October Ethanol Production Ties Record

Cindy Zimmerman

Total U.S. ethanol production for 2006 is expected to be almost 5 billion gallons, but it will be a while yet before the official numbers are calculated. The latest figures from the Energy Information Administration are for October at 333,000 barrels per day (b/d), which is equal to September’s record production. According to the Renewable Fuels Association, the U.S. ethanol …

Ethanol, News

Discover Wisconsin on Ethanol

Cindy Zimmerman

The first Choice Destination for 2007 on “Discover Wisconsin” isn’t so much a destination as a way of getting there. The latest episode of the state’s tourism television show focuses on Wisconsin’s role in the domestic fuels industry, specifically E85. According to the show’s website: With car manufacturers like GM offering a variety of E85-friendly vehicles, the new fuel is …

Ethanol, News

Michigan Marching Orders

Cindy Zimmerman

As part of a series on “Making it in Michgan” the Associated Press did a report on the state’s campaign to become the nation’s leader in alternative fuels. LANSING, Mich. (AP) – Gov. Jennifer Granholm laid it on the line for the members of the Michigan Renewable Fuels Commission. “We want to be the state that shows the nation how …

Biodiesel, Ethanol, News

Ethanol Factor in Planting Decisions

Cindy Zimmerman

High corn prices driven by increased demand for ethanol are causing farmers of various commodities to seriously consider switching crops for 2007. Farm Futures reports that Nebraska farmers are considering planting corn in place of wheat they’ve already sowed. With wheat futures high, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension cropping systems specialist Bob Klein says Nebraska producers planted probably 15% more wheat …

Ethanol, News

Biofuels Top Ag Stories For 2006

Cindy Zimmerman

The dramatic growth in biofuels made from crops is the runaway favorite for the year’s top stories in agriculture. “Emergence of biofuels as a factor in the farm economy really came out in 2006,” says USDA chief economist Keith Collins in a USDA Radio News report. “As that became realised in the second half of 2006 we saw commodity markets …

Biodiesel, Ethanol, News

Ethanol Wins New Lottery Game

Cindy Zimmerman

The newest scratch ticket lottery game in Kansas is offering an E85 vehicle as a grand prize, according to a release from the Kansas Lottery. The new Truck & Bucks game was developed by the Lottery, in partnership with the 3i Show and the GMC Division of General Motors. Players will have a chance to win a 2007 GMC Sierra …

Ethanol, News

Idaho to Consider Biofuel Incentives

Cindy Zimmerman

The Idaho Legislature will be considering proposals in the coming new year to make ethanol and biodiesel more attractive to distributors in that state. Here’s the beginning of a very good article from Bonner County Daily Bee reporter Lucy Dukes about the biofuels climate in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. COEUR d’ALENE — Cindy James would consider using an ethanol-blended fuel if …

Biodiesel, Ethanol, News

Biofuels Make Very Good Year For ADM

Cindy Zimmerman

2007 has been a pretty good year for Archer Daniels Midland Company, with investors looking at gains of over 30 percent thanks in a large part to increased demand for ethanol. ADM earnings skyrocketed this year, according to an AP report, more than doubling in its fiscal first quarter ended Sept. 30 to easily beat Wall Street estimates. In the …

Ethanol, News

Iowa’s Ethanol Production Soaring

Cindy Zimmerman

By the end of the year, Iowa will have produced a record 1.5 billion gallons of ethanol, more than one quarter of all the ethanol produced in the nation this year. According to the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, Iowa ethanol plants will produce 36 percent more ethanol than last year’s 1.1 billion gallons. With 26 biorefinies in operation, Iowa already …

Ethanol, News