The Decline of Corn-based Ethanol

A decade ago, many of the delivery trucks were beat-up, all-purpose workhorses, says USA Today. But now, a growing number are gleaming semis, reflecting the improved fortunes of this farmer-owned facility as well as the nearby countryside.

"All the folks that invested in the first place took a gamble. It's been big for them," Doyal told USA Today. The firms' huge fermenters, grain elevators and cooling towers loom over the flat cornfields, physically underscoring the economic reality that ethanol is the most important thing around.

Market changes and a growing chorus of concerns about ethanol make Doyal and other ethanol supporters question how long the good times will last. Corn prices, though down lately, remain high at $5.98 a bushel, making it harder for ethanol producers to profit. Livestock producers blame the ethanol industry for driving up feed prices and fueling food inflation for consumers.

According to USA Today, industry supporters say opponents are overstating the impact of ethanol on food prices and ignoring other factors in driving up food costs — high oil prices and bad weather in exporting nations, for example. But they acknowledge that corn-based ethanol is not seen as the long-term solution to greater energy independence, but rather a transition to more efficient biofuels that may not benefit those farmers fueling current ethanol plants.

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