The hue and cry over the ethanol use mandate in the U.S. Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and the possibility that the Russian government might intervene in that country's wheat exports have caused us to reflect on the relationship between governments, market prices and the free movement of goods from where they are available to where they are needed and wanted. These are weighty topics that periodically appear in one form or another. Whenever they do appear with enough critical mass to affect markets and trade, we usually rise up to complain philosophically about the concept that governments can allocate resources better than markets can. And we complain about the inevitable unintended consequences whenever governments attempt to control an...

TAGS – Feed Grains, Soy & Oilseeds, Wheat, Livestock, Biofuels, Energy, North America