A key goal of the Bush administration has been to boost supplies of renewable fuels to reduce the country's dependence on foreign energy.

Ethanol makers will consume about one-quarter of the 13.1-billion-bushel U.S. corn crop this year, according to the Agriculture Department, a forecast that is increasingly alarming world governments and food aid workers.

But corn prices are rocketing to record highs, which will raise prices for a variety of products as corn is widely used as feed for livestock. Corn for delivery in May rose 15-1/4 cents to $6.07 a bushel at the Chicago Board of Trade Tuesday.

Asked about the food crisis and how it related to biofuels, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the two were related but there were a host of other issues involved, such as high transportation costs of food.