Eli5 Could rice be used to create ethanol like corn?

Question

Or is it not worth it since rice is simply best used as a food source?

In: 93

Answer 1

You could, but rather than have our fuel compete with our food sources, there are better solutions. Switchgrass, for example, has a relatively high yield and is much easier to grow than Ethanol but in the US where I’m from, the government would rather subsidize farmers to grow something inefficient instead.