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Issues in the News

 

1. ENERGY

DuPont makes a major new investment in ethanol production.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Adjunct Analyst Dennis Avery on the trade-offs associated with shifting to alternative fuel sources like ethanol:

 

“There are significant trade-offs involved in the massive expansion of the production of corn and other crops for fuel.  Chief among these would be a shift of major amounts of the world’s food supply to fuel use when significant elements of the human population remains ill-fed.”

 

 

2. BUSINESS

The World Bank ranks the U.S. third worldwide for “ease of doing business.”

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Economic Policy Fellow John Berlau launches the Center for Entrepreneurship to study how new businesses grow and prosper:

 

“The Center for Entrepreneurship was formed to specifically look at the areas of public policy entrepreneurs face when starting or building their businesses. If unnecessary rules prevent businessmen and women from launching their innovations, no other regulations matter. The Center starts out with one question: If entrepreneurs such as Bill Gates or Sam Walton were starting out today, what would be the barriers to them raising capital to get their ideas off the ground and keep their businesses growing?”

 

 

3. FOOD

Farm Aid raises $1.5 million at a recent concert in New Jersey.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Adjunct Analyst Steven Milloy on the hypocrisy of some of Farm Aid’s organic farming supporters:

 

“If organic food companies want to roll back the clock on modern technology, we’re going to need a lot more cows – as well as the feed, water, and land to support them. Without pesticides, more land must be used to grow more crops to produce needed feed. For those worried about global warming, more cows means greater production of methane, a major greenhouse gas. There’s also the added manure from more cows which environmentalists blame for polluting surface and groundwater. Suddenly, organic doesn’t sound so eco-friendly after all.”

                           

                                                                                                     

Blog feature: For more news and analysis, updated throughout the day, visit CEI Open Market.

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION

To contact a CEI expert for comment or interviews, please call the CEI communications department at 202-331-2273 or email to [email protected].