(no subject)

[frandroid]

Next year, the use of US corn for ethanol is forecast to rise to 114 million tonnes - nearly a third of the whole projected US crop. American cars now burn enough corn to cover all the import needs of the 82 nations classed by the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) as "low-income food-deficit countries". There could scarcely be a better way to starve the poor.

Source, thanks missioncontrol. The article also compiles a list of food riots so far this year.

Comments

[seaya.livejournal.com]

It must be in isolated areas, because we don't have that around here.

It doesn't really have much to do with food riots over rice, though. Also it's a different type of corn than edible corn.

[everynewmorning.livejournal.com]

Beyond that is the absolutely infuriating effect the rise of corn ethanol specifically is having on agricultural practice in the plains - particularly Nebraska and South Dakota. I've always been conflicted about the use of the Ogallala aquifer in corn farming since farmers are caught between the additional cost and resource expenditure by using reclaimed water OR draining the vast Ogallala aquifer...the big ass pool underneath the corn belt (as if, quoting a Nebraska senator "God put the damn thing there for us to use").

Corn ethanol production is expensive enough and thus producers are draining the aquifer something like 15-20 times faster since so much water is expended in producing ethanol.

I mean, it's been there for only like...5 million years - let's see if we can use the fucking thing up in 30 years, shall we? I'm sure it was going to go bad or dry up if we just left it there anyway...