An informed consumer is the ethanol industry’s most effective tool for increasing awareness of the cleaner, renewable fuel. A national survey by the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council, or EPIC, found that when respondents are provided with relevant information about ethanol, their interest to purchase increased by nearly 20 percent. “These findings demonstrate that when consumers are presented with the …
Biofuels Big at NAFB
The National Association of Farm Broadcasters annual meeting in Kansas City brings about 100 broadcasters and a few hundred more agricultural industry company and organization representatives together each year. Hundreds of interviews are done in a span of six hours during an event called “Trade Talk.” Ethanol and biodiesel were especially big topics at Trade Talk this year – at …
Make That Six Times
Mark Thomas is now a six-time International Hot Rod Association Funny Car champion. Thomas, a farmer from Louisville, Ohio, won the International Hot Rod Association Alcohol Funny Car Division world championship once again this year, beating his nearest opponent by more than 100 points. The World Champions will be crowned Saturday, December 9, at the 2006 IHRA Awards Banquet in …
Ethanol Message Lights up Times Square
Ethanol is on the big screen in New York City during Farm-City Week this year. A 30-second video featuring the benefits of farm-based ethanol will be displayed on the new NBC Universal High Definition screen in Times Square November 13-26. The campaign includes the week prior to Thanksgiving, which is national Farm-City week, and it will be seen by millions …
Domestic Fuels Go Hollywood
Ethanol and biodiesel took center stage in Hollywood over the weekend with the World Premiere of the award-winning “Freedom Fuels,” directed and produced by Martin O’Brien. The picture debuted on November 11 at the “Third Annual Artivist Film Festival and Awards” in Hollywood. “Freedom Fuels” received an award for best short in the Environmental Preservation category. According to the filmaker’s …
US Farms Studies
US Farms, Inc. and Imperial Ethanol, Inc. are doing a feasibility study for an ethanol plant to be located in Imperial Valley, Ca. BBI International will be doing the study. According to a US Farms press release, US Farms president Yan K. Skwara said, “BBI will be targeting at utilizing sugar cane and corn as feed stocks for Ethanol in …
SD Plants Merge With MN Company
Advanced BioEnergy LLC of Minneapolis and Heartland Grain Fuels of Dakota Fuels Inc. are joining forces. With the agreement, two ethanol plants in South Dakota will merge with the Minnesota company. Under the transaction, Heartland owners will invest in Advanced BioEnergy and, for that investment, will receive about $16.8 million in cash and about 2.6 million newly issued share units …
Biomass Potential
As cellulosic ethanol looms on the horizon with the goal of producing ethanol from biomass, the questions are how much biomass is there and how much will it cost to convert to ethanol? Nathan Danielson of Biocognito addresses those questions in a recent Ethanol Technical Update for the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC). Danielson cites a Department of Energy …
Biofuels Could Complicate WTO
The International Food and Agricultural Policy Trade Council has conducted the first comprehensive assessment of how World Trade Organization disciplines may apply to the rapidly expanding biofuels sector. The study sets out key WTO issues that need to be clarified, such as the classification of biofuels and their feedstocks and whether they are to be considered industrial, agricultural or environmental …