The United States' Army Corps of Engineers is considering an expansion of the navigation infrastructure on the Mississippi River. The project will facilitate the export of U.S. grains from the Midwest out to the Gulf of Mexico. Expanded navigation on the Mississippi is strongly advocated by many large agribusiness interests and commodity groups. These organizations subscribe to the belief that increased exports will result in a higher price for these grains and subsequently increase farmer income. The exports are expected to improve the food security of low income, food deficit countries. This message resonates well with the popular belief that exploding populations and global food shortages necessitate greater U.S. grain production in order to 'feed the world'. This rationale also justifies intensive fertilizer and chemical use, large confined animal feeding operations, and the use of genetically modified crops.