Increased Ethanol Production Increases Food prices

As ethanol production increases so does the price of food

Global warming is not the only factor causing food prices to rise. According to the Earth Policy Institute the increase in the production of ethanol is also a factor. Food prices are rising in the United States, China, Mexico and India according to a recent release from the Institute. Mexico, a major corn producer, was one of the first countries to experience a price increase. Relatively little corn is eaten directly in China, India and The United States, these three countries contain approximately forty per cent of the world's population. The bulk of the corn that is used in China and the United States, for example, is consumed indirectly in meat, milk, and eggs. In China , the rise in grain and soybean prices have increased the price of meat and eggs. The price of pork went up by 20 percent over the previous year, eggs by sixteen percent and beef ,which is less grain dependent, by 6 percent. The rise in prices has created a scenario where there will be a direct competition grain between "the 800 million people who own automobiles, and the world’s 2 billion poorest people". As food prices rise the number of people who will become food insecure will also rise. This means that starvation and death among the poor, especially among the young, the old and the ill will increase. Ethanol is not an answer to global warming or cleaner air, when we divert farm land from food production to fuel production what we achieve is a direct contribution to human suffering and misery on a global scale. There are other alternatives, such as hybrid cars, lets stop our reliance on ethanol and continue our research on these alternatives. One of the factors that is pushing ethanol production is the reality of the economic conditions that far too many farmers and small rural communities are facing. Ethanol offers them an opportunity to pay some bills but at what cost. We need to work together to find another way to revitalize these vital communities.