“This year, the US will divert nearly one-third of our total corn production to make ethanol. It’s contributing directly to record corn prices-spiking even higher due to the tragic flooding in Iowa,” said Rep. Moran. “The unprecedented price of corn is having a ripple effect on food prices directly impacting consumers at the grocery store, not to mention the poor and starving in the third world. We call on the EPA to redouble its efforts to rapidly transition away from biofuels that draw down our food supply toward newer, more sustainable energy sources.”
The letter notes that at present, food price inflation in the US is rising at twice the overall rate of inflation, while global food prices have nearly doubled in the past three years. The bipartisan group is emphasizing the importance of finding sources for biofuels that “do not divert food and feed from domestic and international supplies.”