Politicians to U-turn on corn-based fuel?

 Tag: corn syrup solids Ethanol opponents are getting louder, and Washington policymakers who overwhelmingly voted to boost the biofuel to national savior two years ago are listening more carefully to the case against biofuels. "The volume on the food-versus-fuel debate is getting louder by the day," said Bill Wicker, spokesman for the majority staff of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Recently, the Grocery Manufacturers Association, representing more than 300 food and beverage companies, joined the ethanol backlash. GMA's members include Nestle, Sara Lee, Dean Foods, and Procter & Gamble -- all companies facing higher fuel bills to run their manufacturing plants and higher costs for the raw materials used to make their products. The group thinks ethanol is the culprit in rising prices for meat, milk, and eggs and sees a rollback of the ethanol mandate as salve for family food budgets. The group wants to "amplify" the links between the ethanol mandate and rising food prices as often as possible and use the media's heightened focus on these issues to pressure Washington to turn back the clock on ethanol, according to a memo written by the association. The industry see stories of global food shortages and price spikes creating a perfect window of opportunity to "change perceptions about the benefits of bio-fuels and the mandate and, ultimately, to build a groundswell in support of freezing or reversing some provisions" funding ethanol production from grain.