Legendary “Ethanol Answer Man” Larry Johnson was honored posthumously with the American Coalition for Ethanol‘s highest award, the Merle Anderson Award, named after the organization’s founder. Johnson passed passed away July 19, 2020 at the age of 76.

Most famous for driving the ethanol “answer van” around the Midwest to address questions from the public about the benefits of ethanol, Johnson was a Minnesota farmer who saw ethanol as a way to help rescue the rural economy from the 1980s farm crisis. As the former President of the Minnesota Corn Growers Association and member of the National Corn Growers Association Board of Directors, Larry was also instrumental in pushing for public policies to benefit farmers and the ethanol industry. The award was accepted by Larry’s wife, Sandy, and children Adam, Aaron and Angela.