Is it wrong for Americans to drive up the price of Corn for ethanol production?

Question

Mexico Battles Soaring Tortilla Prices!
It sounds like an ethnic joke but it's not -- corn tortilla prices in Mexico have been going through the roof due to Americans diverting their corn to ethanol production. The law of unintended consequences. It's a big hit on poor Mexicans. Essentially, we're hurting Mexicans in our attempt to hurt Arab sheiks. Should Americans feel guilty about this? see:
http://tinyurl.com/24tw3a

Answer 1

The world is a complicated place, and there is another point of view. Since the poorest sector of the Mexican economy is agriculture an increase in the price of corn will increase the incomes of many of the poorest. See this article on why US subsidies to US farmers which export corn to Mexico has lead to the impoverishment of Mexican farmers. http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2004/04/26_corn.shtml

Answer 2

when dealing with an open market and letting new technology shift the supply/demand to the right, I think it disrupts the entire market. In a 'lazy-fair' market...perhaps farmers in US will not be able to meet the supply demands and Central America re-tools and sort of becomes the "New Saudi" with corn. It will drive corn prices up, perhaps farmers will get off subsidies. Lot's of potentially new parameters occurring. If the imbalance is too great, maybe WTO can regulate or stave off some effects. Interesting question with lot's of possibilities, but no, I wouldn't feel bad given the 'open market'.

Answer 3

While I'm not against the Farmers making a buck, I think the laws of economics should decide whether to raise the price or not. ie the laws of supply and demand.
With as much genetic engineering that goes into corn, maybe they can develop a specific type of corn for ethanol, so that it might not interfere with food consumption corn.

Answer 4

Overly right, seems like future gas and outsourcing, though it seems already in control by brasilians, argentinians and peruvians expanding their finances through openness and achievement rather than violence and monopoly. It is rather witty to see into sarcasm and frantic error when critisizing foreign relations and warfare, but I say now some countries are more trusting of connections and relay procedures than they should with oil prices and infrastructure of pipes, especially in Azerbaijan and Mexico. These places do offer some amount of production, but do not posess the servitude to mining and agriculture skills to work for other sources of power, very much what occidental revenues are requesting in exchange for their troubles and demeanors in Arabia.

Answer 5

No its not wrong. Let the mexicans grow their own corn. Corn was originated by the Aztecs in Mexico in the first place.

Answer 6

Yeah, ethanol is made out of corn. The production of ethanol will strengthen the call for for corn. And as all of us ought to have found out in economics classification...as call for is going up....cost is going up. So the cost of each thing made out of corn is going up. the cost of corn products might finally initiate happening inspite of the incontrovertible fact that. Farmers are planting lots greater corn this year. And scientists are engaged on coming up methods to produce ethanol from plant stalks and categories of grasses that could help save the production of ethanol from affecting food fees. And specific, regardless of it making corn fees bypass up, the economics are sound. that helps corn farmers which make little or no money. some farmer families ought to verify a thank you to stay off approximately 10-12,000 money a year of income her interior the US. it is poverty point. i seem at it this style. It facilitates our poor farmer families out and it hurts the vast oil businesses. so which you ought to pay some greater cents for taco shells or corn flakes to do the two certainly one of those is fairly properly worth it. What the different individual did not point out is which you're purely going to be employing a piece of the corn to make ethanol. you have got leftover and byproducts that could nonetheless be used for different issues. So even inspite of the incontrovertible fact that they say a gallon or 2 ought to feed a individual for a year. a solid element of that corn it is used to make that gallon can nonetheless be used after it is used to make ethanol. asserting that the production of corn will burn up sufficient corn to truly harm issues is ridiculous. it fairly is like asserting employing hog fat to might gas could burn up the entire hog. The fat is purely area of the hog. each thing of the pig is used: the ribs for 1st Baron Verulam, the shoulders and hindquarters for ham, even the ears for canines bite toys. the comparable is going with ethanol production. purely a element gets used for the production of ethanol.

Answer 7

You have to want to know: Why is it that every move America makes is criticized by somebody? Is it because those who criticize feel stuck in their own lives?
If Mexico is getting pinched, then they need to do something about it. America is NOT responsible for the rest of the world. So, in answer to your question, should Americans feel guilty about it, the answer is no. America needs to take back its power and learn to do what is right for its people. Mexico needs to do the same.
And yes, I DO believe in ethanol, because I believe in saving planet earth as much as we can. What are you doing to save the earth?

Answer 8

Mexico always wants us to solve their problems, so I say, this time, let Mexico deal with the law of supply and demand that has been working for centuries by themselves.

Answer 9

It is definitely wrong to drive up the price of corn. If the price of corn goes up, the price of bourbon will go up...and that's just wrong!

Answer 10

taco chips, taco shells, corn chips...all pricey? We are getting an ethanol plant in our back door...out my front door and over the hill is the garbage dump...I am surrounded!...by corn