Why are we still using ethanol?

[George2615]

They were going to take it to congress.
But hit a wall. :laughing:

Being sarcastic guys...:thumbsup:

Tha's the problem. The wall is in the wrong place.

 

[grnspot110]

At $3.30/bu (Friday's market price here), the farmers aren't the ones making big money off ethanol, it's the "middle men"!

As for small engines, I been using 10% ethanol with Seafoam & Marvel Mystery Oil for years with no problems. Ethanol free premium gasoline just recently became available here, so I've gone to it for my small engine use.

 

[jeff9366]

The existing 10% mandate for ethanol in gasoline takes 40% of the USA corn crop.

Very senior Senator Grassley, Republican of Iowa, is a firm supporter of the president. Other corn state Senators follow Grassley's lead. (Pretty fair amount of corn produced in Kentucky too.)

It did not take Grassley long to figure out what lower Chinese demand for US corn and soy beans in a tariff confrontation would do to demand for Iowa corn. Iowa the leads the country in the process of converting corn to ethanol.

The pending increase to mandatory 15% ethanol in gasoline is a direct political payoff to Grassley, to Iowa corn farmers and ethanol processors in particular and other corn states in general.

The 50% increase in mandatory ethanol in gasoline, from 10% to 15%, will increase corn use for ethanol production to 60% of the US corn crop, should support corn prices pretty well while functioning as a steep transfer tax from gasoline consumers to corn growers and ethanol producers.

The solution is to eliminate the ethanol mandate in gasoline and let market forces sort out what is most profitable to farm. Free markets are what Republicans are supposed to believe in.

 

[Oldoak]

let market forces sort out what is most profitable to farm.

That will NEVER happen.

 

[kf4uda]

I would be very happy to get rid of ethanol from our gasoline. How do we accomplish that?

 

[JerryK]

Please put World Peace and the ending of Daylight Savings Time on your list, too.....

 

[buckeyefarmer]

Please put World Peace and the ending of Daylight Savings Time on your list, too.....

Lol, good one.

To end ethenol gas, you gotta get a bigger lobby than the corn lobby.

 

[hillwood]

Why do we still add ethanol to gasoline. While we were relying on OPEC for oil at one time, it might have made sense (that is debatable). Now that we are, for the most part, self reliant on our energy needs, why do we continue with this? It would be great to remove it so we don稚 have to buy $5/quart gas for our small engines.

The world will run out of fossil fuels at some point...
Ethanol is renewable.

 

[ray66v]

Almost every product we buy is somehow connected to the price of corn.

With 40% of the crop producing fuel we do not need, the biggest side effect of ethanol is higher food, and products prices.

Those higher prices don't just affect the US, they affect the entire world.

I was among those hoping this madness would have ended.

In the mean time, if you can buy boat gas somewhere near you, it's still ethanol free. And, a lot cheaper, than those premix quarts.

 

[ray66v]

The world will run out of fossil fuels at some point...
Ethanol is renewable.

Or, maybe not. There is lots of evidence, that the earth is making more oil.

The earth is also making more people. And, they will need to be fed.

The supply of corn is more finite than oil. Ethanol is not the answer.