Corn Can Provide Food and Fuel without Sacrificing Either

(Office of Representative Adrian Smith ( R-NE 3rd)) ... As consumers face steep increases in food and fuel costs, ethanol production must be part of an all-of-the-above energy strategy to lower costs. One common misconception is that utilizing corn for food or fuel comes at the expense of the other. Perhaps that was once the case, but with today’s technology you can have both food AND fuel.

Ethanol’s production process remarkably results in a host of useful byproducts which can contribute to a variety of other sectors of the economy – including the food supply chain.

My recent visit to the POET biofuels facility near Fairmont, NE provided a glimpse into this process. While utilizing field corn, not sweet corn, for ethanol, POET takes the remainder of corn kernels and converts them into the 4th largest source of grain-based livestock feed in the world in dried distillers grains (DDGs). Additionally, this highly efficient process captures CO2 for commercial use in soft drinks, other high-protein livestock feed, and even a product used in asphalt rejuvenation.

While some would claim the development of ethanol has decreased supply of agriculture food products, in fact, the opposite is true. According to a 2021 United States Department of Agriculture report, the number of corn acres planted in the United States has not increased since 2007. 2007 was the first year the Renewable Fuel Standard was implemented—all while yields have increased. As farmers today grow five times the amount of corn produced in the 1930s using one-fifth the land area for planting, many signs point to continued innovation and increased efficiency.

American farmers continue to lead the world with their resourcefulness, dedication, and productivity; they have earned our trust and support. Instead of blaming Russia’s war on Ukraine for rising costs, President Biden could alleviate families’ pain at the pump by unshackling petroleum production and allowing agriculture producers to help fill the gap. They can, after all, feed and fuel the world at the same time. Look no further than an ear of corn for proof. READ MORE

Excerpt from Christian Post: The recent opinion piece by Mark Hendrickson is an unnecessarily vicious attack on farmers and bioethanol based on ignorance of laws, facts, and realities. If not a purposeful misrepresentation, then it is shameful for its shallowness.

The demand for clean burning ethanol has ushered in a new era of productivity that has allowed the industry to fuel and feed the world. His characterization of a recent decision by the U.S. EPA to allow higher blends of ethanol up to 15% as being a requirement is just plain wrong. It is not a requirement. It lifts a restriction based on a decades-old definition of fuel that will soon be corrected via legislation and provides an option to offer consumers a cleaner, lower-cost fuel.

E15 was never banned. In fact, E15 is used year-round in some of the most polluted cities in the U.S. under the Federal Reformulated Gasoline Program. It has been limited due to those archaic regulations and the petroleum industry that refused to provide a suitable blend stock to accommodate the ethanol.

The author reveals a lack of knowledge of the fuel industry. Among his falsehoods is saying the previous administration exempted small refineries from having to produce E15. Again, there is no requirement nor was there ever, to produce E15, or for that matter any ethanol blend. And ethanol is an additive, mixed with gasoline long after refiners turn filthy, often imported oil into a toxic carcinogenic product. The exemption he referred to was to waive the requirement that refiners augment their slate of toxic products with a modest amount of renewables under the Renewable Fuel Standard.

There is no such thing as an ethanol requirement, and certainly not a corn ethanol requirement. Those that do comply with the law choose ethanol as the most efficient way to do so, they make a huge profit off it and it cleans up their gasoline by replacing toxic carcinogens used to increase octane.

Another of his false statements is Mr. Hendrickson’s claim that small refineries are shutting down and will go out of business as a result of the new E15 regulations. We just established that there is no requirement to make this fuel so how is that an accurate statement? Of course, the source for this appears to be the refining industry itself, quoting the head of the refiners who are most interested in maintaining their 90% market share of fuels should tell you all you need to know.

And cost? Again, with a little research, or seeking the input of anyone from the ethanol industry, he would have learned ethanol blends dramatically reduce the cost of gasoline.

This idea that we grow corn for the singular purpose of converting it to ethanol is flawed in that there is no recognition that the process extracts and converts the starch from the corn, leaving behind a high protein feed that is returned to the feed market where it was headed, to begin with.

A bushel of corn produces ethanol, CO2, and distillers grains. The net corn usage out of the 5.5 billion bushels used for ethanol production is roughly 3.3 billion. In other words, we are returning 33% of the corn back, and in terms of feed value, much more than that.

An extension of this common misperception is to claim some large percentage of the total corn crop is being used for fuel, implying it would otherwise be used for food. On the contrary, if the ethanol market did not exist, much less corn would be grown.

As for land? With USDA reporting a new national average of 177 bushels per acre, an increase of 3.3%, we are growing more corn on less land than ever. Iowa reports instances of a whopping 205 bushels per acre so the trend is an upward one for sure. The demand for ethanol has ushered in a new era of efficiency, inspiring farmers to maximize land and resources.

Further multiplying the value of corn are constantly emerging technologies to extract more protein while still retaining protein value for feed. This can then be added to other forms of feed to increase efficiency and reduce the overall volume. Likewise for corn oil — constant improvements in the process continue to produce more high-value co-products.

Mr. Hendrickson, you should have spoken to the Christian farmers and ethanol producers we work with that volunteer time, money, and technology to help feed people around the world and improve their nutrition. You insult them and do readers a disservice with your article.