Poll Cites Several Causes for Higher Food Prices

Cindy Zimmerman

A new poll indicates that Americans are better informed about the various factors affecting food price increases than one might think.

RFAThe poll, commissioned by the Renewable Fuels Association, found that 46 percent of Americans believe rising oil prices is the number one cause of increasing food costs, followed by 15 percent citing increasing global demand. By contrast, just 7 percent of respondents believe increased ethanol production is the most important cause.

The poll, which was conducted by The Mellman Group, asked respondents to choose which factor had the greatest and the second greatest impact on food prices from a menu of choices. Among those choices were higher oil prices, increased global demand for food, poor weather conditions affecting crop production, food companies raising prices to increase profits, and increased ethanol production.

Only 16 percent of those polled cited ethanol production as either first or second in order of importance when it came to impacting the price of food. In contrast, an Internet poll released today and sponsored by food processing giant Hormel claims that “when prompted,” 60 percent of Americans blame ethanol for the increase in consumer food prices.

Renewable Fuels Association President Bob Dinneen said, “Considering that 81 percent of every food dollar spent pays for the processing, packaging, transporting and marketing of food items, it’s painfully clear these energy-intensive activities are the root cause of higher food prices.”

The Mellman poll, conducted October 23-25, surveyed 1000 adults with a margin of error of +/- 3.1%.

Ethanol, RFA

Yellowstone Bacteria Could Be Hot for Ethanol

Cindy Zimmerman

A heat-loving bacteria discovered in Yellowstone Park has potential for the ethanol industry.

YellowstoneAccording to an article in the Jackson Hole News, Scientists found the bacteria, called Candidatus Chloracidobacterium termophilum, in Octopus and Mushroom springs and the Green Finger Pool, not far from Old Faithful. The bacterium grows best in temperatures between 120 and 150 degrees Fahrenheit and could help researchers drastically increase production of biofuels, according to Don Bryant, a professor of biotechnology, biochemistry and molecular biology at Penn State University.

Since his initial discovery, Bryant has gathered evidence that suggests Chloracidobacterium termophilum is aerobic, or breathes oxygen (another anomaly for a photosynthetic bacteria), and doesn’t take carbon from the atmosphere to increase its cell size and reproduce. Instead, Chloracidobacterium termophilum likely gets its carbon from the waste of other bacteria.

By removing waste products, Chloracidobacterium termophilum probably helps other bacteria grow much faster, a prospect that could lead to practical applications. Scientists are currently growing bacterial mats that they ferment to make ethanol. A bacteria that could double the production of biomass for ethanol production could be commercially valuable, Bryant said.

Cellulosic, Ethanol, News, Research

GM Still Pushing NASCAR to Go Green

Cindy Zimmerman

NASCARA note in the Winston-Salem Journal’s “NASCAR Notebook” this week once again brings up the GM push to get ethanol in the race.

Brent Dewar, GM vice president in charge of racing, said “We are guests at this party. But we’re also a partner, and we think this would be the right signal to send to America. We have to reduce our (foreign) dependency.

“We know they have a fuel partner (Sunoco), and we’re respectful of that. We’re hoping that when the time comes for a discussion of the fuel we can talk about that. What we have to do now is show them some of the technical learnings we’ve had with ethanol in other series.”

Ethanol, News, Racing

PA County Farm Bureau Invests in Ethanol Plant

Cindy Zimmerman

A second ethanol plant is in the planning stages for Pennsylvania.

According to the Times-Tribune, the Wayne/Pike County Farm Bureau has secured an option on 90 acres in Texas Township for a $161 million ethanol plant.

Still in its formative stages, the locally-based Indian Orchard Energy Corp. would be the facility’s shareholders, likely giving 20 to 30 percent of the shares to the nonprofit Wayne County Farmers’ Foundation, which will be the plant’s board management.

This would be the area’s second ethanol plant. Northeast Ethanol and Renewable Resources Ltd. has proposed a $150 million facility, to be located on a brownfield site on Lackawanna Avenue in Mayfield.

Ethanol, Facilities, News

SD Democrat Calls Ethanol Critics “Misguided”

Cindy Zimmerman

Herseth SandlinA South Dakota congressional representative supports increasing the Renewable Fuels Standard in the energy bill and fires back at critics of ethanol.

According to an article in the Daily Republic, U.S. Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin says opponents of the biofuel industry are using “misguided and inaccurate” claims in an attempt to derail the growth of renewable fuels.

While discussing her hopes for the pending energy bill, Herseth Sandlin, D-S.D., this week said “traditional opponents of biofuels have once again set their sights on the renewable fuels industry.”

“… They are using misguided and inaccurate arguments in an attempt to derail aggressive provisions for the future of home-grown renewable fuels like ethanol,” Herseth Sandlin said.

Herseth Sandlin supports raising the RFS to 36 billion gallons by 2022.

Ethanol, Government, Legislation, News

US-EU Deal Could Expand Biodiesel Production and Use

John Davis

useuflags.jpgThe United States and the European Union… at odds over some biodiesel issues… are expected to sign a deal that would set international standards for trading biofuels, which senior U.S.diplomats say will give a boost to jatropha-based biodiesel in the world market.

As you might remember from a previous post of mine on October 24th, the EU is threatening a World Trade Organization complaint over American subsidies on biodiesel ($1-a-gallon biodiesel mixture credit) that the Europeans claim artificially reducing the price of biodiesel sold in Europe by about 60-90 cents a gallon… compared to what European biodiesel goes for. But this article in the UK-based Guardian says now the Americans and Europeans seem to be agreeing on some international standards to be hashed out at the new Transatlantic Economic Council (TEC) in Washington on November 9:

The agreement would be a significant boost to efforts by biodiesel producers such as D1, chaired by former Shell chairman Lord Oxburgh and partnered by BP, to refine thousands of tonnes of oil produced from the seeds of the jatropha curcas grown in poor, dry soil in Africa and the Caribbean as well as India.

Last month D1 cut back its expansion plans, including an increase in refining capacity at a Merseyside plant to 320,000 tonnes by the end of 2008, because of subsidised imports of soya-based biodiesels from the US. The European Biodiesel Board, a trade group of EU producers, has threatened legal action over the $1 a gallon subsidies for biodiesel. US exports to the EU have soared from 90,000 tonnes in 2006 to 700,000 tonnes so far this year. The EU has set a target of 10% use of biofuels by 2020 as part of its campaign to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 20%. [C Boyden Gray, US ambassador to the EU] accused the EU in turn of precluding other feedstocks for biofuel in favour of rapeseed oil – prompted, he claimed, by the German farming lobby.

The plan is also seen as a response to environmental concerns of the Europeans using palm oil (which causes deforestation) and the Americans producing ethanol from corn.

Biodiesel

Wind Energy Developers to Get Tutorial

John Davis

wind_power-tutorial.jpg
Folks in the wind power business, or who want to be in the wind power business, are invited to a tutorial November 28th-30th at the Derek Hotel in Houston, Texas to give them a leg up in an industry that is experiencing a 25 percent annual growth curve.

Put on by Infocast, Inc. (a educational conference organizer), sponsored by several law firms, and featuring speakers from the renewable energy and finance industries, the three-day seminar will talk about how to take advantage of looming environmental regulations and increasing desire for green energy sources, in particular, wind energy. This web site has more information:

What does it really take to bring a wind farm successfully to market? What can the numbers look like, and what kinds of business models and financing vehicles will be best suited to your unique needs?

This course will offer utilities and independent developers still new to wind power the essential tools and orientation to move ahead with confidence. It will help existing developers to bulletproof their plans and projects, while potential investors, partners and financiers will gain insights into the inner dynamics of wind business models so they can sharpen their due diligence, credit and valuation analysis.

* Understand business models, RECS, RPS and Production Tax Credits
* Learn the fundamentals that will help you validate and strengthen your wind farm plans
* Learn how pro formas work for a typical 100mw project
* Position projects for long-term success as an owner, and get the maximum valuation of your project in a merger or buyout

The Infocast, Inc. web site has registration information.

Wind

Clean Air Green Tour Rounds Out 2007 Promotion

John Davis

Clean Air TourJust five stops remain for the National Clean Air Green Tour. Covering over 50,000 miles in five months, the tour has been promoting green practices and has participated in the United Nations Billion Tree Campaign and the Adopt-a-Highway Programs along the way.

The last five stops will be made in Evans, GA on October 30th; Lexington, SC on October 31st; Mount Pleasant, SC on November 2nd; Savannah, GA on November 3rd and Jacksonville, FL on November 4th.

EPIC, Ethanol, News, Promotion

Distillers Grains Conference Success

Cindy Zimmerman

USGCThe first-ever International Distillers Grains Conference in Illinois earlier this week attracted nearly 600 participants, including 144 international importers and leaders in agriculture.

The conference, sponsored by theU.S. Grains Council, offered participants the opportunity to acquire information pertaining to U.S. distiller’s dried grains (DDG), including inclusion rates, quality assurance, transportation issues and an introduction to U.S. DDG exporters. At the same time, U.S. DDG exporters and interested parties heard from global DDG buyers regarding personal experiences with the ethanol co-products as well concerns.

“This unique conference was an outstanding opportunity for sellers and buyers to talk face-to-face about feeding and purchasing U.S. distiller’s grains,” said Ken Hobbie, USGC president and CEO. “Questions were answered, concerns were addressed, and export potential was strengthened. The ‘rock star’ sponsors of this event were the Iowa Corn Promotion Board, South Dakota Corn Utilization Council and with additional support from the Nebraska Corn Board. These top ethanol producing states reinforced to farmers there commitment to increasing demand for U.S. feed grains, both domestically and across our borders.”

conferences, corn, Distillers Grains, Ethanol, News

Green Vision Goes Online

John Davis

GreenEnergyTV.comAlternative energy enthusiasts looking to see some renewable fuels in action can now access a vast array of demonstrations online. GreenEnergyTV.com describes itself as an Online Television Channel that allows millions of viewers worldwide to get plugged in to what’s going on with alternative energy.

Though having been launched only in January 2007, Green Energy TV now has viewers from 104 countries and 6 continents going to www.greenenergytv.com (Source: Google Analytics as of 10/07).

We know that people can and want to make a difference by showing and sharing with the world what they are doing to be green. We welcome companies, individuals, families, schools, kids, teachers and organizations to Upload & Watch videos on the site. It’s free to Upload & Watch videos. Our viewers can search and view the solutions that address their specific need. Videos are also sought from companies, inventors, colleges and universities with existing or breakthrough green energy technology that is waiting to be discovered and marketed to the world. We are a community and a network that is changing the world through Green Media coverage.

Videos we air include: Solar Energy, Wind Power, Hydro Power, Hydrogen, Fuels, Geothermal, Wave/Tidal Energy, Energy Conservation, Recycling, Hybrid vehicles, Organic, Green Building, Recycling, and more.

Biodiesel, Cellulosic, Energy, Ethanol, Flex Fuel Vehicles, Hydrogen, Propane, Solar, Wind