Ethanol Bill Stumbles in Mexican Congress!

April 21 (EIRNS)--In a completely unexpected move, and one which enraged the ruling National Action Party (PAN), the Congressional caucus of Mexico's Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) refused on April 19 to support the bill for the Promotion and Development of Bioenergetics, as long as it advocates ethanol production based on corn. According to the daily La Jornada April 21, this was a sudden turnaround from the PRI caucus's position just two days earlier when it said it would join with the PAN in supporting the bill.

But in the intervening period, legislators decided to reject the bill on the grounds that ethanol production based solely on corn or sugar cane would greatly increase the vulnerability of Mexico's food supply. Much to the PAN's dismay, the bill now has to go back to the Lower House's Agriculture Committee to be reformulated.

PRI Congressman Héctor Padilla Gutiérrez, head of the Agriculture Committee, told La Jornada that as presented, the bill endangered "food sovereignty" and independence. Not only is corn a basic staple, he said, but "we belong to the culture of maize [corn]" and "we are deeply convinced that, first, as a nation, we need to secure food sovereignty." However, Padilla Gutierrez did indicate that there is support for ethanol production based on other products such as sweet sorghum, or sugar beets.