Why soaring prices aren't breaking America's diesel habit

The quickest and most affordable response to historically high diesel prices is also the simplest: Use less of it.Why it matters: Diesel is so entrenched in farming, trucking and other industries that even soaring prices aren't enough — at least not yet — to prompt a wholesale shift to alternatives from electric semi trucks to manure-powered tractors.Catch up fast: Diesel prices have climbed to record highs since the U.S. war with Iran began in March, rising faster than gasoline amid global oil supply disruptions.Diesel averaged $6.31 a gallon Thursday, up 74% from a year ago, according to AAA. Regular gasoline averaged $4.27, up 39%.The big picture: Gasoline gets the attention, but diesel is the workhorse of the American economy. It powers grocery trucks, tractors, freight trains, construction equipment, hospital backup generators and even school buses.Driving the news: The price spike is hitting farmers during the fall harvest."Farmers buy diesel by the truckload, so we're talking about hundreds of thousands of dollars in diesel, and when it goes up the way it has spiked, that's the difference between profit and loss in a year," said Curt Blades, senior vice president at the Ass…

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