What is the Corn Refiners Association website (corn.org)?

corn.org is the official website of the Corn Refiners Association (CRA), a trade organization representing the corn refining industry. The site serves two main audiences: the general public curious about where corn-derived ingredients show up in everyday products, and industry participants who need policy, trade, and member resources. Its tagline, "Innovating the Kernel," frames the organization's central message — that refined corn ingredients go far beyond food.

Who runs the site

The Corn Refiners Association is the organization behind the content. The site describes corn refiners as creating ingredients "used for just about everything – from making our food taste better and our cosmetics last longer, to making our plastics more environmentally friendly and our medicines easier to swallow."

What you'll find on corn.org

The site is organized into several content areas, visible in its main navigation:

The "Did You Know" product examples

A distinctive feature of the site is a series of "Did You Know" items showing corn ingredients in unexpected places. These are useful if you want concrete examples of how refined corn products function:

• Laundry detergent — cornstarch brightens fabric and removes dirt; citric acid (a corn product made through bioprocessing) boosts cleaning power and softens water.
• Fireworks — cornstarch increases burn time and contributes explosive quality.
• Cosmetics — cornstarch appears in body powders, skin care, lipsticks, and eye and facial makeup; corn oil in skin care; xanthan gum as a stabilizer and thickener.
• Shampoos and conditioners — cornstarch strengthens hair, corn oil conditions, and xanthan gum stabilizes and thickens.
• Diapers — starch-based materials form the super-absorbent core, while PLA (a biodegradable material from corn bioprocessing) can replace petroleum plastics and outer covers.
• Tires — rubber made from bioprocessed cornstarch reduces rolling resistance and weight for better fuel economy and traction.
• Matches — cornstarch binds match heads and aids ignition; paper matchsticks often include it for rigidity.
• Crayons — cornstarch binds ingredients, and dextrin (a cornstarch type) attaches labels.
• Frozen pizza — modified cornstarch keeps moisture in the sauce, preventing a soggy crust.
• 3D printing — scientists are testing injectable polymers, many containing cornstarch.

Member access

The site includes a Member Login and a Member Center, indicating that some content and services are restricted to industry members rather than the general public. If you're a researcher or consumer, the public sections (About, Products, News, Economic Impact, Resources) are where the accessible material lives.

When this site is useful to you

• You want a quick, authoritative overview of what corn refining produces and where those ingredients end up.
• You need industry policy or economic impact information from a trade association perspective.
• You're an industry participant looking for member resources, trade updates, or the action center.

If you're looking for independent scientific studies or consumer product databases, this site is an industry source rather than a neutral reference — treat its framing accordingly.