Ethanol production has become a key market for U.S. corn, but margins are often tight. New technology would allow existing ethanol plants to convert a part of their production into making plant-based chemicals that have higher values, with profits that could be passed along to corn growers. “We know that ethanol today is a commodity that has been really pressed …
Planted Acreage Report Surprises
USDA’s planted acreage report out Friday contained some surprising numbers for the trade. The National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) estimates 89.6 million acres of soybeans planted in the United States for 2018, down 1 percent from last year, and corn area planted is estimated at 89.1 million acres, also down 1 percent from last year. All cotton planted area for …
Driving Ethanol Podcast on EPA Actions
EPA’s proposed rule for 2019 biofuel obligations under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) maintains conventional renewable fuel volumes at 15-billion gallons and increases the advanced biofuel standard by almost 600 million gallons over 2018, which looks good on the surface, but fails to assure that those gallons will actually be blended. In this edition of the Driving Ethanol podcast, Growth …
Growth Energy Reacts to EPA Proposal
Growth Energy remains committed to making sure the Renewable Fuel Standard moves forward, despite EPA’s proposed volumes for 2019 that essentially move the program backward. Growth Energy Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Chris Bliley says EPA’s proposal this week for 15 billion gallons for conventional biofuels in 2019 fails to ensure those gallons will, in fact, be blended. “By neglecting …
Corn Growers Winning with Enogen
Corn prices are barely at break-even levels right now, so every advantage a grower can get to make a little extra per bushel is well worth it these days. Steve Stenzel of Hamburg, Iowa has been growing Enogen corn for four seasons now and he says it has worked out very well for him. “We’ve been very happy with the …
Report Contradicts EPA Chief
Yet another revelation in the Environmental Protection Agency small refinery exemption saga came to light this week, thanks to the investigative journalism of Reuters, reporting Tuesday that EPA “consistently ignored recommendations from the Department of Energy (DOE) to reject or limit waivers to oil refiners seeking exemptions from the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).” This contradicts what EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt …
Keeping Up With Corn Research
While the content shared during sessions at the 2018 Corn Utilization and Technology Conference was very technical, it was valuable to Mark Sponsler, Executive Director of the Colorado Corn Growers Association. “Behind any market development effort, and at the root or the base of any new technology that represents market demand, there has to be a foundation of solid research,” …
National FFA and AgriNovus Indiana Announce Blue Room
The National FFA Organization and AgriNovus Indiana have joined together to announce the “Blue Room” will debut at the 2018 National FFA Convention & Expo in Indianapolis Oct. 24-27. The Blue Room is the kickoff to Blue 365, an initiative that will bring this same innovation into classrooms and impact more than 650,000 members nationwide. FFA student members are the …
House Subcommittee Hearing on Advanced Biofuels
The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment held its fourth hearing this year aimed at addressing issues related to fuels and vehicles, this time focusing on advanced biofuels under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). Among those who testified at the hearing on Friday were Advanced Biofuels Association president Mike McAdams, National Association of Truck Stop Operators representative Robin Puthusseril, …
Lamberty Focused on E10 in Mexico and E15 in US
Right after the Fuel Ethanol Workshop (FEW) wrapped up in Omaha this month, word came that a Mexican federal court overturned an injunction blocking ethanol blends from climbing to 10 percent from 5.8 percent, allowing most of the country to move forward with E10 blends. That was very good news as American Coalition for Ethanol senior vice president Ron Lamberty …