As an agricultural student and current farmer, I was disappointed in the recent editorial by the Iowa State Daily urging us to “cut our losses” in reference to the ethanol industry. The author mentions the “billions in federal subsidies” the ethanol industry has received; however the corn industry gave up the federal tax credit in 2011!

The article also failed to mention heavy taxpayer support for the oil industry for the last 100 years. From 1991-2001, average corn yield has increased by 36 percent (109-147 bushels per acre). We’re currently (even with the deplorable conditions experienced during the 2013 growing season) in the process of harvesting one of the largest corn crops in history. Need I remind you the corn we’re harvesting for ethanol production is not used for human consumption?

A recent U.S. Department of Agriculture study found that only 11.6 cents of every dollar spent on food is returned to the farm. Believe it or not, Corn Flakes spends more for printing on the box of Corn Flakes than it does for the corn IN Corn Flakes! In times of economic uncertainty, the last thing we need to do is “cut our losses” with a renewable fuel source. Iowa leads our nation in production of renewable fuels. In Iowa, ethanol accounts for more than $5 billion of our GDP, generates $3.5 billion dollars of income for Iowa households, and supports nearly 55,000 jobs in various sectors of the economy. I don’t know about you, but I don’t think of those numbers as losses!

I do not believe we can replace the entire oil industry with ethanol, but I do believe a balanced approach between renewable fuels and fossil fuels will put us on a sustainable path into the future. I don’t think we can we afford to turn our backs on an industry that provides this much economic vitality to our state.