GROWMARK Launches New Website Design

A new website design is enhancing the user experience for GROWMARK customers.

“It is designed to help GROWMARK customers and prospects find the information they need quickly,” said Heather Thompson, manager of digital communications. “Useful tools on the new site include a directory of GROWMARK sales representatives and a locator for GROWMARK crop nutrients terminals.”

The new GROWMARK.com is designed to help users find key sales contacts and locations easily on the home page. In addition, the Careers and News sections are located prominently near the top for ease-of-use.

“GROWMARK is committed to delivering solutions everyday,” said Krista Wolf, manager of brand strategy and marketing communication. “This new platform will help connect our customers to the products and brands they are looking for in an efficient manner.”

GROWMARK’s Digital Communications team designed and tested the site for several months before the launch. It follows the successful relaunch of FSSystem.com.

AgWired Animal, AgWired Energy, AgWired Precision, GROWMARK, technology

NYC Biodiesel Champion Awarded for Service

Cindy Zimmerman

New York City Chief Fleet Officer Keith Kerman was honored last week with a Sloan Public Service Award for his extensive environmental and sustainability efforts on behalf of the city.

As NYC’s first Chief Fleet Officer, he oversees 31,000 vehicles used by city agencies and offices and has created the nation’s greenest fleet, with nearly 20,000 vehicles using alternative fuels, including biodiesel.

National Biodiesel Board CEO Donnell Rehagen offered his congratulation to Kerman on behalf of the industry. “We in the U.S. biodiesel industry greatly appreciate and applaud Keith’s integrity and dedication to improve New York with the use of biodiesel and other low-carbon fuel alternatives,” said Rehagen. “Through the implementation of biodiesel in New York City fleets, New York has become a widely-renowned nationwide leader in biodiesel use, reducing their carbon footprint tenfold.”

The Sloan Public Service Awards program has been recognizing NYC employees at all ranks and levels of government for over 38 years. Kerman has been with the NYC government for 25 years, first at the Parks Department and then at the Department of Citywide Administrative Services.

Biodiesel, NBB

Nebraska Ethanol Board Welcomes New Administrator

Cindy Zimmerman

The Nebraska Ethanol Board (NEB) announced a new administrator has been chosen to become official following the next board meeting this Friday, May 31.

Roger Berry is a Nebraska farmer who has served in senior positions with agricultural organizations. Most recently, he spent over three years as Director of Market Development at the Nebraska Corn Board. In that role, Berry worked with NEB staff to carry out ethanol promotion events, spoke about ethanol markets and policy at industry conferences and was involved in industry ethanol policy discussions.

“I commend the NEB members on their choice in Roger Berry to serve as Administrator following my departure,” said current NEB Administrator Sarah Caswell. “Roger is the right person to lead the work of the board at this crucial time for Nebraska’s ethanol industry. He knows the importance of ethanol as a value-added agriculture market, especially during these times of trade uncertainty and an ongoing downturn in the farm economy. His farming background and deep experience and knowledge of the industry will enable him—from day one—to effectively direct the work of the NEB and its staff to carry out the mission of the NEB to the benefit of Nebraska’s ethanol industry stakeholders, including farmers, ethanol producers, consumers and the state’s economy.”

“We thank Sarah for her great work on behalf of the board,” said Nebraska Ethanol Board Chairperson Jan tenBensel. “Her guidance and forethought on industry issues is commendable, and we appreciate all she’s done. This will allow for a seamless transition to Roger, who is a familiar face who is well-known and well-respected in the ag community. He has notable, established relationships with commodity and trade groups both locally and nationally. Roger will be another great asset to the agency.”

Ethanol, Ethanol News

ACE Returns to Tijuana for Ethanol Forum

Cindy Zimmerman

American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) Senior Vice President Ron Lamberty continued his ethanol retailer education tour of Mexico last week with an encore appearance in Tijuana, the western-most city in Mexico and largest city of Baja California State. This trip marks Lamberty’s fourth time to the country this year to speak at ethanol technical information forums for Mexican petroleum equipment installers and retailers, sponsored by the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) and the Mexican Association of Service Station Suppliers (AMPES).

“This is my eleventh marketer workshop with the U.S. Grains Council in the past year and a half, and the workshops, along with a multitude of other efforts in Mexico, are working,” Lamberty said. “More Mexican retailers are buying ethanol–mostly E10 purchased at U.S. terminals and delivered to stations in the northern states, like here in Baja California–and interest is increasing all over the country.”

Because it’s only minutes from San Diego’s fuel terminal, some Tijuana retailers are already selling E10, and the city is expected to be a top destination for U.S. ethanol in the short-run. Tijuana is also a major gateway to the interior of Mexico for road transportation, and by sea via the port of Ensenada. Fuel ethanol consumption in Mexico is still low, with its use as a transportation fuel not permitted until 2017 and lack of private infrastructure, but over 30 fuel terminals are currently under construction in Mexico. Mexico’s refineries operate far below capacity, with 70 percent of the fuel sold in the country imported.

Lamberty has also spoke at ethanol technical forums in Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Monterrey, Mérida, Mexico City, Xalapa, Chihuahua, León, and Guadalajara.

ACE, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Exports

Ethanol Days of Summer Contest is Back

Cindy Zimmerman

For the third year in a row, the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) is sponsoring the “Ethanol Days of Summer” contest, which encourages consumers to submit pump prices for flex fuels like E85 and ethanol blends like E15 to E85prices.com web site, which enters them in a random daily drawing for a $50 fuel gift card.

To enter, contest participants create an account on the E85prices website or the app, where they can submit pricing for a chance to win. Pricing on the crowd-sourced website is updated routinely and gives consumers instant access to fuel prices that nearby drivers have reported. Winners are chosen daily until Labor Day and users can submit prices for multiple stations each day. To participate, no purchase is necessary, and more information can be found at ChooseEthanol.com/summer.

In 2018, more than 3,700 new users registered at E85prices.com, with 98 different contest winners who collectively received $5,000 in free fuel.

Contest, E15, E85, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA

Trump Talks E15 During Trade Announcement

Cindy Zimmerman

President Donald Trump welcomed representatives from a number of agricultural organizations to the White House Thursday to talk about the $16 billion in trade assistance announced by the administration.

“I have directed Secretary Perdue to provide $16 billion in assistance to America’s farmers and ranchers. It all comes from China. We’ll be taking in, over a period of time, hundreds of billions of dollars in tariffs and charges to China. And our farmers will be greatly helped. We want to get them back to the point where they would have had if they had a good year.”

During the announcement, President Trump also mentioned the pending decision from EPA on year-round sales of 15% ethanol (E15).

“We’re ensuring that ethanol remains a vital part of America’s energy future, and we increased it to E15. And that’s tremendous for, in particular, for the most part, our corn farmers, for corn. And the people in Iowa and lots of other places are very happy. I just did it recently, and I made a promise during the campaign that I was going to do it. And I don’t know if it had an impact, but I won Iowa by a lot. And perhaps it did; perhaps it didn’t. I don’t really care. It’s the right thing to do. So you’re going to be at E15, which is something, I think, you’ve been waiting for, for a long time.”

Listen to President Trump’s remarks here:
PlayPresident Trump announces trade aid for farmers

Audio, corn, E15, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Exports, Trade

RFS Integrity Act Introduced

Cindy Zimmerman

House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson (D-MN) and Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD), co-chairs of the Congressional Biofuels Caucus, have introduced the Renewable Fuel Standard Integrity Act of 2019 which establishes an annual June 1st deadline for refineries to submit small refinery exemption (SRE) petitions from their RFS blending obligations each year and increases transparency in the process.

Since 2018, EPA granted 54 waivers to refineries for the 2016 and 2017 RFS compliance years totaling 2.61 billion ethanol-equivalent gallons being taken out of the market place. By law, the RFS requires that the EPA make adjustments when determining future biofuels targets to account for waivers to ensure that the overall biofuels targets are not reduced by waivers. However, the agency is not accounting for these waivers and the demand for biofuels is being undercut.

The bill is supported by state and national biofuel and corn grower associations, including National Corn Growers Association, Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), National Biodiesel Board, and the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE).

“This bipartisan bill would prevent companies like ExxonMobil, Chevron, Holly Frontier, and CVR from further gaming the system and undercutting the Renewable Fuel Standard,” said RFA CEO Geoff Cooper. “For five years in a row, EPA has failed to enforce the RFS conventional biofuel volume requirements set forth by Congress, even though there has been ample supply available at a low cost to meet the statutory volumes. The consequences of EPA’s chronic mismanagement of the RFS have been economically devastating for ethanol producers, farmers, and consumers alike.”

By setting a June 1st petition submission deadline each year, the EPA will have time to account for renewable fuel gallons stripped from the market due to these waivers. The bill also increases transparency in the process by making information with respect to a petition subject to public disclosure.

ACE, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA, RFS

Alltech Working Together for a Planet of Plenty™

ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference wrapped up Tuesday with president and CEO Dr. Mark Lyons sharing his new vision for the company and inviting more than 3,500 attendees to join in “Working Together for a Planet of Plenty™.”

Thirty years ago, his father, Alltech’s founder Dr. Pearse Lyons, took the stage at the same conference. He had committed Alltech to a guiding ACE principle, emphasizing the importance of delivering benefit to animals, consumers and the environment. He fervently believed that the well-being of each depended on maintaining harmony between all three. It was a radical idea at the time — so radical, that some customers walked out of the conference.

Yet, against a backdrop of diminishing natural resources, a changing climate and a growing population, sustainability is quickly becoming a non-negotiable for businesses and for agriculture. Every business and individual has a role to play, moving us closer to a planet of peril or of plenty.

“With the adoption of new technologies and management practices, and, most of all, human ingenuity, we believe a Planet of Plenty is possible,” said Lyons. “Our Planet of Plenty vision propels our founding ACE principle into a new world of possibility, where anyone and everyone can make a positive impact on our shared planet.”

A new website has been launched for the initiative. PlanetofPlenty.com provides examples of agricultural methods that can improve the environment as well as inspiring stories of the people and technologies making a planet of plenty possible. Stories can be shared on the Planet of Plenty website or on social media with the hashtag #PlanetofPlenty.

Listen to Dr. Lyons’ closing remarks.
PlayAlltech ONE19 Dr. Mark Lyons closing remarks

2019 Alltech Ideas Conference Photo Album

Find more content from ONE19 on the conference virtual newsroom on AgNewsWire.

AgWired Animal, AgWired Energy, AgWired Precision, Alltech, Audio

ACE Shares Low Carbon Ethanol Benefits With Senators

Cindy Zimmerman

As the Senate Agriculture Committee held a hearing on “Climate Change and the Agriculture Sector” this week, American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings highlighted the scientific and economic opportunities U.S. farmers and biofuel producers hold to support climate change mitigation and get the rural economy back on track in a letter to committee leadership.

“As the committee begins this timely discussion about the role of agriculture in climate change, the current economic stakes intensify the need for policies which can provide a meaningful return on investment,” the letter stated. Jennings noted, U.S. farmers are under tremendous financial stress from collapsing net farm income, rising expenses, ongoing trade tensions, weather-related disasters, and the undermining of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) with demand destroying small refinery waivers.

As Congress tackles climate change, Jennings believes one way to thread that needle would be by providing “rural America with concrete benefits from climate-centered policies that outweigh potential negatives, such as recognizing the role agriculture can play to mitigate climate change and increasing the use of low carbon fuels.”

ACE published a White Paper last year titled “The Case for Properly Valuing the Low Carbon Benefits of Corn Ethanol” that highlights how U.S. farmers and ethanol producers are improving efficiencies, investing in technologies, and adopting practices to dramatically reduce lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from corn ethanol.

ACE, corn, Environment, Ethanol