Business Week — Corn prices had to take a breather at some point. After an eye-popping ascent in 2006, prices for the yellow grain fell on Mar. 30 after a highly anticipated Agriculture Dept. report predicted that farmers would plant 90.5 million acres of corn this year, above already inflated expectations. Last year, 78.6 million acres were planted.

After the report, May corn futures were trading at $3.74 per bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade (BOT), down 20 cents on the day but substantially higher than last year’s price (for May, 2006 futures) of $2.73.

The report came as a relief for ethanol producers and especially for other industries, such as meat producers, vulnerable to high corn prices. Increasing demand for ethanol is widely credited with the price rise as the plant-based fuel becomes more integral to the U.S. gas supply.

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