The Rising Tide (Price) of Corn

The nation’s unquenchable thirst for gasoline — and finding an alternative to what’s been called our addiction to oil — has produced an unintended consequence: The cost of the foods that fuel our bodies has jumped.

The corn price increases flow like gravy down the food chain, to grocery stores and menus. The cost of rounded cubed steak at local Harris Teeters is up from $4.59 last year to $5.29 this year, according to TheGroceryGame.com, which tracks prices.



“Rapid development of the corn-based ethanol industry is already having adverse impacts on food supplies and prices, a major concern for many consumers,” the letter said. “In addition, the continued aggressive expansion of corn ethanol production diminishes the availability of soybeans and other crops that provide healthier oils.”

Tolman said, “Farmers have a way of, every time prices go high, they almost always overproduce until they drive down the price to the marginal level where they can’t make any money anymore.” He said corn farmers are “price takers. You have to take what the market offers you. The market bids the price up or down depending on what it thinks the supply is.”

Washington Post