U.S. May Free Up More Land for Corn Crops

CHICAGO — Signs are growing that the government may allow farmers to plant crops on millions of acres of conservation land, while a chorus of voices is also pleading with Washington to cut requirements for ethanol production.

The idea of easing ethanol mandates, while it would also lower the price of corn, is contentious. “There are different forces at work in the administration that are basically duking it out over how this should come out,” said Brent Erickson, executive vice president of the Biotechnology Industry Organization, a Washington group that follows the issue.

Keith Collins, the former Agriculture Department chief economist, will release a study on Monday saying that as much as half of the sharp increase in corn prices over the last few years is due to the demands of ethanol production.

New York Times