The Corn Refiners Assn. (CRA) officially unveiled its new logo, new look and new office space. These changes come as part of the trade group’s efforts to educate policy-makers and the public about what they called “the incredible but often invisible role the unassuming corn kernel plays in our everyday lives.”

Even CRA’s new office was specifically designed to educate. It highlights and utilizes corn products throughout the space – e.g., corn is found in the walls, flooring, chairs and in the compostable serviceware in the kitchen, among other places.

“Corn products can be found everywhere, in nearly everything,” said John Bode, president and chief executive officer of CRA. “They make our food taste better and our cosmetics last longer; they make our plastics more environmentally friendly and our medicines easier to swallow. From the moment you wake up until the moment you go to bed, corn is the powerhouse ingredient inside hundreds of consumer products and industrial processes. That’s why we call corn nature’s renewable building block.”

“Innovation has long been the backbone of the corn products industry. Today, corn is being used to create low-calorie and no-calorie sweeteners, contributing to a healthier diet. And, scientists continue to find new and groundbreaking uses in places you might never imagine – from renewable materials to advanced bioproducts, from 3-D printing inks to biomedical nanotechnology,” CRA chairman Christopher Cuddy said. “It is time to put the spotlight on the kernel – an unassuming ingredient found inside nearly everything.”

What is the secret to corn’s incredible versatility? It starts when the kernel is separated into its component parts – starch, protein, oil and fiber – which are then turned into corn products, including cornstarch, corn oil, sweeteners, advanced bioproducts, protein and animal feed, CRA said.

CRA’s new logo captures the kernel’s amazing journey. The logo starts with two different shades of green designed to evoke the leaves of the corn plant and also to reinforce the sustainability of corn products and, thus, the benefit to the environment.

Together, the two shades of green form a square box that surrounds a single, yellow kernel – symbolic for the idea that corn products are often the product within the product – rarely seen but essential.

Finally, at the center of the logo is a single kernel colored in different shades of yellow and white, emphasizing that dent corn is different from the sweet corn people eat and also representing the different component parts of the kernel.

CRA also redesigned its website, www.corn.org, to put the spotlight on issue advocacy and the industry’s economic impact. Among the new features is a section called the Kernel of Innovation, a page focused on education. The new, cleaner, responsive design also allows the website to function across devices.