U.S. ethanol exports hit record levels in 2025 and USDA Foreign Agricultural Service administrator Daniel Whitley told ethanol industry representatives last week that the Trump administration is delivering unprecedented public-private support to keep the momentum going.
Speaking at the National Ethanol Conference, Whitley outlined the agency’s three pillars — trade policy, market intelligence, and market development — and highlighted a surge in funding. “Our mission is very simple,” Whitley said. “It’s one sentence: Increase U.S. agricultural exports. That’s it.”
The administration’s new America First Trade Promotion Program (AFTPP) will inject $285 million this year, on top of the $600 million already deployed through the Regional Agricultural Promotion Program and traditional Market Access Program dollars. “We’ve got more money out on the street than ever before in the history of our agency,” Whitley said.
The ethanol industry’s achievements drew special praise. “You guys have just had an amazing year. I think you’ve had the best export year on record at $4.8 billion,” Whitley said, crediting innovation that has pushed blend walls from E5 to E15 in key markets. He noted the very first Trump mission, led by Agriculture Secretary Rollins to the United Kingdom, secured a dedicated tariff-rate quota for U.S. ethanol.
Looking ahead, Whitley pointed to Southeast Asia as the next frontier, citing Vietnam’s move toward E15 and opportunities in Indonesia. “The moment that we get American products into another market, we’ve instantly — and I mean instantly — made the consumers in that market better off,” he said.He closed with a call to action: participate in every available program and make industry voices heard at the U.S. Trade Representative’s office. With record funding, new trade tools, and strong administration backing, Whitley predicted “many, many, many record years to come” for American ethanol.
NEC26 remarks - Daniel Whitley, USDA (22:34)