As drought conditions become the worst in 50 years and corn yields are expected to drop significantly, a coalition of meat and poultry organizations today asked the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to waive the federal mandate for the production of corn ethanol.
A coalition of livestock and poultry groups is urging Congress to reform the federal Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS), which mandates the amount of ethanol that must be produced annually.
More than a third of U.S. consumers expect rising food prices to cause them to cut back on holiday spending, according to a new survey by Americas Research Group for Reuters.
Representatives from the livestock and poultry industries commended U.S. Representatives Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and Jim Costa (D-Calif.) for introducing the Renewable Fuels Standard Flexibility Act.
A turkey industry representative told a House Agriculture Subcommittee the federally mandated use of ethanol has created an immediate and legitimate concern about the availability and cost of feed ingredients for poultry and livestock.
The current commodity markets are bad for everyone. Our economic climate is tenuous. Consumers are struggling to make ends meet and current fuel prices are forcing them to manage what they spend on food. American consumers play an integral part in any recovery because their spending accounts for about 70% of the nation’s economic activity.
With increased demands from the U.S. beef and ethanol industries, U.S. Corn supplies have reached a 15-year low and may be smaller than the government forecast last month, reports Businessweek.
Senators Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.) have introduced a bill to repeal the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit, saying that it would save taxpayers $6 billion.
The recent run-up in the U.S. stock market is real and should continue at least through 2010, according to economist Dr. Donald Ratajczak. He was speaking to feed ingredient-purchasing managers at the 2009 Grain Forecast – Economic Outlook Conference.
