Ethanol could raise beer prices

As if you needed one more reason to hate the current craze for subsidizing ethanol, a fad that will do almost nothing to affect global warming but is likely to enrich corn farmers even more. Because more acres are being planted in corn for ethanol, prices for barley and wheat are rising, and some craft brewers are having to raise their prices by as much a a dollar a six-pack. Add the fact that there was an oversupply of hops for a while, leading some farmers to abandon it, which has led to a 30 percent reduction in the supply of hops, which raises the price, and you have the makings of a genuine crisis!