Rescind The Ethanol Mandate

[Nirvana]

A new major study on ethanol put the nail in the coffin of anyone who was dumb enough to hang on the notion that the nation is well served by the ethanol mandate. Among the findings:

• Ethanol, because its energy cost is higher than gasoline and because of its negative effect on fuel mileage, added about $14.5 billion, or 10 cents a gallon, to motorists' fuel costs in 2011.
• Increased ethanol production since 2007 has had no effect on gasoline production or oil imports. Contrary to supporters' claims, oil imports have declined not because of increased ethanol production but because of increased domestic crude oil production and higher refinery yields.
• Corn used for ethanol production rose 300% from 2005 to 2011, increasing from 1.6 billion bu. to 5 billion. (Ethanol production now uses more than 40% of the U.S. annual corn supply.)
• Corn now represents about 80% of the cost of producing ethanol compared with 40-50% before implementation of the mandate.
• Corn prices jumped to more than $6 a bu. in 2011 from $2 in 2005.
• The rate of change for the Consumer Price Index for meats, poultry, fish and eggs increased by 79% while it decreased by 41% for non-food items since the RFS was revised in 2007.
• Ethanol production costs and ethanol prices have all but eliminated a market for ethanol blends higher than 10%.
• The United States exported 1.2 billion gallons of ethanol in 2011.

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