Last night, I was beginning to wonder what I was going to blog about next as I try to get over my writer’s block this week, and I happened to catch a clip on my local news station about ethanol causing higher gas prices.
Really?
The reporter blamed it on the unrest in Ukraine, because Ukraine exports corn.
Seriously??
If you don’t already know, the ethanol I am talking about is a biofuel made from corn. Ethanol is available in several different blends, and is automatically blended at 10% in regular gasoline. If you have a flex-fuel vehicle you can use higher blends, but the 10% ethanol present in regular gasoline will not harm your engine if you don’t have a flex-fuel vehicle.
To address the news story above, the United States is a huge exporter of corn. According to the U.S. Grains Council, the United States supplies 50% of the exported corn supply while the Ukraine provides a mere 5.5%. In addition, the United States will import zero bushels of corn in 2014. That’s right- nothing.
The petroleum industry is blaming this rise in gas prices on the ethanol industry. Because the national average for gasoline is $3.51 (as of 3/10/14)- which is the highest it’s been since September- it’s automatically ethanol’s fault. Probably because they want to increase the ethanol blend in regular gasoline from 10% to 15% [insert sarcasm here].
Guess what? Ethanol actually LOWERS gasoline prices! If you were to buy ethanol (85% blend) at retail, it’s about $2.89/gallon in central Illinois (as of 3/10/14). That’s compared to the $3.48/gallon gasoline at the same gas station this morning. So yes, ethanol is definitely causing higher gasoline prices [insert more sarcasm here].
So why does unrest in Ukraine impact our gasoline prices?
It doesn’t.
Looking at the facts, a 10% ethanol blend in regular gasoline should lower average gas prices because ethanol is cheaper than gasoline. And the Ukraine has nothing to do with our ethanol supply in the United States because we import no corn. The United States produces more than enough corn to address our needs in food, feed, and fuel, and we even have enough left over to be the world’s biggest corn exporter!
So who’s to blame for the rising gas prices? Honestly, I don’t know. It may be because of a rising cost of petroleum. But I do know that ethanol is not the cause.
There is a lot of misinformation in the media, whether it be intentional or not. Don’t take everything at face value. You’re smart enough to easily detect inconsistencies in stories. Use your resources to find out what’s true and what isn’t. That’s the great part about today’s technology. I can Google something on my phone and have the answer in 10 seconds. Also, check your sources. Are they reputable? If you can’t find the answer, ask! I’m always happy to answer questions about agriculture. 🙂
Myth: Ethanol causes higher gas prices because of unrest in Ukraine.
Status: Busted.
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