From The Heritage Foundation, I’m Ernest Istook.
The price of corn is at a record high. Historically corn is used as food, as livestock feed, and for processing into things such as corn syrup.
But government requires that ethanol must be added to gasoline, so now 40 percent of America’s corn crop goes to make ethanol. On a worldwide basis, that’s 11 percent of all the corn in the world.
Projections that other fibers could be used to make cellulosic ethanol just haven’t proved true, so corn remains the key to ethanol.
The increased demand has pushed the price of corn up 68 percent. And drought conditions lower the supply and can raise the price even more.
What do we get in exchange for billions in subsidies? Ethanol lowers your gas mileage even while it raises the price–not only the price of gasoline but also the price of groceries.
From The Heritage Foundation, I’m Ernest Istook.
