NCGA Officers at #FPS17

LtoR – NCGA first VP elect Lynn Chrisp; President Wesley Spurlock; 1st VP Kevin Skunes

Officers of the National Corn Growers Association are busy at the 2017 Farm Progress Show this week.

I had a chance to chat with NCGA president Wesley Spurlock of Texas, first vice president Kevin Skunes from South Dakota, and 1st VP elect Lynn Chrisp first thing yesterday morning at show. We talked about a variety of topics, including crop conditions – with Wesley providing a Texas update, farm bill wish list, ethanol and the RFS, and more.

Audio file: Interview with NCGA Officers

2017 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

Coverage of the Farm Progress Show is sponsored by Coverage of the Farm Progress Show is sponsored by John DeereCoverage of the Farm Progress Show is sponsored by GrowmarkCoverage of the Farm Progress Show is sponsored by Bayer CropScience
AgWired Energy, AgWired Precision, Audio, corn, Farm Progress Show, NCGA

Iowa RFA Urging Industry Comment on RFS

Cindy Zimmerman

The comment period for the EPA’s proposed volume obligations for biofuels under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) ends tomorrow, August 31.

For those ethanol and biodiesel industry stakeholders who have not yet submitted comments, the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) has an easy way to do so by signing petitions to EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt.

It’s time to make your voice heard, and tell the EPA that you support a robust RFS! Renewable fuels like ethanol and biodiesel help curb our dependence on petroleum, improve our air quality and increase competition at the pump to the benefit of consumers.

The petition closes Thursday at 4:30 pm central time – so don’t delay, sign today!

Biodiesel, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Iowa RFA, RFS

Welcome to Day 1 of the Farm Progress Show

chuck zimmerman

This morning Jamie and Joanna went up top to get a bird’s eye view of the start of the 2017 Farm Progress Show. We hope to be live when the network allow it so keep you eye on the AgWired page. And, like it if can. We an use all the likes we can get! LOL.

BTW. The official hashtag for this year’s show is #FPS17. Follow along the journey.

Coverage of the Farm Progress Show is sponsored by Coverage of the Farm Progress Show is sponsored by John DeereCoverage of the Farm Progress Show is sponsored by GrowmarkCoverage of the Farm Progress Show is sponsored by Bayer CropScience
AgWired Animal, AgWired Energy, Farm Progress Show, Video

Mid-Missouri Energy Goes John Deere Green

Cindy Zimmerman

Mid-Missouri Energy (MME) in Malta Bend, Missouri is home to a new piece of equipment that has helped make the grounds around the ethanol plant a little greener.

MME General Manager Chris Wilson won the John Deere ZTrak Z925M Flex Fuel commercial mower during a raffle at the Renewable Fuels Association 2017 National Ethanol Conference. The E85 used in the mower comes from a local fuel retailer less than one mile away.

In this edition of The Ethanol Report podcast, Wilson talks about the Mid-Mo Mower, the use of ethanol blends in small engines, and how much he appreciates John Deere’s support of farmers and the ethanol industry.

Ethanol Report with Mid-Missouri Ethanol

Subscribe to the podcast via RSS
Subscribe via iTunes

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Ethanol Report, RFA, RFS

ACE Provides Ethanol Education

Cindy Zimmerman

Liz Bunkers, ACE, and Pam Miller, Siouxland Ethanol, teach kids about ethanol

American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) staff and member plant, Siouxland Ethanol LLC, joined the Northeast Nebraska Corn Growers (NNCGA) last week participating in an ag youth literacy festival in Jackson, Nebraska.

ACE staffers Liz Bunkers and Chuck Beck, along with Pam Miller of Siouxland Ethanol, showed students products of the ethanol production process and discussed how it works, in addition to educating them on future career opportunities and the variety of ways to get involved in the renewable fuels industry.

NNCGA, in partnership with the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation, organized the first Growing Potential Ag Festival for about 300 middle school aged students in its member counties. Students rotated through nine stations, including corn products and processing, corn planting, corn harvest, renewable fuels and ethanol production, corn feed and livestock, GMO education, parts of the corn plant and pollination, crop protection, and agricultural UAV technology.

ACE, corn, Education, Ethanol

Cellerate + Enogen Could Meet Cellulosic Ethanol Goal

Delayne Johnson and Jeff Oestmann on panel at 2016 ACE conference

If every corn ethanol plant in the country were to convert to Cellerate bolt-on technology combined with Enogen® corn enzyme technology from Syngenta, the country could more than meet the goals for cellulosic biofuels under the Renewable Fuel Standard.

“There’s a one billion to two billion gallon opportunity in the United States without grinding anymore corn,” said Delayne Johnson, CEO of Quad County Corn Processors, which developed the Cellerate technology and has collaborated with Syngenta to license it to other plants.

QCCP is already producing most of the country’s cellulosic ethanol, which last year amounted to about 176 million gallons, lower than the 230 million gallon obligation for 2016 set by EPA under the Renewable Fuel Standard, leading the agency to lower the 2018 requirement to 238 million gallons from the 311 million set for this year. But with cellulosic production finally growing and a greater potential for more, QCCP and Syngenta are among the voices commenting to EPA that now is not the time to lower the standard.

Jeff Oestmann, head of accounts for Enogen at Syngenta, recently testified at the recent public hearing on the EPA’s latest proposed standards under the RFS. “I felt it was important to get in front of the EPA and tell our story on the cellulosic side and what we’ve been able to do with corn kernel fiber,” said Oestmann. “I had three minutes and I actually took six, so I think I got a lot across.”

Both Oestmann and Johnson are submitting comments to the EPA on the proposed rule before the deadline this week of August 31, and they encourage others to do so as well. Listen to interviews with both from the recent American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) annual conference.

Interview with Delayne Johnson, QCCP

Interview with Jeff Oestmann, Enogen Syngenta

2017 ACE Conference Photo Album

ACE, AgWired Energy, Audio, corn, Ethanol, Syngenta

Ethanol Groups Comment on CAFE Review

Cindy Zimmerman

Ethanol groups filed comments Friday with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on the intention to analyze potential environmental impacts of new Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards for model year (MY) 2022-2025 light-duty vehicles.

The Renewable Fuels Association submitted a letter and literature survey of technical papers and studies on the benefits of ethanol-based High Octane Fuel, noting that broader availability of such fuel would help automakers increase engine compression ratios without making costly hardware changes. Read the letter

Growth Energy also submitted comments supporting the use of high-octane, midlevel ethanol blends to achieve higher energy efficiency standards.

“It has long been recognized that vehicles and fuels operate as a system, and to undertake significant changes and increases in the stringency of tailpipe GHG standards without an examination of potential changes in the fuel used by these vehicles makes little sense,” Growth Energy Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Chris Bliley said. “Policymakers should examine the literature about the benefits of using a high-octane midlevel ethanol blend in conjunction with modern engines to achieve future fuel economy and greenhouse gas emission standards.”

Friday was the end of the public comment period on the notice which initiates the process for determining the scope of considerations to be addressed in the environmental impact statement and for identifying any significant environmental matters related to the proposed action.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, Growth Energy, RFA

Retailers Give Ethanol Industry Advice

Cindy Zimmerman

Ron Lamberty, ACE; Bob O’Connor, JETZ; Charlie Bosselman, Bosselman Enterprises

A panel featuring higher ethanol blend retailers was a highlight of the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) 30th annual conference in Omaha last week.

Charlie Bosselman, owner of Nebraska-based Bosselman Enterprises and Pump & Pantry c-stores, and Bob O’Connor, owner of JETZ Convenience Centers in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, shared their insights on how the ethanol industry can help retailers add E15 and higher blends in the discussion moderated by ACE senior vice president Ron Lamberty. “We can come up with all kinds of programs that we think will move more ethanol, but we make the most progress when retailers tell us what they’ve learned and what they need from us,” Lamberty said.

“I think ethanol has a great story,” O’Connor said. “You get more power, more performance, it’s local, and it’s cheaper. We’re all in the business to make money, and ethanol gave us an initial profit center.”

Bosselman echoed O’Connor in addressing why they got involved. “The simplest reason was to make money,” Bosselman said. “There are a lot of benefits that come with that—our ability to market the fuel, tell a story to our customers—especially since we are in rural communities—about us and ethanol and the products that they grow on their farm and how it’s all intertwined together.”

After the panel, Lamberty presented Bosselman with the Paul Dana Marketing Vision award, which is presented to an individual or company that has exhibited leadership in ethanol marketing.

“ACE members recognize Bosselman Enterprises for leadership in committing to offer consumers choice at the pump, including the sale of higher blends like E15 and E85,” Lamberty said.

Listen to the panel discussion here: Retail: Ethanol's Point of Opportunity

2017 ACE Conference Photo Album

ACE, ACE Ethanol Conference, Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Retailers

NFU Announces Biofuels Initiative

Cindy Zimmerman

National Farmers Union (NFU) has announced an initiative “to advance federal policies that support homegrown and home-produced renewable energy sources.”

“American family farmers and ranchers are facing a rapidly changing climate, a severely depressed farm economy, and deteriorating rural infrastructure and services,” said NFU President Roger Johnson during a press call to announce the effort. “Expansion of homegrown, renewable energy production provides solutions to each of these issues and significant benefits for American consumers and the environment.”

NFU hired energy policy specialist Anne Steckel, formally with the National Biodiesel Board, to lead the effort. “Federal-level policies like the Renewable Fuel Standard have reaped tremendous gains for the farming and rural communities that grow and produce renewable, bio-based fuels,” said Steckel. “NFU will continue its avid support of the RFS and pursue innovative policy solutions that expand renewable energy demand, development and infrastructure.”

The effort follows a special order of business that was passed by delegates to the NFU 115th Anniversary Convention in March supporting expanded markets for higher blends of ethanol, like E30, and advanced biofuels. NFU’s initiative is supported by all three major ethanol organizations.

NFU press conference
Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, NFU

Brazil Tweets Tariff Decision

A tweet from Brazilian Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply Blairo Maggi late yesterday afternoon informed the world that Brazil’s foreign trade chamber has approved a 20 percent tariff on U.S. ethanol imports after a 600 million liter tariff rate quota.

The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), U.S. Grains Council (USGC) and Growth Energy issued a joint statement on the decision.

“We are disappointed and discouraged to see the ruling out of Brazil today imposing a tariff on U.S. ethanol. Given the tremendous volume of information we provided to Brazil that demonstrated how misguided a tariff would be, it seemed politics prevailed today and Brazilian consumers lost. Imposing tariffs on U.S. ethanol imports will hurt Brazilian consumers by driving up their costs at the pump. Additionally, this action goes against Brazil’s longstanding view that ethanol tariffs are inappropriate and will effectively close off an open and bilateral trading relationship that benefits all sides. We strongly urge this recommendation to be reversed as soon as possible and will work to that end through all available pathways.”

RFA CEO Bob Dinneen (@ethanolbob) had his own tweet in response to the decision:
“Brazil just hurt their own consumers by imposing a quota and tariff on US #ethanol – the lowest cost octane on the planet. #foolish”

AgWired Energy, Ethanol, Growth Energy, RFA, Trade, USGC