Food or Fuel? The Case for a US Strategic Corn Reserve and Food-Fuel Throttle to Reduce Global Hunger During Food Price Spikes

Abstract

Corn, at 47 billion bushels annually, is the second most produced crop globally, serving as a key staple food for billions. The U.S. is the world's largest producer and consumer, producing 13.7 billion bushels in 2023. Out of this, the US uses roughly 40% to produce fuel for cars and trucks, because of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), with 40% used for animal feed and the remaining 20% going to food and other uses. In recent years, world events such as Covid and the Ukraine war have caused food price spikes, resulting in severe hunger for the global poor, especially the millions at the margins of food affordability in Sub-Saharan Africa. It could be strategically beneficial for the US to adjust its corn storage and allocation policy. This paper sets forth two policy proposals: (1) Strategic Corn Reserve (SCR) to store corn for periods of soaring prices modeled on the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR); (2) Fuel-Food Throttle (FFT) for flexible usage of corn as fuel or food depending on the situation. The benefits of these policies would significantly outweigh the costs, by reducing hunger in critical moments and countering foreign influence in poverty-stricken regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa. To execute these bold policies will require either an executive order and/or congressional legislation, as well as developing pathways for storage and flexible use, which are outlined within.