I just returned from a short trip to the Midwest that involved plenty of driving across the gorgeous, green, farm field country of Wisconsin, Iowa and Illinois.  Driving with my brother- and sister-in-law and two little nieces from Wisconsin across the Mississippi and into Iowa, there was one noticeable change, and it wasn't the landscape.  It was the price of gas.  In Iowa, they're paying $2.85 a gallon for SUPER unleaded!

That's a good 40 cents less than we're paying here for the same thing ... only it's not quite the same thing.  Iowa is further ahead than all the other states when it comes to adding ethanol to fuel, probably because they grow the most corn of any state in the U.S.

I'm conflicted about ethanol.  I grew up thinking it was a great thing, because it meant good  business for corn growers (and my dad was one.)   I still think the push toward using biofuels are a great idea, but now that it's starting to affect the price of our groceries, I'm not entirely sure.   Corn and corn syrup are found in so many of our food products that it's bound to raise prices if we're diverting corn to ethanol production.  And  E-85, which is 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline) also costs a lot to produce in and of itself.

I've been doing some reading on it to try to decide what I think about ethanol.  I found an interesting article from Loren Steffy, columnist with the Houston Chronicle, who also points to problems getting ethanol where it needs to go.   He writes, "It can't be transported through conventional pipelines, and its cost benefits are based on government subsidies that do more for the farm lobby than the average driver."

Steffy agrees with me in questioning the rise in food prices due to ethanol use.  He goes on to say "While it may be contributing to inflation, ethanol isn't doing much to address our oil dependency. It accounted for less than 4 percent of the U.S. gasoline supply last year, and the current domestic corn crop, in its entirety, couldn't produce enough ethanol to match our gasoline demand, according to a March report by the Congressional Research Service. "

Steffy points out that only 17 percent of the U.S. corn crop goes to making ethanol.  But when it's already making such a big difference on our prices besides what we pay at the pump, it's clear it's not the final answer.

I think ethanol certainly serves a purpose.  It's saving Iowa drivers a lot of money in gas right now, and I think it will only encourage other, more efficient alternative fuels.  People can see the potential in ethanol, but they don't like all the problems associated with it.  But this is America, and that's usually what prompts innovators to come up with the next best thing.  I, for one, can't wait for it to get here.