Law of unitended consequences or just markets reacting.

Today's Wall Street Journal has a very interesting article under the headline: With Corn Prices Rising, Pigs Switch to Fatty Snacks.

Basically a bushel of corn costs twice as much as it did in the last few years. This in turn makes costlier for farmers to feed livestock.

Thanks to the ethanol rush, the price of a bushel of corn for months has hovered around $4 -- nearly double the price of a few years ago. That has prompted livestock groups like the National Cattlemen's Beef Association and the National Chicken Council to call for an end to federal ethanol subsidies, including a 51-cent-per-gallon tax credit offered to companies that blend gasoline with ethanol. For now, livestock must pay up or make do with alternatives.

It certainly worth looking into how these subsidies are affecting the market. I can certainly picture someone bringing up the obscene farm subsidies so why complain about energy subsidies.

I've seen some headlines questioning how green is ethanol given the costs of producing it and its ramifications though the economy. I clearly have to read more to form an informed opinion. In the meantime, it's interesting to see the markets react.