TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Ethanol Makers Blame Retailers For Costlier Holiday Meals

ADVERTISEMENT

By RUSSELL RAY | The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 25, 2008

TAMPA - Food retailers are wrongfully blaming the ethanol industry for jacking up the cost of a Thanksgiving Day feast, the Renewable Fuels Association said today.

Food retailers are misleading the public, claiming increased ethanol use has driven up the price of corn, which is used in most food production, the trade association said.

Corn prices are down about 21 percent from last year. On Nov. 21, a bushel of corn cost $3.39, down from $4.28 on the same day last year, the association said.

"This fact alone disproves the notion that grain prices are a primary driver of retail food prices," the association said in a statement. "If corn prices have decreased since last November, how could they possibly be responsible for the increase in the price of Thanksgiving dinner."

The ethanol industry's demand for corn accounts for 1.4 percent of the cost of a Thanksgiving meal for 10, the trade group said. The effect is "nothing more than a couple of quarters."

This year, the average turkey dinner for 10 – with all the trimmings – will cost $44.61, an increase of $2.35, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation.

Food prices are higher than last year because retailers have failed to pass on savings from lower fuel prices to their customers, the Renewable Fuels Association said.

In Florida, diesel fuel averages $2.87 a gallon, down from $3.47 a year ago, according to AAA.

Reporter Russell Ray can be reached at (813) 259-7870.

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT