Agriculture industry heads on Wednesday fired back at critics of corn-produced ethanol, placing the blame of high food prices on factors such as weather, speculation, diesel prices, and other production costs.
Corn ethanol, once hailed as a solution to the global energy crisis, has been facing heavy criticism for contributing to escalating food prices with little benefit to the environment. And there is now evidence that these attacks are gaining ground among members of Congress.
The governor of Texas and 26 Senators have asked the Environmental Protection Agency to cut this year's ethanol production requirement by half.
The farm bill reauthorization sent to President George W. Bush last week reduces the federal tax subsidy for corn ethanol and provides $400 mln for the research and development of ethanol from celluosic feedstocks, such as wood chips, switchgrass and garbage.
In a conference call with reporters today, heads of several agriculture industry groups voiced their opposition to the anti-ethanol movement.
Bob Dineen of the Renewable Fuel Association said that ethanol's contribution to food price increases is 'miniscule'. Weather-related events and speculation in the marketplace contribute more to high prices and 'the single biggest driving factor is oil.'
