The latest data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration show that ethanol set a record for its share of America’s gasoline in 2021, averaging 10.34 percent of every gallon sold. The final EIA data for 2021 also confirmed a significant rebound in both ethanol production and consumption after COVID-related shutdowns in 2020.

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper said the data underscore the resilience of the U.S. ethanol industry and highlight the fact that the so-called “E10 blend wall” continues to crumble.

“Ethanol’s share of our nation’s gasoline continues to rise, as consumers are increasingly drawn to lower-cost, lower-carbon options like E15 and E85,” Cooper said. “Based on the EIA data, we estimate that 600-700 million gallons of ethanol were consumed in blends other than E10, proving that the oil industry’s so-called ‘blend wall’ is nothing but a figment of their imagination. As war in eastern Europe destabilizes global petroleum markets and crude oil prices continue to rise, our nation’s leaders should be taking steps to increase the use of cleaner-burning, homegrown ethanol. We have enough unused production capacity in the ethanol industry to entirely replace U.S. crude oil imports from Russia.”

Cooper touched on many of these themes in his State of the Industry address and press availability at last week’s National Ethanol Conference.