Expected big plantings of corn and soybeans underscore the need for a strong Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS). New estimates from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) show a possible record amount of soybeans expected to be planted this year and the fifth largest corn acreage to be planted as well. The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) says these factors show …
EPA’s Feeling About RFS? Depends Who’s Asking
How does the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) feel about its proposal to cut the amount of ethanol and biodiesel to be blended into the Nation’s fuel supply? Well, that depends on who the folks at the agency are talking to. Speaking before the House Appropriations Committee last week, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy seemed to backtrack on last January’s statements before …
Sen. Thune Meets with Ethanol Supporters
A team of four biofuels supporters had the chance to meet with Sen. John Thune (R-SD) last week while in Washington DC for the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) Biofuels Beltway March. In an interview following that meeting, Thune talked about some of the issues facing the biofuels industry, in particular the EPA proposal to lower volume requirements under the …
DF Cast: Lawmakers Listening to Ethanol Advocates
Ethanol backers got their voices heard during the recent American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) Biofuels Beltway March in Washington, D.C. And at least some lawmakers were listening. In this edition of the Domestic Fuel Cast, we talk to Rep. Rodney Davis (R-IL), Sen. Mike Johanns (R-NE), and Sen. John Thune (R-SD), who met with ACE and its supporters and all …
Shaw has Ethanol Support for Congress
A candidate for Congress believes his background in ethanol will help him in the upcoming primary and general election. And for Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) Executive Director Monte Shaw, who has served in that role for nearly 10 years and now is running for the 3rd Congressional District seat, that background runs pretty deep. “This is Iowa. If agriculture …
Global Ethanol Output to Exceed 90 Billion Litres
The latest forecast calls for global ethanol production to exceed 90 billion litres, or about 24 billion gallons, in 2014. The Global Annual Ethanol Production Forecast from the Global Renewable Fuels Alliance (GRFA), in cooperation with F.O. Licht, estimates the world’s ethanol output will peak at 90.38 billion litres this year. That amounts to an increase of almost 2.7% growth …
Ethanol Report From RFA in DC
After the ACE Biofuels Beltway March, I was able to stop by and visit with Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Bob Dinneen in his Washington DC office and we covered the waterfront on issues currently facing the ethanol industry. In this Ethanol Report, Dinneen discusses what he’s hearing about the EPA proposal to lower the RFS, the latest anti-RFS …
BIO Report Says Lowering RFS Will Increase GHG
A new white paper from the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) finds that lowering the volume requirements for biofuels under the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) as proposed by the administration will lead to an increase in emissions of greenhouse gases next year. According to Brent Erickson, Executive Vice President of BIO’s Industrial & Environmental Section and lead author of the special …
Synthetic Chromosome Could Help Biodiesel, Ethanol
The scientific world today is all a-buzz about the world’s first yeast synthetic chromosome, and the discovery could help the biodiesel and ethanol industries. This article from the Christian Science Monitor says researchers have put together man-made DNA into the synthetic version of a chromosome, a development expected to have implications for the green fuels. “For me, one of most …
The Littlest Lobbyist for Ethanol
Wearing a tie and sporting a “Don’t Mess with the RFS” button, 10-year-old Ethan Fagen was the youngest of the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) Biofuels Beltway marchers this week on Capitol Hill. Ethan came along with his grandfather, Ron Fagen of Fagen, Inc., and was right in the trenches handing out materials and talking about the benefits of ethanol, …