The culprit is, as is so many times the case, our beloved government.
Ethanol fuel, other than putting money in farmer's pockets (which I am not against, you understand), is harmful and negative in every other aspect. Corn (which is the primary source for our ethanol) is very hard on the soil. It strips it of nutrients to the point where you have to rotate in other crops (like Soy Beans) to keep the soil viable at all. The world is starving and we are putting food in our gas tanks!
It takes more fossil fuel to make a gallon of ethanol fuel than it takes to make a gallon of straight gasoline. Ethanol fuel has less energy so it takes more of it to go the same distance. Ethanol fuel costs more (though with your tax dollars used to subsidize ethanol fuel, it APPEARS to cost less). And, it takes an untold and very expensive toll on millions of engines every year.
This is what happens when you live on propaganda and 'Felling Good' rather than on facts and reality.