If they had announced a non-food crop as the source for this product I would be the first to say "Way to go!!!"
Did we not learn our lesson with auto fuel made from corn? It drives up food prices. Not a good idea.

Obviously, you are not considering the farmers.

This product is made from the corn COB..Not the KERNAL. The kernal is the only part of th corn that is used for food OR ethanol. Therefore...It would NOT drive up food prices.

It doesn't say it's made from cobs. It processes the sugar in the corn which I would think is mainly in the kernels. Still sounds like a good idea to me. We just need more corn farmers. No problem.

Carpeting made from corn uses a revolutionary new fiber based on a breakthrough technology that allows man-made fibers to be
derived from corn a 100% annually renewable resource.

Most carpet fibers (Nylon, Polyester, Olefin) are made from petroleum oil. Carpeting made from corn limits the impact on the earth’s
natural resources. This corn-based alternative could put a dent in our dependence on foreign oil. As a result of making carpet out of
corn, we have other environmental benefits including reduced CO2 emissions.
Soft to touch
Benefits:
Superior Stain Resistance

Wear & Texture Retention

Exceptional Softness

UV Light & Fade Resistance

Chlorine Resistance

Low Odor Retention
CornCarpet has
many benefits for
the environment
and for you.
Many different colors
CHOOSE FROM MANY COLORS & STYLES
How is Corn made into Carpet?

1. Farmers harvest the corn and send it to a milling plant

2. The milling plants grind & cook the corn into starch

3. The corn starch is then converted into sugar

4. The sugar is converted with chemical reactions to plastic

5. The plastic is melted and forced through molds that
create fibers about the thickness of human hair.

6. The fibers are spun into yarn then into carpeting.

Just getting more corn farmers is NOT the answer. The earth itself has a limited "carrying capacity" -- these corn for carpets crops would still take lots of soil, air, water, and nutrients, resources which are needed for food crops. The idea that we live in a limitless world has not served us well -- we are running out of forests, farming land, clean water, etc. The earth is a limited physical system and we need to acknowledge and respect that in the choices we make going forward.

Josh M., this is not made from cobs, it is made from corn sugar which comes from corn starch, which comes from the endosperm in the kernels. If you are going to rebuke someone, at least make sure you check your references.
See:
http://www.mohawkflooring.com/carpeting/smartstrand/default.aspx
and
http://www.foodtechinfo.com/FoodPro/FacilityTypes/311221_Wet_Corn_Milling.htm

Drop a kernal in the dirt.
It grows.
WE process it. Right here in the U.S.!
What could be simpler.
NO foreign suppliers!
Jobs for US, not some outsourced nonsense.

I want some. Sounds great. But $16 a sq. yard? Kind of pricey. We're in a depression, you know.

I want some. Sounds great. But $16 a sq. yard? Kind of pricey. We're in a depression, you know.

I want some. Sounds great. But $16 a sq. yard? Kind of pricey. We're in a depression, you know.

I'm told that much of the grains grown in the world are used for feeding the animals we eat. Cut back or cut out meat eating. No prob.

Corn requires a huge amount of fertilizer in the form of ammonium nitrate. Which, is produced using natural gas or coal. According to Michael Pollan, it requires 50 gallons of oil to produce one acre of corn, that includes tractors and transport. So all DuPont has really done is add one extra step in order to "green wash" their product, and charge more for it.

First off, This carpet isn't new its been out for a few years now. In fact I have some in my family room and am quite happy with it.

Second off, the amount of Corn required to produce a carpet is pretty much insignificant considering how long a carpet lasts.

And lastly, what ever 'green' benefits it has are irrelevant when you consider how good a carpet it is with regard to wear, feel, and stain resistance.

I would like to see a carpet mfg. that after that 15 year period of the warranty they would take your old carpet back in trade up on a new one and they would recycle it back into new carpet.

Food prices shouldn't be affected by more corn production. Look at what happened with canola. The initial price per bushel for the crop was sooooo good that more and more producers started growing the crop and price per bushel fell like a rock.

On the other hand this, to me, appears to be a product that can be produced and sold at a reasonable price, IF the "green" label attached to it doesn't automatically jack up the cost to consumer like too many other "green" products

Hey d--- cut back on eating meat?--you gotta be friggin kidding!!!! I live in cattle country kid, and we feed our cattle barley. I may have a small world compared to you, but I don't know anybody who doesn't enjoy a good beef steak, corn fed,barley fed or grass fed!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think this carpet is new but there's something called Everstrand that is a few years old. It uses recycled plastic bottles to make the fibers instead of corn guts.

We bought this carpet a few months ago and truly love it. It was a hard choice initially deciding to buy a food-based product, but it is better than the petroleum alternative. I also agree with the idea that if we stop eating so much corporate-farmed meat, we would have more grain for human consumption.

Nothing's perfect in our limited world, but let's try to not beat each other up and make small changes one at a time.

Good luck!