Just imagine if ethanol – not petrol – was first used in cars 100 years ago. Let’s rewrite history for a moment, and see what would have happened. Imagine if…

Henry Ford planned for cars to run on alcohol fuels instead. So during the past century, alcohol fuels were used in every single automobile produced. As a result, the ethanol industry built a trillion-dollar infrastructure to support the distribution of ethanol. And it powered the whole world.

But then, 30 years ago, imagine that oil was discovered instead. It was abundant and inexpensive, and the petrol produced from it fit into the distribution and retail infrastructure created by the ethanol industry. Oil developers and supporters soon rallied around this new fuel, talking excitedly about making it part of the global energy pool. Support grew at the government level, both here and abroad. After all, it had the potential to generate enormous revenue for whichever country developed its oil resources.

Feeling threatened, the ethanol giants then reacted with vehement opposition. We railed against petrol’s real and perceived problems. We even invented some negative studies and reports about this “new, oil-based petrol” that was threatening our century-old monopoly in the world market. At first, it was just 10 percent: we didn’t want to give up any of our market share, but we realised that the movement was strong and the trend inevitable. So the ethanol industry went along with it: we accepted 10 percent blends. After all, we still profited from the financial incentives the new fuel was receiving.

But wait! Politicians then began talking about raising this percentage and mandating the use of petrol. Not 10 percent anymore; they were suggesting 20 percent or even 85 percent blends (E85) of petrol! There’s even legislation being considered, requiring every new vehicle to be flex fuel capable. The little petrol industry has gone from being a nuisance to actually threatening our ethanol market share in a huge way!

Now, oil refineries began to spring up both here and overseas. At first they were small, but they have rapidly grown. Politicians are listening to the new oil industry, and they’re saying the world needs to find another source of energy because ethanol has nearly peaked in its production capability.

It’s wrong, we say! Ethanol has been the foundation of the world’s energy needs for 100 years. We argue that we can produce more. We fight the opposition, even when we know that the development of oil and petrol is inevitable. We stand firm, pouring our vast financial resources into fending off the frightening forward advance of petrol. We feel so threatened, so it gets ugly: we create stories about petrol. It doesn’t matter if it’s the truth or a lie – this is war! We soldier on, even though we know we can’t win…

Far fetched thoughts, perhaps? Just imagine for a moment what we might do if the shoe was ‘on the other foot’. It doesn’t make it right, but it can make us understand why the petrol industry reacts so strongly against ethanol. They feel threatened, plain and simple.

We know that ethanol will continue to gain popularity, particularly in today’s world of skyrocketing petrol prices and concern about petrol’s damage to the environment. We will continue to stand up against the petroleum giants, with honesty and dignity. Ethanol is here to stay.