ethanol, one third will become sweeteners like high fructose corn syrup, and one third became animal (mainly cattle) feed.

So, why mention this? 

The cattle.  Sierra Magazine Jan/Feb ‘08 issue said it like this…”Livestock create a beefy portion of all greenhouse-gas emissions: 18 percent, according to the United Nations.”   Eat less beef.  Reduce greenhouse gas.  Simple.

The ethanol.  Many have already noted the subsidies (They also made $28 in government subsidy on their acre of corn.) and the documentary touches on this topic as well.  And, while it’s nice that ethanol helps reduce greenhouse gas, how about riding your bike or walking?  Drive less.  Reduce greenhouse gas.  Simple.

The sweeteners.  Corn based sweeteners.  Don’t we all love them!   Unfortunately, high consumption of corn sweetener is not only linked to high obesity, but also Type 2 diabetes.  Eat less corn sweeteners.  Drive less.  Walk & bike more.  Reduce greenhouse gas.  Live longer.  Priceless.

I’m not even touching the rising cost of food (including wheat, corn and rice) or the use of pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, engineered crops, cattle lots, antibiotics and hormones, sustainable agriculture…

The film ends with Earl Butz, the agriculture secretary responsible for setting up the current subsidy system for commodity crops. He says, “We feed ourselves with 17 percent of our take home pay. That’s fabulous, that’s America’s best kept secret… It’s the age of plenty.”  Plenty of unhealthy foods, nasty chemicals and greenhouse gas too, apparently.  Sounds like Plenty isn’t all it’s cracked up to be..

Results of several surveys show that, in general, US consumers will have less money to spend on leisure travel this year due to current economic conditions.  There are two bright (or maybe, less dull) spots, however.  Number one, the tax rebates many Americans will receive from the 2008 economic stimulus package are likely to be spent on travel.  And, number two: affluent travelers will continue to spend on leisure travel this year regardless of the economy.

A bright spot in a travel industry concerned about rising costs and bad US economy are affluent consumers.

An April Travel & Leisure magazine survey among 2,000 frequent travelers with median HHI of $100,718 conducted by ARGI and reported in Travel Weekly, indicated that higher-income consumers are continuing to make leisure travel plans this year.

• 89% plan to travel internationally in the next 12 months
• 70% plan to spend same or more as last year on leisure travel
• Top 3 international destinations were Caribbean, Mexico and Europe

The May issue of Agent at Home trade magazine featured consumer research conducted by Larry Pimetel, CEO of SeaDream Yacht Club and Performance Media Group among a proprietary list of Pimetel’s customers with a median HHI of $250,000.  The article says, “affluent travelers will not be greatly affected, other discretionary spending will be curtailed for a short time.”

A good portion of tax rebate checks will likely be spent on summer and fall vacations according to a study by the Tourism Institute at the University of Tennessee.  The study provides five reasons for this:

1. Most consumers spend more than they plan after receiving rebates – overspending!
2. The timing is ideal since the rebates will arrive in mailboxes when consumers are making vacation plans
3. An increase in travel marketing campaigns will heighten consumer interest
4. Consumers could use tax rebates to offset higher gas prices
5. People will see this rebate as an unexpected gift that is not part of their usual budget and hence represents a special opportunity to reward themselves

Another survey conducted by Access America (detailed in Travel Agent magazine) concurs, stating that 11% of households earning $50,000 or more plan to use their federal tax rebate for travel.

Hmmm, I’m “over” spending with my rebate.  It is going to fix my roof after a tree fell on it a few weeks ago. 

An AOL Travel and Zogby International interactive survey of Americans 18 and older, reported in Modern Agent, showed that more than half (57%) of Americans feel they have less money to spend this year on leisure travel than they did last year are are looking to save money on travel expenses.

• 33% are planning to stay with friends/family
• 37% plan to drive rather than fly
• 53% are planning week-long or longer vacations
• 66% plan to stay in the US this summer

For Americans planning to take trips overseas:

• 10% plan to visit Europe
• 19% plan to travel internationally to destinations other than Europe
• 12% plan to take a cruise

Other research conducted among travel agents by SeaDream Yacht Club and Performance Media Group falls in line with the AOL Travel survey.  As reported in the May issue of http://www.agentathome.com magazine, “middle-income travelers are likely to be greatly affected by economic bad news.”

I am in this boat – unfortunately not the SeaDream yacht…