Add "bad weather" to the already lengthy list of problems corn-ethanol needs to overcome. Heavy rains, severe winds, and tornadoes throughout the Midwest has propelled corn into uncharted territory. July corn on the CBOT rose 28.6 cents Thursday to settle at an all time high of $6.43 1/4 a bushel.
Farmers are saying this is the worst weather they have seen since 1993, when U.S. crops suffered from weeks of rain that eventually led to the severe flooding of the Mississippi river. Agriculture Secretary Ed Shafer expressed "a lot of concern" for the corn crop in Thursday's summit on the global food crisis.
The
option of replanting corn that was damaged in May is dwindling as
farmers are deciding whether they should replace their corn with a
shorter growing season crop like soybeans. All ethanol producers can do
now is desperately pray for sunshine as there is already a tight supply
of corn available.
Assisting Thursday's massive jump was a ~ $6 rise in crude oil as the dollar lost ground against the Euro.
“Every time
hardworking American families buy groceries, they feel the financial sting of
misguided federal policies mandating that taxpayers support ethanol. It isn’t a
surprise that food prices are rising when more than 25 percent of the corn
grown today is taken out of the food supply and instead used for subsidized
ethanol production. This subsidized program - paid for with taxpayer dollars -
has contributed to pain at the cash register, at the dining room table, and a
devastating food crisis throughout the world. We need to put an end to flawed
government policies that distort the markets, raise food prices artificially,
and pit producers against consumers. We must call on the EPA to exercise its
authority to not exacerbate this already bad situation.”

| Date | CBOT ethanol price | CBOT corn price | Crush spread |
| February 28th | $2.36 | $5.43 | $1.17 |
| January 2nd | $2.42 | $4.62 | $2.15 |
| December 18th | $2.13 | $4.32 | $1.66 |
| December 15th | $2.08 | $4.38 | $1.44 |
| November 19th | $1.81 | $3.94 | $1.12 |
| October 16th | $1.61 | $3.74 | $.77 |
| September 1st | $1.54 | $3.69 | $.62 |