The annual Farm Progress Show is heading back to Iowa this week and Boone, Iowa will be swarming with thousands of attendees checking out the latest and greatest in agricultural and energy technologies and products. One group who will be showcasing its work is the Iowa Corn Growers Association (ICGA), a state affiliate of the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA). …
California Releases 2012 Bioenergy Action Plan
California has released its 2012 Bioenergy Action Plan with the goal of improving the timeline to market of energy development, job creation and protection of public health and safety. The state defines bioenergy as energy produced from organic waste such as forest, urban and agricultural that would otherwise go into a landfill or be burned. The state is looking at …
Chemtex to Build US Advanced Biofuels Plant
Chemtex have received word from the USDA that they will receive $99 million to help build an advanced biofuels plant in the United States. The plant will be located in Sampson County, North Carolina and once operational, will produce 20 million gallons of biofuels a years from energy crops. Construction is slated to begin this year. Chemtex has selected Novozymes as its enzymes …
Setting the Record Straight On Drought & RFS
The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) is setting the record straight on the truth behind what would happen if the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) allowed a waiver of the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2). Garry Niemeyer, NCGA president sent a letter to every member of the House of Representatives along with EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, that included corrects inaccuracies. “Unfortunately, the …
10 Ways Ethanol is Helping Livestock Producers
Despite the lack of rain that is occurring across the U.S. this summer, the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IFRA) has released a list of 10 ways ethanol producers are helping livestock farmers during the drought. IRFA says that although the drought is having a profound impact on crop production, because of ethanol production, there is larger corn crop and more …
Alltech Installs Ethanol Distillation Tower
Alltech has installed a 60-foot ethanol distillation tower at its production facility in Springfield, Ky. The plant produces natural animal health and nutrition products. The company invested $4 million dollars in new yeast-production technology, a core of their nutrition products. The new system has the ability to process 52,000 lbs of liquid yeast each day and produce 20,000 gallons of …
Food, Livestock Industries Blast RFS
The Wall Street Journal published an article, “The Ethanol Mandate is Worse Than the Drought,” in which Smithfield Food CEO Larry Pope blasted the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS). This is another example of the orchestrated campaign against the RFS. In the article, ethanol production is blamed for the rising cost of food. In response to the article, Brian Jennings, Executive …
Payments Made to Renewable Feedstocks Producers
Nearly $19.4 million in payments to 125 advanced biofuel producers growing non-food feedstocks for use in development for biofuels has been made by the UDSA. The funding is provided through USDA’s Bioenergy Program for Advanced Biofuels that was established in the 2008 Farm Bill. The goal of the program is to support the research, investment and infrastructure needed to build …
Ag Facility Early Adopter of Solar Technology
Kirschenman Enterprises, an agricultural company that grows, packs ands ships potatoes, grapes and watermelon, has installed a solar system at their cold storage facility in Bakersfield, California. The fixed tilt ground and roof-mounted 510kW solar electric installation features Coenergy Solar’s PH235P solar modules and SunTop and SolarLinea II mounting systems. The solar system has the capacity to produce 768,182 kWh …
Sorghum for Ethanol Increases
Early March is an important time for the agricultural industry when they come together for Commodity Classic. With the challenges facing both the ag and energy industries, which go hand-in-hand, Terry Swanson, Chairman of the National Sorghum Producers said, “We have to be unified.” When compared to other commodities used to produce biofuels, sorghum growers are a relatively small group. …