The biofuel boom, along with drought and other factors, has created a worldwide food problem.

Several countries have recently seen bloodshed, unrest and rioting from soaring prices and food shortages. The president of the World Bank recently said that more than 30 countries are threatened by political upheaval caused by the global food crisis.

But for Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley, the ethanol/food connection is “a big joke.”Quoted in a NY Times article, Grassley ridiculed foreign officials who have criticized U.S. ethanol production:

“I bet if I set a bushel of corn in front of any of those delegates, not one of them would eat it.”

I won’t go into the insult of feeding foreign officials like a livestock herd. But I will say that extreme hunger cures many food phobias.

While little can be done about drought and increased demand for meat in China and India, ethanol production (which some see as a boondoggle) could be curtailed, but that seems unlikely.

Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., believes Congress made a mistake, but he acknowledged the difficulty of changing course on biofuel policy:

“If there was a secret vote, there is a pretty large number of people who would like to reassess what we are doing.”

Worldwide food prices have climbed 80 percent in the last three years. And if your family relies on basic grains for daily sustenance, that’s no joke.

Photo: Hungry Charlie Develops Taste for Shoe