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US produces an huge surplus of corn and soybeans for exports, but not enough fruits and vegetables. We import a ton of produce from refrigerated containers on s
by nojvek 2y ago
US produces an huge surplus of corn and soybeans for exports, but not enough fruits and vegetables. We import a ton of produce from refrigerated containers on ships across the globe.
Commodities have minimum price controls and federal subsidies. Produce doesn’t have the same.
Corn produced for Ethanol is grown in 100s of acres. The problem is plants are barely 0.5% efficient at capturing solar energy. Add further that barely 10% of corn makes it to Ethanol.
We’d be far better off removing Ethanol subsidies and encouraging owners to grow produce instead and add solar panels. Solar panels are 50X more efficient than trees at capturing solar energy.
- glimshe 2y agoMakes sense, but don't forget that Ethanol is also an energy reservoir. It works at night, it's easy to get more of it when you need it. So it's not an apples-to-apples comparison, there is much utility in being able to easily acquire and carry energy around with you.
- tim333 2y agoThere are a lot of other energy reservoir too though, if you put up with some fossil fuel. An acre of solar panels backed by a gas peaker plant is probably going to better than an acre of corn for energy.
- glimshe 2y agoGas isn't renewable, though. You can have Ethanol from corn "forever".
- ashoeafoot 2y agoThe switch from food aid to ethanol was what raised the bread prices in the middle east and partially caused the arab spring movement . That is a load bearing pillar of the world and altering it comes with a price.