'Cane' ethanol fires back at the corn-based variety

Cane-ethanol makers are firing back at producers that prefer corn.

As domestic corn ethanol makers announced a $2.5 million ad campaign to support a 45 cent tax credit and a 54 cent tariff protection they get, a group of sugar-ethanol producers from Brazil, pitching their product as a “sweeter alternative," said it is paying for a more modest campaign to end the subsidies.

See the ad here and a new Web site here. Ben blogged on the corn ethanol campaign earlier today.

The campaign is being paid for by the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association, also known by the acronym UNICA.

Joel Velasco, UNICA’s chief representative in the United States, said tariff protections keep sugar ethanol imports artificially low. The fuel can be made more cheaply and offers greater greenhouse gas benefits than the corn variety, Velasco said.

UNICA opposes a bill that would extend the tax credit and tariff protection for five years.

“The point is to educate the consumer,” Velasco said. “Cane ethanol is clean, affordable and renewable.”