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Posts Tagged ‘ethanol’
Sunday, June 26th, 2011
According to recent reports by the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), global food prices are likely to remain high throughout the rest of the decade and potentially beyond. While both organizations agree that prices will drop from their recent highs, overall, consumers worldwide can expect little relief from high costs.
The causes of higher food prices are many. One of the largest, and most controversial, is the continued emphasis on biofuels. Ethanol, in particular, has diverted a significant amount of the global food supply away from dinner tables. With supplies remaining stable, the increased fuel demands have driven prices up, threatening many developing nations, which often have difficulty feeding their populations. Both the FAO and the OECD have urged the G20 to end support for ethanol programs.
Another major cause of rising food prices is the increased use of maize crops (like corn) for animal feed. The continued economic advancement of formerly developing nations (such as China and India) has led to increased meat consumption by the growing middle class. With many farmers finding higher profits in selling grains as animal feed, it further decreases supply.
While both the FAO and the OECD have suggested ways to ease the impending food crisis, prices will likely remain volatile until food stocks have increased. With production remaining flat and supplies being diverted to non-food sources, consumers should brace themselves for continued shock when they enter the grocery store.
To learn more about agricultural financing opportunities contact a Farm Plus Financial representative by calling 866-929-5585 or by visiting www.farmplusfinancial.com.
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Written by: Justin Ellison / Farm Plus Staff Writer
Tags: ethanol, food prices, United Nations
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Sunday, June 19th, 2011
Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced projects that will pay farmers to grow energy crops. States that are a part of this biofuel program include Missouri, Ohio, and Arkansas. The announcement of the Biomass Crop Assistance Project (BCAP) is part of a larger goal of the USDA to promote renewable, affordable energy. One of Tom Vilsack’s major goals since becoming head of the USDA has been to promote funding for ethanol research. This latest announcement furthers the commitment of the USDA to the production of ethanol.
In Missouri, for example, the BCAP is focused on the production of miscanthus, a warm season grass that can produce yields as high as 15 tons per acre. The ethanol project is receiving remarkable bipartisan support. In Missouri, Senators Claire McCaskill (Democrat) and Roy Blunt (Republican) have both announced their support for the project, citing its ability to wean the United States off of foreign oil.
Arkansas politicians have also expressed their support for the project, with Senator Mark Pryor (Democrat) praising Arkansas’ soil and climate as ideal for the production of ethanol producing crops.
The bipartisan support for the BCAP will be important in upcoming months. Given debate over the increasing federal deficits, Congress has recently been looking for ways to trim the budget, with agricultural funding often in their crosshairs. If Republican and Democratic politicians can come together to support ethanol production, then perhaps funding for these USDA projects can be continued.
To learn more about agricultural financing opportunities contact a Farm Plus Financial representative by calling 866-929-5585 or by visiting www.farmplusfinancial.com.
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Written by: Justin Ellison / Farm Plus Staff Writer
Tags: biofuel, ethanol, tom vilsack
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Sunday, April 24th, 2011
Christie Vilsack, wife of Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, is currently considering running for Iowa’s newly redrawn 4th Congressional District in the upcoming 2012 election. The seat, currently held by Republican Steve King, will encompass all of Northwest Iowa.
Christie’s run raises important ethical questions for Secretary Vilsack’s role in a potential election campaign. Tom Vilsack, former Iowa governor and current Secretary of Agriculture, has had an important role in the lives of Iowans and is currently responsible for many of the subsidies that flow to Northwestern Iowa. While Christie Vilsack certainly hopes to capitalize on name-recognition, both he and she must avoid major conflicts of interest. Ethics officers at the USDA have briefed Secretary Vilsack that he must treat his wife like any other candidate, and would be prohibited from using his official title at campaign events.
The scrutiny of the upcoming campaign could potentially complicate Secretary Vilsack’s official duties. With a new Farm Bill under consideration for 2012, Vilsack has stepped up his efforts to promote ethanol and renewable energy sources for agricultural production. In a rally earlier this week, Vilsack expressed his confidence that U.S. corn producers could meet the demand for both ethanol production and livestock feed.
Christie Vilsack has yet to officially declare her candidacy, but if she does, only time will tell what the relationship between Mr. and Mrs. Vilsack will be on the campaign trail.
To learn more about agricultural financing opportunities contact a Farm Plus Financial representative by calling 866-929-5585 or by visiting www.farmplusfinancial.com.
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Written by: Justin Ellison / Farm Plus Staff Writer
Tags: Christie Vilsack, ethanol, tom vilsack
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Friday, April 22nd, 2011
Earlier this week, the Department of Agriculture released a report detailing several vital measures needed to increase renewable energy consumption in rural America. Rising fuel prices over the last year have hurt farmers across the country. As fuel prices appear likely to increase, many fear potentially disastrous consequences as the costs of agricultural production continue to rise, forcing many farmers out of business.
Outside of the obvious problems of harvesting crops with diesel powered machinery, high fuel prices have made electrical energy consumption costly for many farmers, particularly small, rural farmers who do not possess their own turbines capable of providing energy to their farms. As such, rural communities and farmers would be better served by a more direct investment in renewable energy technology.
The report identified three major avenues of renewable energy research. The Great Plains have ample wind and biomass resources available. Last week, an ethanol plant specializing in the production of algae used in the creation of biofuels opened, raising optimism for the future of ethanol. Outside of the Great Plains, the East and West coasts both have great potential for wind farms, and the Southwest is ideally located for the production of solar and geothermal energy.
However, these energy sources are largely untapped. High research and investment costs frequently help stifle technological development and investment. However, as the USDA report points out, state and federal investment in these projects could be the deciding factor in the ultimate development of green energy in the agricultural section.
To learn more about agricultural financing opportunities contact a Farm Plus Financial representative by calling 866-929-5585 or by visiting www.farmplusfinancial.com.
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Written by: Justin Ellison / Farm Plus Staff Writer
Tags: ethanol, renewable energy, usda
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Sunday, April 17th, 2011
The grand opening of BioProcess Algae LLC’s Phase 2 Grower Harvester Bioreactor Project occurred last Friday, with major agricultural leaders in attendance, including Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. The algae project is a collaborative effort of CLARICOR Inc., a global filtration company, BioProcess H2O LLC, a water purification company, and Green Plains Renewable Energy, a major ethanol producer with plants across the Midwest.
The algae project, physically located in a Green Plains ethanol plant in Iowa, takes waste water, waste heat, and CO2 from its ethanol production process, and uses it to produce algae. Researchers believe that the algae produced can be used for animal feed, cosmetics, and further green energy and biofuel applications.
The opening of the algae project comes at a critical time for Vilsack and American farmers. The debate over ethanol use and federal farm spending has been heating up in recent months. Efforts to reduce the budget deficit have led to calls to reduce farm spending, and politicians like Vilsack and Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow have been vocal about protecting farm spending, particularly ethanol subsidies in the future Farm Bill.
In a speech at the algae plant, Vilsack repeated his insistence on the importance of biolfuels. Linking economic recovery to agricultural investment, Vilsack pointed out that this plant, and other that could be built, generate much needed jobs. In addition, the decreased need for foreign oil would help lower farm costs and could help the national economy recover from the 2008 recession. This algae project, Vilsack argued, represents a major step forward in the viability of ethanol nationwide.
To learn more about agricultural financing opportunities contact a Farm Plus Financial representative by calling 866-929-5585 or by visiting www.farmplusfinancial.com.
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Written by: Justin Ellison / Farm Plus Staff Writer
Tags: biofuels, ethanol, tom vilsack
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Friday, March 25th, 2011
In recent statements, Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) came out in favor of increased ethanol production and research. Citing America’s increasing dependence on foreign oil, Grassley emphasized the strategic dangers American foreign policy faces without energy independence. American taxpayers have long funded military involvement in Middle Eastern nations, largely to protect and secure American oil interests, Grassley argued. That coupled with the increasing growth of nations like China and India, both of which are consuming more and more finite fossil fuels, requires new directions in American energy research.
The benefits of ethanol are certainly many. Ethanol research and production would limit America’s dependence on foreign oil, allowing the U.S. to divest ourselves of Middle Eastern unrest and turmoil and allow us to limit our overall involvement in international military adventures. In addition, ethanol is a less finite resource than petroleum. Corn (and as technology advances, grass, wood waste, and other biofuels) is easier to acquire than fossil fuels.
However, ethanol has many critics in the U.S. Ethanol production, while cleaner than fossil fuels, is not an entirely green energy source. The Environmental Protection Agency recently concluded that ethanol barely met the 20% reduction in emissions to qualify as a renewable energy source. The EPA also questioned the long-term impact of ethanol production, as increased farming could damage the soil and harm biodiversity. Ethanol production also takes corn off dinner tables and could lead to food shortages. In a statement last month, former President Bill Clinton warned that American agricultural policy should keep the developing world in mind and should be wary to contribute to food shortages worldwide.
The role of ethanol will certainly play a major role in U.S. politics over the next several months as the Senate debates the upcoming Farm Bill. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-Michigan), the chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, has hinted that she will put ethanol research and development at the forefront of the Farm Bill.
To learn more about agricultural financing opportunities contact a Farm Plus Financial representative by calling 866-929-5585 or by visiting www.farmplusfinancial.com.
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Written by: Justin Ellison / Farm Plus Staff Writer
Tags: Bill Clinton, chuck grassley, ethanol
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Monday, February 28th, 2011
A recent study circulating in the US Agriculture Department has questions the prospects of biofuels made from crop residue and other plant cellulose and advocates shifting funding away from these projects. The USDA report advocates focusing more resources on developing algae and oil crops, rather than biofuels made from corn stalks and other grasses.
“After two decades of research without a sustainable technical breakthrough to make cellulosic ethanol competitive, it appears that it is time to re-evaluate the research,” the report said.
Logistical difficulties in gathering, transporting, and storing the massive amounts of plant biomass is at the heart of the report and remains one of the crucial barriers to the commercial development of cellulose based biofuels. “It’s just overwhelming, the logistics” involved in making cellulosic ethanol, said Bill Horan, an Iowa farmer, “We think there is maybe more potential in algae right now than cellulosics.”
Mandated by the 2008 farm bill, the USDA’s advisory committee’s report, paneled by a combination of academics, scientists, and business consultants, has made the rounds at the Agriculture Department and has been read by all the agencies in charge of agricultural research. The USDA’s official response to the report has been a call for further research, “to increase efficiency and productivity of all crops, crop residues, biomass and other substances.”
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Written by: Justin Ellison / Farm Plus Staff Writer
Tags: bill horan, biofuels, ethanol, renewable energy
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Wednesday, August 11th, 2010
The United States Department of Agriculture Office of Energy Policy and New Uses released a new report stating the “overwhelmingly positive energy benefits of ethanol.â€
The report reads, “A dry grind ethanol plant that produces and sells dry distiller’s grains and uses a conventional fossil fuel power for thermal energy and electricity producers nearly two times more energy in the form of ethanol delivered to customers than it uses for corn, processing and transpiration.â€
The Renewable Fuels Association said depending on the method used for co-product energy allocation, one unit of fossil energy input used in the production of corn ethanol results in 1.9 to 2.3 units of energy output.
The report also reads that the new estimate of net energy ration is higher than the USDA’s past estimate of one unit of fossil energy resulting in 1.77 units of ethanol energy. Calculations from the Renewable Fuels Association show that the average dry mill produces 2.1-2.6 net energy ratio.
The report is drawn based on date from a corn production survey conducted in 2005 and a survey of dry mill ethanol plants in 2008 by the National Agricultural Marketing Association.
Renewable energy funding is available through the United States Department of Agriculture to make the change or addition to your farm land. Call Farm Plus today for information on low-rate loans. We work alongside government agencies to help you get the funding you need. Call us at 866-929-5585 or visit us online for more information.
Tags: ethanol, positive energy benefits, usda
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Thursday, March 19th, 2009
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack is endorsing an increase in the ethanol blend rate to 15 percent.
Vilsack said, “We can move fairly quickly to move that rate up from 10 percent to maybe 12 or 13 percent in the interim and then take an even further jump to 15 percent or even 20 percent over the course of the next couple of years.”
On Friday the ethanol industry officially petitioned the Environmental Protection Agency to raise the amount. 10 Midwestern states’ directors (including South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, Wisconsin, North Dakota, Kansas, Minnesota, Michigan, Montana and Ohio) wrote to the EPA requesting the raise.
The letter read, “American ethanol production has nearly reached 10 percent saturation. We must move to a base blend of 15 or 20 percent in 2009 in order to continue growing this vital industry. By working together to promote domestic productions and improve market access, we can continue o deliver a clean, renewable fuel that has a positive impact on our domestic economy.”
The increase will not only help lower the nation’s dependency on oil, but also calls for an increase in crops.
If you are interested in purchasing farmland to grow corn for ethanol or any other agricultural purpose, contact Farm Plus today. Farm loans with low rates are currently available. Call 866-929-5585 or visit online for more information.
Tags: corn, ethanol, vilsack
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