Every 5 to 10 years there’s a burst of public concern about the impact upon the poor of putting food in our fuel tanks. Then it’s forgotten, only to arise later, as if it had never been thought of before.

Do you remember 25 years or so ago, how Mobil was pilloried in the press for pointing out that, net of fertilizer application and other energy-intensive inputs, growing corn to produce motor fuel additives actually increased fossil fuel emissions? That established the current paradigm: nowadays, environmentalism is simply something to make money off of, and no industry executive is going to risk being accused of “hate speech” or “tampering with our democracy” through ill-considered efforts to educate the public.