| Conner: Bumps are sign of progress for the ethanol industry |
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By SARAH B. AUBREY
Indiana Correspondent
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Describing ethanol in the United States, acting-USDA Secretary Chuck Conner said, “People simply like the stuff. I believe consumers want the U.S. to supply more and more of our own energy.
“Right now we are seeing the bumps and jolts of an emerging industry that is in the early stages of its growth,” he told those attending last week’s Cellulosic Ethanol Summit in Washington, D.C., presumably addressing concerns about corn prices, supply and demand and national media’s questions about the viability of the U.S. ethanol industry.
He called ethanol, including the emerging field of cellulosic ethanol, “a pioneering industry that will change history.”
The Otterbein, Ind., native said one focus of the current farm bill is an emphasis in allocating funds. More than $1.5 billion has been proposed for research, development and the ambitious commercialization of renewable fuels, including cellulosic ethanol. Conner said USDA is behind cellulosic ethanol as a fuel source, and he advocated industry support.
“We will simply have to diversify our feedstock to produce renewable fuels,” he said, noting the ethanol industry will continue its fast-paced growth in both cellulosic and corn-based ethanol.
“At 13.3 billion bushels (projected), this will be the absolute biggest corn crop in the history of the country,” he said in a confident tone, as he added he believes there will be enough corn for “food, feed and fuel” and that the biggest issue now turns to storage to meet those demands.
“More ethanol plants have come on in the last seven months than in all of last year. Simply put, corn ethanol is on a market trajectory this year,” Conner noted, adding there are 131 ethanol plants in 26 different states, as well as 165 biodiesel plants in 45 states. “Half of the gasoline sold in the U.S. market today is blended with an ethanol blend.”
Conner suggested that while corn ethanol is growing, cellulosic ethanol – most likely made from corn stover and other crop residues – has enormous potential.
“This may mean cultivating different grasses or trees to reach more ambitious ethanol fuel standards,” he said.
He said while efforts to standardize cellulosic fuel are not mentioned in the current farm bill, there are a number of things farmer and consumers should be made aware of that are on the table or already in the making. Besides allocating funds for research, development and commercialization of cellulosic ethanol, USDA has a dedicated team of scientists tapping into all existing resources to find the “bio-organisms and enzymes needed to convert residue to ethanol, butanol and methanol.”
Though the science of bringing cellulosic ethanol to the public has not quite been solved, Conner is optimistic, and he urged input from anyone involved in the industry. “We have a focus on renewable fuels and getting them commercial as quickly as possible. Make your voices heard in this debate,” he encouraged. “We want to get this right.” |
| 10/24/2007 |
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