Burning the food
The ethanol craze appears to be causing higher meat and poultry prices.
Naturally, the relative benefits and costs of various alternative fuels will be debated vigorously. Still, sometimes you wonder why we never do cool stuff like hyrdogen highways. It would at least be a start, and the exhaust is about as clean as it gets.
USDA indicated in a report late last week that the ethanol industry's robust demand for corn is elevating the cost of livestock and will hike prices for beef, pork and chicken.But before you feel sorry for yourself because that thick, juicy steak costs so much, consider what effect ethanol demand is having on tortilla prices in Mexico.
The agency says ethanol is consuming 20 percent of last year's corn crop and is expected to use 25 percent of this year's harvest, driving up the price of corn. The average price of corn is $3.20 a bushel, up from $2 last year.
Higher feed costs will reduce meat and poultry production. The National Chicken Council reported that the price of corn has forced a 40-percent increase in the cost of feeding chickens, and poultry will soon cost more at retail.
But in January, the price of tortillas spiked. Analysts have blamed a global increase in demand for corn to produce ethanol, an alternative motor fuel and gasoline additive. As a result, the cornflour used to make tortillas has become more expensive, and it's harder to sell the tortillas at higher prices.It's never made much sense to me to see ethanol as anything but a transitional fuel. Sure, it's cleaner burning, and it's (sorta-kinda) one method of harvesting solar energy, but at least in the US we throw tons of petrochemicals on corn fields to make the stuff. So it's not as great as some industry groups would have one believe. Plus ethanol production in the US is so closely tied to the largesse of farm policy that nobody can get elected president without going to Iowa and extolling its virtues.
Naturally, the relative benefits and costs of various alternative fuels will be debated vigorously. Still, sometimes you wonder why we never do cool stuff like hyrdogen highways. It would at least be a start, and the exhaust is about as clean as it gets.