Given America's enthusiasm for ethanol production, one might assume ethanol is a miracle fuel, sent from heaven to lead the way to independence from oil.
Excessive speculation played a significant role in the 2008 food crisis, when soaring prices pushed 130 million people into hunger in the world's poorest countries.
Due to a rapid decline in sales, the Corn Refiners Association has petitioned the FDA for the right to use "corn sugar" instead of high fructose corn syrup on prodcuts.
In the last few years, the environmental community has begun attacking corn-derived ethanol. Although imperfect, there are reasons to give ethanol a fair trial.
From the news these days you'd think farmers have never had a better friend than ethanol. But if you actually are a farmer, ethanol, with the high corn prices it brings, is looking less and less like a blessing -- and more like a curse.
