Earth Equity News-April 7, 2008

The World Food Crisis and Demon Ethanol. Commentary by Paul Krugman, NYTimes, April 7, 2008. "These days you hear a lot about the world financial crisis. But there's another [one] under way -- and it's hurting a lot more people... The food crisis... The subsidized conversion of crops into fuel was supposed to promote energy independence and help limit global warming. But this promise was, as Time magazine bluntly put it, a 'scam.' This is especially true of corn ethanol: even on optimistic estimates, producing a gallon of ethanol from corn uses most of the energy the gallon contains. But it turns out that even seemingly 'good' biofuel policies, like Brazil's use of ethanol from sugar cane, accelerate the pace of climate change by promoting deforestation. And meanwhile, land used to grow biofuel feedstock is land not available to grow food... You might put it this way: people are starving in Africa so that American politicians can court votes in farm states. Oh, and... all the remaining presidential contenders are terrible on this issue... What should be done?... More aid to people in distress: the U.N.'s World Food Program put out a desperate appeal for more funds. We also need a pushback against biofuels, which turn out to have been a terrible mistake. But it's not clear how much can be done. Cheap food, like cheap oil, may be a thing of the past." [Editor's note: Sen. John McCain was the only major presidential candidate not to embrace subsidies for corn-based ethanol during the Iowa caucuses.]