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Senate Ag Holds Hearing on High Gas Prices

Cindy Zimmerman

How domestic fuel can fight higher gas prices was the focus of a hearing today before the Senate agriculture committee.

jeff broin“Fundamentals and Farming: Evaluating High Gas Prices and How New Rules and Innovative Farming Can Help” featured a panel that included POET CEO Jeff Broin who testified on how the industry needs market access to help alleviate high gas prices by increasing ethanol supplies through expansion in cellulosic ethanol.

“The solution to keep gas prices lower is for American motorists to have an alternative to gasoline,” Broin said. “That alternative is available today – in homegrown, renewable ethanol.”

Broin also encouraged ethanol tax credit reform by redirecting those funds to build out ethanol blender pump infrastructure along with a requirement for Flex Fuel Vehicles and loan guarantees for dedicated ethanol pipelines. “With those elements in place, the oil industry would no longer enjoy exclusive access to 90 percent of the fuel supply,” Broin said. “The best way to lower prices for consumers is to allow ethanol to compete with oil in the marketplace.”

Listen to or download Broin’s testimony here: Jeff Broin testimony

Also testifying was Kansas livestock and grain producer Stan Townsend, a sixth generation farmer, who talked about the high cost of farming. “In 1988, when I started, a new tractor was $41,000. That tractor today is $281,000,” he said.

As a livestock producer, Townsend said he understands the impact of higher corn prices yet supports ethanol production. “Ethanol has provided the industry with the unique opportunity to incorporate the use of high-quality DDGs into our feed cycle, one of the many ways we can mitigate our costs and remain profitable,” he said.

Listen to or download Townsend’s testimony here: Townsend testimony

Audio, biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News

Process Optimization Seminar Heading to Houston

Joanna Schroeder

process optimizationBack by popular demand, the fifth Process Optimization Seminar is heading to Houston on April 27-29, 2011. The event is designed for plant managers, operations managers, technical Managers, lab Managers and general managers who are ready to get more out of their ethanol plant. The three-day course is taught by leading industry technical leaders from Phibro Ethanol Performance Group, Fermentis, Novozymes, and Fremont Industries. This session, presenters will focus on topics ranging from overviews of new process technologies to help lower carbon output, to technical reviews of new products in development to strategies for better human resource management.

Tom Slunecka of Phibro says the seminars have been very popular with ethanol plant operators and managers. “There just can’t be enough education, there’s always things changing and new technologies available,” Slunecka said. “We keep the class sizes very small so about 60 people are invited each time.”

Slunecka says this seminar will be a little different than the previous four. “This seminar is going to give managers some really tactical advantages to advance small, incremental changes in their plant,” he said. “It’s going to give management at the plant some new ideas and new ways to help their team get the absolute maximum out of the plant’s fermentation.”

Listen to Tom talk about what this seminar has to offer here: Tom Slunecka Interview

Guest speakers at the Houston event include:

    Randall Sigle – Renewable Fuels Ethanol Instructor, Northeast Community College, who will provide insight into people management.

    Doug Durante – Executive Director, Clean Fuels Development Coalition, who will provide an overview of the issues the ethanol industry is facing in Washington, DC and discuss the opportunities that may be available through carbon credits.
    Bill Roddy – Corporate Environmental Manager, ICM who will share insights on carbon modeling and life cycle assessments for shipments of ethanol to California.
    Dave Vander Griend, CEO, ICM who will discuss insights on next generation plants and other insights on an ever evolving industry.

In addition to the eduational sessions, participants can also engage in a Valero refinery tour, a tour of the SGS labs that includes a reception and dinner, and a chance to see the Houston Astros play the St. Louis Cardinals on April 28th.

Space is extremely limited. Register by April 15 to receive the early registration rate of $200 and includes all sessions, tours, meals and entertainment. Click here to register.

Audio, conferences, Education, Ethanol, Ethanol News

President Calls for Secure Energy Future

Cindy Zimmerman

President Obama today released his administration’s Blueprint for A Secure Energy Future that outlines the comprehensive national energy policy.

“In an economy that relies on oil, rising prices at the pump affect everybody – workers and farmers; truck drivers and restaurant owners,” said the president during a speech in Georgetown. “The only way for America’s energy supply to be truly secure is by permanently reducing our dependence on oil.”

As alternatives to oil, Obama voiced support for both natural gas and biofuels, “not just ethanol, but biofuels made from things like switchgrass, wood chips, and biomass.”

“That’s why we’re investing in things like fueling stations and research into the next generation of biofuels,” he said. “Over the next two years, we’ll help entrepreneurs break ground on four next-generation biorefineries – each with a capacity of more than 20 million gallons per year. And going forward, we should look for ways to reform biofuels incentives to make sure they meet today’s challenges and save taxpayers money.” Obama also urged the expansion of alternative vehicles in the federal fleet and announced that he is directing agencies to purchase 100% alternative fuel, hybrid, or electric vehicles by 2015.

The ethanol industry was pleased with the president’s comments. “America’s ethanol industry stands ready to work with the Obama Administration and Congress to transform current biofuel policies to reflect the evolving nature of the industry and the fiscal concerns voiced by many on Capitol Hill,” said Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) President and CEO Bob Dinneen. “That means we must think outside the box when it comes to incentivizing the use of ethanol, expanding the market for ethanol, and accelerating the commercialization of advanced ethanol technologies.”

“President Obama deserves credit for identifying both short and long term solutions to reducing our nation’s dependence on foreign oil by encouraging the increased use of ethanol and next generation biofuels. He particularly recognized the role of America’s farmers in the production of corn ethanol today and next-generation biofuels in the future. Ethanol is part of the solution, whether that ethanol comes from grain or cellulosic biomass,” said Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy.

The president also encouraged the increased use of other clean energy sources, including wind and solar and encouraged Congress to maintain critical investments in clean energy. “At a moment like this, sacrificing these investments would weaken our energy security and make us more dependent on oil, not less,” he said.

Fact sheet from the White House on America’s Energy Security

biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Government, Natural Gas, Solar, Wind

U.S. Ag Exports May Benefit From Japan Disaster

Chuck Zimmerman

The earthquake and tsunami disaster in Japan has repercussions in a variety of industries. Agriculture is no exception. Our latest ZimmPoll asked the question, “How will Japan disaster affect US exports?” 61% said it will increase exports while 23% said decrease and 17% said no impact. So how has this disaster affected agriculture in Japan? You can learn more in this interview I conducted with a Japanese ag journalist this week.

It’s mid term for the current administration in Washington, DC. So we thought it would be interesting to get your take on how you think our U.S. Secretary of Agriculture is doing. Here’s your chance to grade him. The new poll is now live and asks the question, “What mid-term grade would you give Ag Sec. Tom Vilsack?” Let us know what you think and thank you for participating.

ZimmPoll is sponsored by Rhea+Kaiser, a full-service advertising/public relations agency.

ZimmPoll

Study: Biodiesel Helps Soybean & Livestock Farmers

John Davis

A study funded by the United Soybean Board (USB) and soybean checkoff shows shows that biodiesel is a big boost for soybean growers, as well as helping poultry and livestock farmers.

This news release from the USB says that, over the past five years, biodiesel added 27 cents a bushel to the price of soybeans, giving American soybean farmers another $2.7 billion in net returns:

The study also found good news for the U.S. soybean industry’s biggest customer, the U.S. animal agriculture sector, which uses nearly 98 percent of the domestic supply of U.S. soybean meal. The increased demand for soybean oil resulted in a larger supply of U.S. soybean meal, decreasing feed prices paid by U.S. poultry, livestock and fish farmers by between $16 and $48 per ton in marketing years 2005-2009.

“As a soybean farmer, I’m thrilled to see that biodiesel puts this much extra money back in our pockets,” says Jim Schriver, chair of USB’s Domestic Marketing program and a soybean farmer from Montpelier, Ind. “But the study also shows that biodiesel helps us support our best customers by making feed more affordable. Lower feed prices help U.S. animal farmers stay competitive.”

Soybean oil remains the dominant feedstock for biodiesel production, and the soybean checkoff funds a large portion of the research and promotion of biodiesel through the National Biodiesel Board. Much of this funding has been used on testing to prove biodiesel’s performance, economic and environmental benefits.

The release goes on to point out that biodiesel supports 20,000 American jobs, putting more than $800 million into tax coffers in 2009.

Biodiesel, Soybeans

Nestle Chairman – Biofuels Are Immoral

Joanna Schroeder

The Chairman of Nestle, who just so happens to sit on the board of ExxonMobil, Peter Brabeck-Latmathe, lambasted global leaders for their support of “immoral” biofuel policies that are starving millions around the world earlier this week. In particular, he attacked the Obama administration for promoting corn-based ethanol and reserved no kind words for U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack who he claimed is making “absolutely flabbergasting” claims for America’s ability to produce food, feed and fiber.

This beat-down occurred during his speech at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) in New York and was published by The Independent. During his presentation he said, “Today, 35 per cent of US corn goes into biofuel. From an environmental point of view this is a nonsense, but more so when we are running out of food in the rest of the world.”

Brabeck-Latmathe continued, “It is absolutely immoral to push hundreds of millions of people into hunger and into extreme poverty because of such a policy, so I think – I insist – no food for fuel.”

The fuel versus food debate has been raging for several years. For each report that debunks the theory, another is published that places primary blame on rising food costs at the feet of America’s corn and ethanol industries. Yet, scores of economists have publicly acknowledged while there are dozens of factors that affect food prices, the current spike is being driven by speculators, a global increase in demand for protein and the unrest in the Middle East to name a few reasons.

National Corn Growers President Bart Schott responded to Brabeck-Letmathe’s comments. “It is scandalous, ludicrous and highly irresponsible for the chairman of a global conglomerate that tripled its profits last year to talk about higher corn prices forcing millions into starvation. Perhaps if Nestle is so concerned about food prices, its board will consider putting more of their $35.7 billion in 2010 profits back into poor communities. Just their profits alone represent more than half the entire farm value of the 2010 U.S. corn crop.”Read More

Commentary, corn, Ethanol, food and fuel, International, NCGA, Opinion, water

Poplar Trees Possible Candidate for Biofuels

Joanna Schroeder

Researchers at the Department of Energy’s BioEnergy Science Center may have discovered some clues that could lead to poplar trees as the next candidate for biofuels. The research is being led by Charles Wyman of the Bourns College of Engineering’s Center for Environmental Research and Technology at the University of California Riverside who is joined by teams from Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. They published their findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, “Lignin content in natural Populus variants affects sugar release.”

Basically, the team is looking for traits in poplar trees that will lead to better sugar release. The lignin found in the plant’s cells have been a major challenge to overcome in biofuel production because it must be converted to sugar for production; yet, its strong sugar bonds interfere with access to the carbohydrates, and thus access to the sugar.

Wyman explained, “The real driver for bioenergy is how to get sugar as cheaply as possible from these recalcitrant materials. We’re looking for clues as to which traits in these poplar materials will lead to better sugar release.”

The BESC researchers were able to quickly analyze volumes of poplar core samples through the use of a high-throughput screening method. The goal was to better understand the chemical factors that drive sugar yields. The work resulted in finding a correlation between one plant trait, the syringyl/guaiacyl (S/G) ratio, which are the building blocks of lignin, and increased yields.

“The conventional wisdom is that high lignin contents are bad for sugar release,” said lead author Michael Studer. “We unexpectedly found that this statement is only valid for low S/G ratios, while at high S/G ratios lignin does not negatively influence yields. However, replacement of carbohydrates with lignin reduces the maximum possible sugar release. Another interesting result was that the samples with the highest sugar release belonged to the group with average S/G ratios and lignin contents. This finding points to a need for deeper understanding of cell wall structure before plants can be rationally engineered for efficient biofuels production.”

During the project, the research team was able able to pinpoint certain popular samples that produced remarkably high sugar yields without pretreatment – a typical prerequisite in biomass to biofuel production. This could help to reduce the costs of production. The team believes that their research may lead the way for poplar cultivars to be grown for commercial testing and propagation and ultimately for biofuel production.

advanced biofuels, Cellulosic, Research

RFA Says Ethanol Evolution Must Be Part of US Energy Future

Cindy Zimmerman

bob dinneen As President Obama was preparing to outline his vision for America’s energy future in Washington this week, the president of the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) sent a letter to Obama urging him to reaffirm his commitment to the continued evolution of America’s ethanol industry.

In this “Ethanol Report” interview, RFA President and CEO Bob Dinneen notes that no other energy technology can match today’s domestic ethanol production. “You have to reflect on the fact that ethanol is not radioactive, it’s not going to damage the ecology on the Gulf coast, ethanol doesn’t even need a no-fly zone! And yet the only energy that’s really under attack today is ethanol,” he said.

Ethanol Report PodcastDinneen encourages the President to continue working with the industry and Congress on efforts to transform existing ethanol policies to address fiscal concerns while still helping ethanol grow and evolve. “The ethanol industry has stepped up to the plate and said we’re willing to reform our tax incentives so we can reduce costs,” he said. “I hope we’re looking more deeply at what we want our energy future to be. I hope we’re looking at all energy tax incentives – do we still need to be subsidizing petroleum, for example?”

President Obama is scheduled to outline his vision for America’s energy future in a speech in Washington tomorrow morning.

Listen to the Ethanol Report here: Ethanol Report on Energy Future

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA

The Convergence of First & Second Gen Biofuels

Joanna Schroeder

Often times, it appears that people pit first generation biofuel technologies against second generation biofuel technologies. This leads me to ask the question, Why can’t we all get along? Well, now we can with the convergence of conventional ethanol technologies and emerging algal biomass technologies being developed by BioProcess Algae.

BioProcess Algae is based in Portsmouth, Rhode Island and the company is designing, manufacturing and operating systems that enable controlled, economical cultivation of algal biomass using attached growth technology. According to CEO Tim Burns, the technology was developed through its water company, BioProcess H2O when they looked at the attached growth platform and how using their fixed films could be used as an effective way to grow algae. So in 2008 they formed BioProcess Algae, which is the sum of four companies: BioProcess H2O, Clarcor, Green Plains Renewable Energy, and NTR.

Fast forward to 2011. Burns said the company has developed a three-prong business strategy to commercialize the technology. In partnership with Green Plains Renewable Energy (GPRE), they selected Shenandoah, Iowa to be the site where they prove out their technology at commercial scale. In a very simple terms, BioProcess Algae is using the plant’s CO2 emissions (aka flue gas) as a nutrient source to grow the algae. The plants also share waste water and waste heat.

Burns explained that the first phase began in October 2009 when they first integrated their Grower Harvester bioreactors directly to the plant’s CO2 exhaust gases. During this initial phase, they developed a set of metrics that included productivity and uptime targets. They exceeded all of their targets. Next, Phase 2 began. They have completed a 4,000 square foot facility that houses all the infrastructure needed to support their bioreactors including full process control and dewatering.

So what exactly does this sharing of resources mean for both technologies in terms of efficiency and production costs?Read More

algae, Audio, biofuels, Ethanol, water

Biofools or Bio-Heroes?

Cindy Zimmerman

It’s pretty much a badge of honor in the biofuels industry to be nominated by Friends of the Earth as “Biofool of the Year.”

Growth Energy is calling this year’s nominees “Bio-Heroes” in a blog post today.

“Critics of biofuels would go to great lengths to distort the truth and smear the records of supporters. One doesn’t have to look far to find the silliness to which some would stoop. Friends of the Earth, one such group determined to embarrass themselves into irrelevance, went so far as to try to attract media attention to their poorly uninformed and sadly named “Biofool of the Year” award,” reads the post. “At Growth Energy, instead of heaping ridicule on leaders that want to break our country’s addiction to foreign oil, we choose to laud them, and ask others to support their efforts.”

This year’s nominees are Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), General Wesley Clark, Secretary Tom Vilsack, and the editors of Domestic Fuel – Chuck and Cindy Zimmerman. Vote for your favorite here.

biofuels, Environment, Ethanol, Growth Energy