Two more biodiesel producers have been added to the roster of those companies meeting an important quality assurance standard.
This press release from the National Biodiesel Board congratulates Nova Biofuels’ 60-million-gallon capacity operation in Seneca, Illinois and the 30-million-gallon Prairie Pride, Inc. soybean-crushing and biodiesel refinery in Nevada, Missouri for meeting the NBB’s quality assurance program, BQ-9000:
“BQ-9000 certification confirms the commitment to the quality standards we began with at the onset of production last spring,” said Dave Adams, Nova Biofuels-Seneca Quality Manager. “Participating in BQ-9000 provides additional assurance to our customer base that we produce high quality biodiesel and the product they buy from us is produced through a certified process. We recognize that the consistent production of quality biodiesel is critical to our success and to our customers.”
BQ-9000 is a voluntary fuel quality assurance program, overseen by the National Biodiesel Accreditation Commission (NBAC) and adopted by the National Biodiesel Board and the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association. BQ-9000 couples the foundations of universally accepted quality management systems with the product specification ASTM D 6751, and has become the premier quality designation in the industry. The program covers storage, sampling, testing, blending, shipping, distribution and fuel management practices. Any biodiesel producer or marketer is eligible to become either a BQ-9000 Producer or BQ-9000 Marketer.
Thirty-two biodiesel production facilities have been certified under the BQ-9000 program as producers with another 14 certified as marketers.
Mike Thede of Palmer was elected Chairman of the board. Thede represents general farming interests on the board and also serves as president of the Howard County Farm Bureau and sits on the United Soybean Board. 
Among the challenges outlined by President Barack Obama in his 
A 130 giant wind turbine project planned for off the shore of Cape Cod, Massachusetts has received the green light from a key federal agency, but it still faces some opposition from one of its powerful neighbors.
The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) has announced that E85 sales in Iowa remained strong during the third quarter of 2008 despite rapidly falling gasoline prices. According to the Iowa Department of Revenue, sales of E85 by Iowa retailers reached 2,208,837 gallons during July, August, and September of 2008 – more than double the 1,270,587 gallons sold during the same period in 2007. 
The auction will take place between March 16 and March 31. The merger of the two companies was final on April 1, 2008.
Plants to be auctioned include two in Nebraska, two in Iowa and one each in North Dakota, Minnesota and Michigan – all were originally owned by U.S. BioEnergy. The only former U.S. BioEnergy plant not included in the auction is the Marion, South Dakota facility because it is backed by a different lender, but it is currently idle. In fact, only four of VeraSun’s 17 plants are still producing ethanol at this point.
The vast majority of city government vehicles in Boulder, Colorado will run on biodiesel or ethanol within the next few years, if city planners have their way.
“Osage Bio Energy’s barley feedstock approach provides a substantial opportunity for local farmers and viable sources of ethanol in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic,” said Joel Stone, Chief Operating Officer of Osage Bio Energy. “And GM’s dedication to the flex-fuel vehicle market makes it an ideal partner for the yield contest.”