The National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) supports the renewable fuels standard and other programs that will spur production of renewable fuels utilizing agricultural residue, like wheat straw, and dedicated energy crops, like switchgrass. The need for ethanol is large enough that it will take both starch-based and biomass-based ethanol to meet projected demand. Second-generation renewable fuels including cellulosic ethanol hold many benefits for consumers and producers alike who are suffering from the high cost of fuel and rising food prices. Advancing cellulosic ethanol would be a win-win for those in the agricultural industry and consumers, but getting there requires a vibrant first-generation renewable fuels sector and the certainty that the renewable fuels standard provides to investors.

Renewable Fuels Association analysis taking into account gas and food prices shows that the net impact of ethanol on total household spending ranges from approximately $100 to $573 in SAVINGS. This has been largely overlooked in recent efforts to discredit renewable fuels and blame rising food costs on farmers.  The real culprit is rising energy costs in every sector – a factor that ethanol can help relieve.

Pointing the blame of increased food prices to the production of renewable fuels is not only inaccurate, but counterproductive. USDA says increased ethanol use is only responsible for a few percentage points of the total rise in food prices. In contrast, the soaring cost of oil, which ethanol helps to mitigate at the pump, is increasing the cost of doing business for everyone in the food chain.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 24th, 2008 at 4:55 pm and is filed under Politics .