USDA Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Stephen Vaden filled in for his boss at the 2025 Farm Progress Show Tuesday, chatting on the mainstage with Mike Pearson of This Week in AgriBusiness and answering question from farm reporters on site, expressing the administration’s strong support for domestic biofuels. “I think it’s fair to say that the second Trump administration has been …
More Corn Shows Need for Ethanol Expansion
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s August Supply and Demand Estimate calls for sharply higher supplies, greater domestic use and exports, and larger ending stocks, which all highlight the need to remove artificial regulatory barriers that are undercutting demand and constraining market opportunities for both corn and ethanol, according to the Renewable Fuels Association. For 2024/25, larger corn exports are partly …
USDA Peru Trade Mission Includes Ethanol
A USDA trade mission arrived in Lima, Peru today to work on expanding market access and boosting U.S. agricultural exports to address the $3.66 billion trade deficit with Peru. Export prospects are focused on a number of commodities including beef, pork, poultry, dairy products, ethanol, wine and distilled spirits. “I am honored to lead this delegation to Lima as we …
Rollins Talks Ethanol With Fox News
Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins has taken a much more visible role in the new Trump Administration than previous agriculture secretaries, appearing three times this month already on Fox News, most recently this past Sunday. In a wide-ranging interview with Shannon Bream, Rollins talked about a number of issues, from tariffs and trade to the price of eggs, and spent …
Ag Secretary Gets Earful About E15
Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins heard a lot about the ethanol industry’s need for year-round, nationwide E15 during her trip to Iowa yesterday, starting with her visit to the Elite Octane ethanol facility in Atlantic, Iowa. “We’re very bullish for the next three years with President Trump leading the way. The seeds of policy change to drive profitability for our …
USDA Secretary Announces HBIIP Funding in Iowa
Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins visited an Iowa ethanol plant Monday to announce USDA will release obligated funding under the Higher Blends Infrastructure Incentive Program (HBIIP) for 543 projects totaling $537 million in 29 states. That funding had been included in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Secretary Rollins made the announcement at Elite Octane in Atlantic, Iowa, along with an …
Secretary Rollins to Visit Ethanol Plant
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins will be in Iowa Monday, March 31, with a full schedule that includes a visit to an ethanol plant. Secretary Rollins will start the day with at Elite Octane in Atlantic, Iowa, where she will be joined by Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA), Reps. Zach Nunn and Mariannette Miller-Meeks, and Iowa …
Groups Provide Climate Smart Ag Comments
Biofuels groups submitted comments this week to USDA on its interim rule for climate-smart agriculture guidance to support the new 45Z tax credit for clean fuel producers. The Renewable Fuels Association emphasized the importance of policies that empower farmers while ensuring a robust and efficient renewable fuels market. RFA highlighted the benefits of a book-and-claim supply chain management system, which …
Sec. Rollins Applauded for E15 Support
New U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins received a standing ovation from thousands of farmers across the country Sunday as she made an appearance at the Commodity Classic in Denver on the Trade Show Main Stage. Rollins brought a message from President Trump. “He wants all of you to know that he hears you. He knows that times have been …
Ag Secretary Nominee Faces Questions on Biofuels Support
President Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Agriculture faced questions about her support of biofuels during her Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) challenged Rollins’ previous support of policy against biofuels when she was CEO of the Texas Public Policy Foundation from 2003-2018. “To be clear, coming from Texas, I was a massive defender of fossil fuels …