xcel
04-16-2007, 11:45 AM
Corn is a fundamental U.S. food ingredient, found in everything from soft drinks to cough syrup. It's also a staple throughout Latin America, where residents may feel the sting from rising corn prices the most. (http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070416/BUSINESS07/704160336/1020)
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/Corn_for_Ethanol.jpgAP - April 16, 2007
Ethanol is far from a cure-all for the nation's energy problems. It's not as environmentally friendly as some supporters say and would supply only 12% of U.S. motoring fuel - even if every acre of corn were used. Corn prices are rising due to ethanol demand.
The ethanol craze is putting the squeeze on corn supplies and causing food prices to rise.
Mexicans took to the streets last year to protest increased tortilla prices. The cost of chicken and beef in the United States ticked up because feed is more expensive.
That's where biotechnology comes in.
Scientists are engineering microscopic bugs to extract fuel from a variety of non-corn sources, including the human urinary tract, a Russian fungus and the plant responsible for tequila.
The quest for alternative energy is more complicated than just finding a replacement for petroleum.
Scientists and a growing number of biotechnology companies are attempting to remove corn from the ethanol equation because it has created huge demand for the global food staple.
"There is enormous growth potential" for alternative fuels, said McKinsey & Co. analyst Jens Riese. "But we need to be smarter than just building the next corn ethanol plant."
Researchers are racing against time. Already, 114 U.S. ethanol bio-refineries are in operation, and 80 more are under construction. Producers made nearly 5 billion gallons of ethanol last year, a 25% increase from the previous year.
And nearly all of it was made from edible corn kernels.
That's good news for U.S. farmers, but consumers are suffering at the checkout stand because corn prices have nearly doubled during the last two years and will continue to climb … http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070416/BUSINESS07/704160336/1020
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/Corn_for_Ethanol.jpgAP - April 16, 2007
Ethanol is far from a cure-all for the nation's energy problems. It's not as environmentally friendly as some supporters say and would supply only 12% of U.S. motoring fuel - even if every acre of corn were used. Corn prices are rising due to ethanol demand.
The ethanol craze is putting the squeeze on corn supplies and causing food prices to rise.
Mexicans took to the streets last year to protest increased tortilla prices. The cost of chicken and beef in the United States ticked up because feed is more expensive.
That's where biotechnology comes in.
Scientists are engineering microscopic bugs to extract fuel from a variety of non-corn sources, including the human urinary tract, a Russian fungus and the plant responsible for tequila.
The quest for alternative energy is more complicated than just finding a replacement for petroleum.
Scientists and a growing number of biotechnology companies are attempting to remove corn from the ethanol equation because it has created huge demand for the global food staple.
"There is enormous growth potential" for alternative fuels, said McKinsey & Co. analyst Jens Riese. "But we need to be smarter than just building the next corn ethanol plant."
Researchers are racing against time. Already, 114 U.S. ethanol bio-refineries are in operation, and 80 more are under construction. Producers made nearly 5 billion gallons of ethanol last year, a 25% increase from the previous year.
And nearly all of it was made from edible corn kernels.
That's good news for U.S. farmers, but consumers are suffering at the checkout stand because corn prices have nearly doubled during the last two years and will continue to climb … http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070416/BUSINESS07/704160336/1020