Minnesota: E85: The ethanol blend appears to be stalling

It was announced with fanfare -- Gov. Tim Pawlenty's plan in 2006 to make highly concentrated ethanol fuel available "everywhere" in Minnesota within a few years to reduce gasoline consumption.

But now, with gas prices a torrid issue for voters, the number of Minnesota service stations installing pumps for E85, a blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline, is far off the pace needed to reach the goal set by Pawlenty.

In a recent interview, the governor tempered his longstanding enthusiasm for corn-based ethanol, a politically potent product in a farm state, but one also blamed for increases in the cost of food.