Ethanol eats too much corn claims livestock farmers

Iowa livestock farmers are demanding a change to the nations ethanol policy, they say the current regulations lead to spikes in meat prices and can cause shortages at  supermarkets if corn growers have a bad year. The worry is that if corn production drops due to a natural disaster, then the amount of corn consumed by the ethanol industry along with overseas demand could cause the cost of feed to skyrocket, leaving them little choice but reducing the size of the herds. "If we get a short crop, the ethanol industry does not participate in rationing and the brunt will fall on livestock and poultry," said Steve Meyer, president of Paragon Economics, a livestock and grain marketing and economic advisory company in Adel, Iowa. Read more ...