GROWMARK, based in Bloomington, Illinois has a long history with selling renewable fuels. The company began marketing ethanol back in the late 1970s. Today, they are a major player in Illinois in selling high quality biodiesel. I had the chance to sit down with Mark Dehner, the company’s marketing manager of refined and renewable fuels during the National Biodiesel Board …
Biofuels Part of Bright Outlook for Farm Economy
The full House Agriculture Committee held a hearing today to hear from Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack about the outlook for the farm economy, which is being supported by strong demand for ethanol and biodiesel. Vilsack told the committee that the farm economy continues to remain strong with U.S. agricultural exports, farm cash receipts and net farm income projected at …
Chromatin Sorghum Hybrids Topping the Charts
In 2010 biomass and sugar testing programs, Chromatin sorghum hybrids have demonstrated top performance when compared to other materials from public, private and commercial sorghum collections. This according to a company press release. Chromatin is a biotechnology company and its subsidiary, Sorghum Partners, LLC, sells sorghum seed products to growers. Several trials were conducted. In the first trial, 50 biomass …
New Ethanol Fuel Finder App from RFA
The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) is excited to announce the release of a new Flex-Fuel Station Locator application for iPhones, iPads and the iPod Touch – free and available from the App Store. The Flex-Fuel Station Locator iPhone application will help users pinpoint any E85 (85% ethanol, 15% gasoline) station in the United States, providing the user with station locations, …
CARB Tackling Crude Oil’s Carbon Intensity in LCFS
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is getting ready to move forward with determining the carbon intensity of crude oil. On February 17, they are holding a Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) Crude Oil Screening Workgroup Meeting. For those following the LCFS debate, you’ll note that still under fire is CARB’s final ruling on the carbon intensity levels given for …
Propel’s Iacoponi Appointed to LCFS Advisory Panel
Jim Iacoponi, Vice President of Operations for Propel Fuels has been appointed to the California Air Resources Board (CARB’s) Low Carbon Fuels Standard (LCFS) Advisory Panel. Alongside other qualified industry members of the panel, Iacoponi will provide guidance to CARB as they monitor and evaluate progress of the LCFS program. Propel, as California’s largest retail provider of alternative fuels such …
Ethanol Report on New Advanced Ethanol Council
In this edition of “The Ethanol Report” podcast, we hear from the executive director of the newly formed Advanced Ethanol Council (AEC), Brooke Coleman. Coleman has been involved with the ethanol industry for over a decade, most recently as Executive Director of the New Fuels Alliance. He says that the new organization came together around a common theme. “The common …
Unconventional Reality of Press & Public Opinion
They say that imitation is the highest form of flattery and if this is true, than the biofuels industry should be flattered that their communication messages have been hijacked: biofuels are good for the country, good for our economy and good for the environment. But the industry having its messages hijacked by others – natural gas, coal, the petroleum industry, …
Advanced Ethanol Council Created
Leaders in the world’s advanced ethanol industry announced today that they are joining with the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) to form the Advanced Ethanol Council (AEC). The new council will be focused on accelerating the commercialization of advanced ethanol “through visionary public policies that unleash the full potential of these advanced technologies and launch new market opportunities for ethanol.” The …
Republicans Turn Their Ire Toward Ethanol
Rep. John Sullivan (R-OK) has submitted a proposed amendment to the House Continuing Resolution, a short-term resolution that was enacted during the lame duck session last year that would fund the government through March 2011, that would block E15 from gaining market share throughout the U.S. This past January, the EPA approved the use of E15, a blend of 15 …