First of all, let me distinguish between position and facts. It's not the CRFA's position that first-generation ethanol was not responsible for food prices going up. I think the facts bear that out. If you have any doubt about that, ask yourself why the price of rice went up, the same as the price of corn did, and not a single grain of rice is used to make first-generation ethanol.
The reason food prices went up was $100-a-barrel oil, commodity speculation, and droughts in the Ukraine and Australia. I think the USDA argued that corn ethanol in the U.S. was probably responsible for about 4% of the reason for food prices going up.
The other thing is, for Heaven's sake, let's let farmers earn a decent income for a change.