Allegedly it’s a “myth” that mandated ethanol use contributes to food shortage and rising prices. After all, we just need to eliminate discriminatory barriers against Brazil’s cane ethanol, right? Nope.
Brazil Lacks Cane to Boost Fuel Exports, Senator Says — Brazilian sugar cane companies, which are preparing to boost ethanol exports to the U.S., don’t produce enough of the renewable fuel to do so, a lawmaker said.
Brazil won’t make enough ethanol to meet increasing foreign demand unless cane producers invest in new mills and plantations, Senator Katia Abreu said in an interview at Bloomberg’s headquarters in New York.
U.S. oil companies, which must comply with government mandates to blend environmentally friendly biofuels, are expected to expand their use of sugar-cane ethanol next year, and more than 100 Brazilian mills are preparing to deliver it. (Bloomberg)
Note also that Brazil needs new plantations to supply increased raw material. Goodbye rainforest?
Fuel supplements were a short term solution for the second oil embargo during the Carter Administration. They are a net energy loss.