A newly formed coalition of ethanol producers has unleashed a major new offensive to counter claims that expanding use of the corn-based fuelis pushing up food prices, with the group citing surprisingly sharp remarks by the Bush administration's outgoing agriculture secretary accusing the grocery industry of pushing those allegations to explain away increased costs for consumers.rnThe new group, called Growth Energy, appears primarily to have been created to give the ethanol industry a unified voice in beating back biofuel-bashing arguments propounded by the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA), who says the diversion of food crops-corn, in particular-to meet rising federal biofuels mandates contributes to food price inflation.
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