The 5th annual Iowa Renewable Fuels (IRFA) Summit was the best ever in many ways, according to IRFA Executive Director Monte Shaw. “The combination of good weather and great speakers, we had record turnout, the crowd stayed, it was very positive,” said Shaw after the summit concluded on Tuesday in Des Moines. “We clearly had over 700 people here based …
NASCAR Champ is Excited About Ethanol
Former NASCAR champion Rusty Wallace may not be on the track racing himself anymore, but he is still a team owner and racing analyst and he is thrilled that every series in NASCAR will be using a 15 percent blend of ethanol this year. “When we hit Daytona, get ready,” Wallace said. “Because NASCAR is the number one source of …
Former Senator is Biofuels Convert
Former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania was never a believer in ethanol, biodiesel and other forms of renewable energy until one devastating day in American history. “I looked at this issue differently, until 9/11,” the senator said during an address at the Iowa Renewable Fuels (IRFA) Summit in Des Moines on Tuesday. “To me, 9/11 changed the game as we …
Iowa Economy Powered by Renewable Fuels
Iowa is an undisputed leader in renewable fuels production and that is extremely good for the state’s economy At the Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit in Des Moines on Tuesday, the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) released a new study detailing the positive benefits that provides for Iowa. According to the report, the renewable fuels industry, both ethanol and biodiesel, accounts …
Newt Gingrich Wows Iowa RFA Summit
If it were up to the Iowa renewable fuels industry, Newt Gingrich would probably be elected the next president of the United States. The former speaker of the U.S. House spoke to a full house at the 5th annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit in Des Moines on Tuesday. Hitting all the right notes, Gingrich was interrupted several times by applause …
USDA Announces Funding for Biorefinery Projects
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced $405 million in guarantee loans for three biorefinery projects in the southeast under the Biorefinery Assistance Program. The three projects are located in Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida. “We believe it’s critical and crucial to develop a biofuel industry powered by feedstocks produced in every corner of the country,” said Vilsack during a conference call …
Let’s Talk About E15
Let’s talk about E15, or the use of 15 percent ethanol, 85 percent gasoline, in our conventional cars and light duty trucks. I don’t think people understand well enough why the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is conducting so much research on the fuel. What it really comes down to is emissions. Let me explain. Last Friday I attended the California …
Wesley Clark at AG CONNECT Expo
Retired General Wesley Clark visited the second AG CONNECT Expo Saturday in Atlanta to talk with farmers and ranchers visiting the event about the importance of ethanol to our nation’s security. Representing Growth Energy, Clark greeted folks at the CASE IH exhibit on the floor of the agricultural trade show. He also made time for some media interviews to talk …
Ethanol All The Way In NASCAR
Kenny Wallace, NASCAR driver, says, “Ethanol all the way in NASCAR!” That’s what he told me this afternoon in the American Farm Bureau Federation Pavilion on the floor of the AG CONNECT Expo. Thanks to Tricia Braid, Illinois Corn Growers, for setting up our interview and taking the photo. Kenny was signing autographs in the Nationwide Insurance exhibit. You won’t …
Ethanol Report on the Year Ahead
Now that 2010 is just a memory and Congressional leaders are returning to Washington this week to open the first session of the 112th Congress, what does the future hold for ethanol? In this edition of “The Ethanol Report,” Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Bob Dinneen gets out his crystal ball and talks about the year ahead for the …