As if we didn’t have enough confusion about the whole food and fuel issue, now we’ve got a new “coalition” with an agenda and a website. There’s a built in blog with no posts too. I really recommend posting on your blog if you want anyone to visit it and if you want any credibility. This one is called Food Before Fuel.
Today, the Food Before Fuel Campaign – a partnership of more than 20 environmental, retail, hunger, Hispanic and food industry groups – launched a cooperative effort urging Congress to revisit the nation’s food-to-fuel policies, a key factor in the growing global food crisis.
I’ve got to say that as soon as I saw the Grocery Manufacturing Association on there it lost my interest. They’re the group that was caught spending a ton of money hiring a PR firm to smear ethanol. I’m also surprised to see NCBA on the list. The poultry people and AMI have been pretty outspoken on this issue but you don’t see the pork industry represented. You just have to chuckle about the tortilla group involvement.
Cindy participated in a so-called press conference with GMA recently and any farm journalist, regardless of bias, could clearly hear the lies they told. Ask her about it sometime or read a post she did about it on Corn Commentary.
We’re very open about our relationship with organizations involved in ethanol and biodiesel production so I’m sure I have a bias. However, I’ve had a lot of chance to see the facts from many different studies. The bottom line is that our biofuels policy in this country isn’t taking food out of anyone’s mouths. The higher price of corn has contributed in a very small way to food cost increases, but no where near what has been claimed. Although I don’t advocate changing the RFS for example, eliminating it wouldn’t solve anything. The main culprit is the price of oil which we’re allowing other countries to hammer us with. That is taking food out of people’s mouths. And unless we want to be owned by countries who hate us, we need to develop alternative fuel sources here at home of all kinds.
I just got off the phone with Curt Lancaster, 
I’m not sure if mobile computicating is a term but the phones of today are computers that let us communicate on the go and today the iPhone took a step forward. I got back from Nashville in time to follow along with Tom Kravitz on 
Mike Adams (right), Host of 
The winners of the 21st 
I also got the chance to visit with last year’s grand champions, Mike and Patty Kidwell of Missouri – the first two time winners – who were not actually competing themselves this year but helping daughter Jeanie and her husband Justin Duett. 
My latest road trip ended at the Michael Peterson/New Holland Celebrity Tractor Race in Nashville, TN. So this week’s program has been produced there and includes an event wrap-up with Michael.
Michael Peterson has become a good friend after I’ve had so many opportunities to work with him since this event started 3 years ago. Today he got the crowd fired up as they enjoyed the competition and seeing some of their favorite artists get up on a tractor and for the most part, do real well. 
Joe Jobe, CEO of the 
The winner of the 2008 Michael Peterson/New Holland Celebrity Tractor Race is Darby Ledbetter with a time of 47 seconds. He pretty much blew away the competition. Here’s Darby on the New Holland tractor with Michael Peterson (left).