I just finished up a day at Syngenta Biotechnology, Inc. in Raleigh, NC. Although I blogged the event on AgWired I did run into an interesting story about ethanol. Syngenta is developing an amylase enzyme trait into corn which they hope to have on the market by 2008. In this picture a Syngenta scientist is conducting a simple iodine test for starch. That’s because the amylase enzyme speeds up starch conversion to sugar.

The E-Squadron
Ethanol-fueled airplanes are on the program for an air show at the Sioux Falls Regional Airport this weekend. The Vanguard Squadron of Sioux Falls is a four-plane formation group that flies in air shows across the country. I had a chance to meet the entire squadron last week in Sioux Falls at the
Fill Up, Feel Good on the Highway
The latest “Fill Up, Feel Good” podcast from the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council is about ethanol hitting the highway. Ethanol was the official fuel sponsor of the Interstate Highway System 50th Anniversary convoy across America last month and this report features some of the comments that were made about ethanol during the event. The “Fill up, Feel Good” podcast …
Riding the Ethanol Express
Truck pulling is another racing event that is being fueled by ethanol. This is Scott Jensen with the Ethanol Express Pulling Team and here is an interview Chuck did recently with Scott explaining what he does and how ethanol plays a role: Jensen Interview (3 min MP3)
KC,MO Performance Weekend
After leaving Washington, DC and the convoy I’ve been travelling with for the last 2 weeks it was on to Kansas City for the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council’s “Performance Weekend.” This is a weekend of activities for EPIC members that includes Sunday’s Kansas Lottery Indy 300 race.
Convoy Closing Ceremony
At the end of the cross country convoy adventure, we had one last press conference as our closing ceremony for the historic trip.
Badger State Ethanol
Board members of the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council are meeting in Kansas City this weekend and going to the Indy race Sunday at the Kansas Speedway. One of those members is John Malchine, CEO of Badger State Ethanol in Monroe, WI. We got a call this morning from Wisconsin radio station KFAW-AM to talk about ethanol and we had …
House Ag Committee Hearing
A four hour hearing of the House Agriculture Committee Thursday covered the waterfront on mainly ethanol, even though it was supposed to be on renewable fuels in general. After USDA’s Tom Dorr, the second panel offered some really interesting testimony on lots of new developments in the field. First up was Mark Gaalswyk, president of Easy Automation in Welcome, Minnesota …
Dorr Pays Tribute to Paul Dana
In testimony before the House Agriculture Committee Thursday, USDA Undersecretary Tom Dorr paid tribute to Indy race car driver and ethanol advocate Paul Dana for his contributions to the ethanol industry. “Last month I was in Indianapolis for an ethanol event at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway,” Dorr said. “While I was there I met Tanya Dana, the wife of Paul …
Local Radio Interview
At numerous times along the highway over the last couple weeks we’ve had media interview opportunities.