Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer recently argued that ethanol is not having an effect on rising food prices and U.S. biofuel mandates should not be eliminated. The Bush Administration is also arguing that only 3 percent of the more than 40 percent increase in world food prices last year is due to demand for corn for ethanol use.

But there is revolt in the Republican party. 24 senators, led by John McCain, are pushing the EPA to not enforce the Renewable Fuel Standards that are part of last December’s Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (H.R. 6).

Sen. John McCain said in a statement that “This subsidized (ethanol) program — paid for by taxpayer dollars — has contributed to pain at the cash register, at the dining room table, and a devastating food crisis throughout the world.”

According to the law, the EPA must

“promulgate regulations ensuring that applicable volumes of renewable fuel are sold or introduced into commerce in the United States annually.”

That means targets of 9 billion gallons of biofuels in 2008 with a goal of 36 billion gallons in 2022. Currently most of the U.S. biofuels are classified as “conventional biofuel,” or corn ethanol. Non-corn ethanol is classified as either advanced biofuels or cellulosic biofuels. If you are interested in the distinctions, please check the Renewable Fuels Associations site here.

Barack Obama has not explicitly denounced corn ethanol yet, but his website suggests he favors cellulosic biofuels:

“Obama will invest federal resources, including tax incentives, cash prizes and government contracts into developing the most promising technologies with the goal of getting the first two billion gallons of cellulosic ethanol into the system by 2013.”

By Stefan Deeran at The Element Agency in New York