The production process begins when Cargill Dow in Nebraska converts corn into a polylactic acid. This is done by milling the corn to separate out the starch and then processing the starch to get unrefined dextrose. Using a fermentation process similar to that of beer production, the dextrose is converted into lactic acid, according to the company's Web site. The acid is converted into a polymer to form the base of the optical disc by Sanyo in a process the company developed with Japan's Mitsui Chemicals, for which the companies have applied for patents, Watson said.

Sanyo estimates that around 85 corn kernels, each weighing an average of 0.5 grams, are needed to produce enough polymer for a single 4.7-inch optical disc, so an average ear of corn can produce around ten discs. The International Recording Media Association estimates world demand for CDs at around 9 billion annually, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates world corn production at about 600 million tons, so producing enough polymer to satisfy the demand for discs would require less than 0.1 percent of the world's corn production.