Popcorn

People pigged-out on popcorn in Peru, thousands of years ago:

Snacks of Ancient America

People were eating popcorn in Peru thousands of years ago, say scientists. They did it without accompanying movies, cardboard tubs, microwave ovens, or even pottery. Corncobs, husks, stalks and tassels from 6,700 to 3,000 years ago were found at mound sites on Peru’s northern coast. Read about it in an upcoming issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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Image by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com

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Ring Out the Old: Corn Ethanol Subsidy Dies

Death notice: U.S. Corn Ethanol Production Subsidy, age 30. Expired on December 31, 2011. Unmourned by all but the most callous corn lobbyists. Subsidies added costs to fuel and groceries, put more Americans on food stamps, and increased world hunger and starvation. Good politics in Iowa, though.

“Over the past 30 years, the federal government has given an estimated $45 billion to the corn industry to help support ethanol production. In 2011 alone, those subsidies totaled about $6 billion, or about 45 cents for every gallon of ethanol. “

— Bruce Watson, AOL Daily Finance

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Short Link: http://wp.me/p6sb6-cdh

Image (“Food From Corn, after a 1918 poster by Lloyd Harrison”) by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

Cat Poop and World Hunger

World food prices are rising at a frightening rate, resulting in uprisings, hunger and death. U.S. government policy diverts food into the nation’s gas tanks by subsidizing production of corn ethanol, and not enough American farmland is planted in corn to meet demand. Millions go hungry or starve, governments are destabilized, and world food prices continue to rise.

How does American industry respond?  It turns corn into kitty litter.