We were as surprised as you to discover that, if you twist the meaning of two profoundly out-of-date Illinois agriculture websites, you can come to this horrifying, yet inevitable, conclusion. Observe:
1) From the Illinois corn Fact Sheet:
“While exposure to ethanol via inhalation and ingestion is not recommended, it has not been determined to cause adverse health effects.”
2) From IL Dep’t of Agriculture Kid’s Page:
That’s right! Illinois is the nation’s number-one producer of ethanol. Corn grown in Illinois is used to make about 690 million gallons each year – enough to fill about 7 billion soda cans!
The ILDA’s Kid’s Page is from 1996, by the way, and current figure is 1.2 billion gallons a year, or almost 12 billion soda cans (and Illinois is no longer number one; it’s third after Iowa and Nebraska).
Why is the state doing this? Don’t the children already drink enough corn?
Ethanol Fact Sheet [Illinois Corn]
Gas Pump Answer [ILDA Kid’s Page]
Ethanol Production by State [Nebraska Energy Office]
[Photo: SA_Steve/flickr]
