USDA Undersecretary for Rural Development Xochitl Torres Small told a House Agriculture Committee hearing this week that $700 million in CARES Act payments for ethanol producers will be coming soon. “We’ve been working to get the money out the door, we took some time to get it right,” Small said. “We are expecting payments to go out in late spring …
Gevo Testifies at House Ag Committee Hearing
Gevo CEO Patrick Gruber presented testimony before the House Agriculture Committee this week on the future of climate smart crops and sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) with updated carbon accounting and a system that rewards farmers for sustainable practices. Gruber outlined Gevo’s concept of a Net-Zero manufacturing plant for SAF they hope to be operational by 2025 and how existing ethanol …
E15 Sales Reach Record Levels in 2021
Sales of E15 (15% ethanol fuel) hit a record 814 million gallons in 2021, according to a new analysis from the Renewable Fuels Association. The 2021 volume represents a 62 percent increase over 2020 and was nearly double pre-pandemic sales volumes in 2019. The analysis is based on recently released data for Minnesota and Iowa that show sales of E15 …
Sen. Grassley Discusses E15 and GREET Model
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) joined Sens. John Thune (R-SD) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) this week in urging the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to update its greenhouse gas (GHG) modeling for biofuels and adopt the Argonne National Lab’s Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions and Energy Use in Transportation (GREET) model. The senator discussed that topic and the importance of getting approval for …
Vilsack Talks Trade With Mexican Officials
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack met with his counterpart Mexico Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development Victor Villalobos this week to “continue cooperation on shared priorities including open trade, science-based policy making, and sustainable and climate-smart agricultural production.” That meeting resulted in Vilsack and Villalobos announcing that the two countries have agreed to final actions to expanded access to the …
Field Notes from Koch Agronomic Services – Episode 18
The Field Notes podcast series from Koch Agronomic Services (Koch) breaks down the science and technology behind agronomy to help growers do more with less. The experts we’ve heard from on our previous episodes have covered topics ranging from how different crops use nitrogen to the 4R’s of Nutrient Stewardship and how growers and retailers work together to choose the …
Sales of Higher Ethanol Blends Soaring in California
Sales of E85 flex fuel (85 percent ethanol blended fuel) are soaring to new heights in California as drivers of flex fuel vehicles are finding out they can pay a lot less for a fill up. E85 sales in California increased 55 percent last year over 2020 and Pearson Fuels, California’s largest provider of E85, saw an increase of over …
The Yield Forecast Challenge Launches April 15 on AEI Premium
16 Questions, $1,600 Prize… Proving You Were Right Has Never Been So Easy AEI Premium, the online community for agricultural decision makers, is launching a new online contest called the Yield Forecast Challenge. Beginning April 15, you are invited to forecast 16 questions about USDA yield estimates for corn and soybeans. The questions will span the USDA World Agricultural Supply …
Reps Question Lack of Biofuels in Budget
Representatives from Iowa questioned Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Shalanda Young Tuesday on the lack of biofuels in the $6 trillion White House budget unveiled this week. Reps. Randy Feenstra (R-IA) and Ashley Hinson (R-IA) both pressed Young on why there was no mention of biofuels in the budget. Listen: (5:11)
Rep. Craig Hopes EPA Will Allow Year Round E15
Rep. Angie Craig (D-MN) and several of her colleagues recently introduced the bipartisan Home Front Energy Independence Act, in an effort to expand the production and availability of American biofuels and lower energy costs for working families. Rep. Craig’s bill, along with the companion bill in the Senate, would expand the availability of E15 year-round after a July 2021 D.C. …
ZimmCast 689 – Preview of 2022 Agri-Marketing Conference
Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. Trips on the agriblogging highway continue with the Agri-Marketing Conference coming up next week. After that conference it will be on to Lexington, KY for the Alltech ONE Conference in May. ZimmComm will be exhibiting in the Connection Point at the Agri-Marketing Conference once again, in booth 201. The ZimmComm Golden Mic will be …
Ethanol Report on How to Lower Gas Prices
With E15 selling as much 50 cents less than regular unleaded gasoline, it seems obvious that higher blends of ethanol can help lower prices at the pump. But so far, nothing is being done on the national level to unleash the power of biofuels to ease the pain of high gas prices. In this edition of The Ethanol Report podcast, …
2022 National Ag Day
The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) and over three dozen partner organizations hosted the inaugural Celebration of Modern Agriculture on the National Mall for National Ag Day, which is organized by the Agriculture Council of America (ACA). National Ag Day preview with ACA chair Amy Bradford, GROWMARK (14:05) More than 16,000 visitors attended the two-day festival and engaged with hands-on …
MyLand Adds New Grower Relationship Director, Driving Commitments to Scalable Regenerative Solutions
Jeff Downs to Support Efforts to Expand Soil Health Service MyLand Company, LLC (“MyLand”) announced today that Jeff Downs has joined the company as Grower Relationship Director, focusing on Arizona and Southern California. Jeff will be responsible for partnering with growers to deliver MyLand’s unique Soil as a Service (SaaS) solution. “Jeff is a remarkable addition to the team,” said …
2022 Agri-Pulse Food & Ag Policy Summit
The 2022 Agri-Pulse Ag & Food Policy Summit was held March 21 at the National Press Club with the theme “Laying the groundwork for the next farm bill.” The program included remarks from some of the most influential voices in farm policy including leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees, as well as agricultural organizations and companies. In addition, …