Guatemala Corn Shortage
Corn will be scarce in Guatemala in the coming months, due to the huge demand of the grain in the United States for ethanol production, which is producing hoarding and buying massively.

In six months, the corn bushel, a measure that is the equivalent of 56 pounds, doubled its price on the US market, from $4 to $8 because ethanol producers consumed 86 million metric tons, five million over the figure planned.

Although there is no biofuel production using grains in Guatemala yet, the prices have also begun to increase, up to 73 percent in some cases.

As a result, many producers of animal fodder are making huge buys, predicting greater increases, which will affect the availability of corn for human consumption.

The Mesoamerican Food Security Early Warning System (MFEWS) warns that high prices and shortage will affect lower-income homes from June to August, when the second harvest of the year has not even began.

For Dr. Ricardo Navarro, president of the Salvadorian Center for Appropriate Technology, this is just the beginning of the negative effects for the region due to the massive ethanol production favored by the United States.