After nearly four months of having the nomination of Iowa’s Bill Northey to the U.S. Department of Agriculture held up by Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) brought it up on the Senate floor Wednesday and called on other colleagues to back him up. Northey was nominated to be USDA Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation in …
Perdue Discusses State of Rural Economy
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue briefed members of the House Agriculture Committee Tuesday on the current state of the rural economy and USDA’s farm bill priorities. “We’re in a very different situation than when you last contemplated a farm bill,” said Perdue in his opening remarks. “The state of the rural economy is fragile.” Secretary Perdue was asked about a number …
Pruitt Open to Ethanol as Octane Enhancer
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt appeared before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee last week for an oversight hearing that touched on a variety of issues, including ethanol. Pruitt was questioned by Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) about the advanced biofuel pathway for distillers sorghum oil and the comment period that just closed on that January 26, and …
Back to the Biodiesel Future
Back in 1993, biodiesel was just an idea. But thanks to the efforts of pioneers like Doug Pickering, Kenlon Johannes, and Bill Ayers, it has become the industry it is today. Doug and Bill built the first facility to produce biodiesel – two 55 gallon drums on stands with a sump pump and a garden hose. Kenlon, who was with …
New Report Highlights Biodiesel Sustainability
A new study on biodiesel’s lifecycle energy and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission effects updates and reaffirms the long-understood benefits of using the renewable fuel. Results confirm that biodiesel compared to petroleum diesel reduces GHG emissions by 72 percent and fossil fuel use by 80 percent. The study, which was released as the National Biodiesel Conference kicked off last week, is …
RFA Cites Small Refiner Exemption Concerns
Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) president and CEO Bob Dinneen sent a letter last week to EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt expressing concern about a troubling “lack of transparency” in EPA’s management of the Renewable Fuel Standard’s (RFS) small refinery exemption provisions that could “destabilize the market for renewable fuels and undermine Congress’s goals for the RFS program.” EPA has the ability …
Driving Ethanol Policy Priorities
As attacks on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) have gotten more creative, the need for all segments of the industry to work together has become critical to maintaining the law as Congress intended. We met up Growth Energy Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Chris Bliley for this episode of the Driving Ethanol podcast after he appeared on a panel at …
Censky Receives Biodiesel Pioneer Award
USDA Deputy Secretary Steve Censky was presented with the Eye on Biodiesel Pioneer award at the 2018 National Biodiesel Conference Wednesday. As the long-time CEO of the American Soybean Association, Censky was instrumental in the growth and advancement of biodiesel over the years. ASA’s primary focus as an organization is policy development and implementation of soybean farmer issues, including biodiesel. …
Eye on Biodiesel Initiative Award
This year’s Eye on Biodiesel Initiative award was presented to HERO BX founder Samuel P. “Pat” Black, III. With a vision to help revitalize Erie, Pennsylvania with a return to a booming manufacturing sector, Black founded Lake Erie Biofuels dba HERO BX in 2005. HERO BX is the largest biodiesel plant in the Northeastern United States, and they operate a …
Eye on Biodiesel Impact Award
Minnesota has been a leader in the biodiesel industry for decades and Mike Youngerberg has been working since 1986 to advance soybean industry priorities as a member of the Minnesota Soybean Research and Promotion Council and the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association staff. Mike’s dedication earned him the Eye on Biodiesel Impact award this year. Mike currently serves as the Executive …