In the latest attempt to improve its public image, the ethanol industry is pushing the Agriculture Department to change the way it reports the use of grain. Governors of ethanol-producing states say the reports undercount the amount of corn fed to livestock, leading to unfair criticism of the industry, Philip Brasher of the Des Moines Register reports. "The governors said the numbers fail to note that some of the corn that is processed into ethanol winds up as a byproduct called distillers grains that is widely fed to cattle," Brasher writes.
USDA is considering adding the words "and co-products" to the report category that shows corn-for-ethanol usage. The change could be made in time for the next supply-and-demand report on April 8. "Adding a few words to the report, however, is unlikely to go far enough to satisfy the ethanol industry, which would like to see changes in way the numbers are calculated," Brasher writes. Matt Hartwig, a spokesman for the Renewable Fuels Association, said, "Most people don't know the arithmetic as to how many pounds (of corn) goes into distillers grains."
The industry's concerns reflect the public-relations battle it is "waging to quell concerns about the impact of biofuel production on global food prices, concerns that complicate the industry's efforts to persuade Congress to extend its subsidies," Brasher writes. RFA says one-third of every bushel of corn used for ethanol production ends up as livestock feed, and the Governors' Biofuels Coalition wrote in a recent letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack that USDA was "inadvertently perpetuating" a damaging misconception about how much corn is available for feed. (Read more)
USDA is considering adding the words "and co-products" to the report category that shows corn-for-ethanol usage. The change could be made in time for the next supply-and-demand report on April 8. "Adding a few words to the report, however, is unlikely to go far enough to satisfy the ethanol industry, which would like to see changes in way the numbers are calculated," Brasher writes. Matt Hartwig, a spokesman for the Renewable Fuels Association, said, "Most people don't know the arithmetic as to how many pounds (of corn) goes into distillers grains."
The industry's concerns reflect the public-relations battle it is "waging to quell concerns about the impact of biofuel production on global food prices, concerns that complicate the industry's efforts to persuade Congress to extend its subsidies," Brasher writes. RFA says one-third of every bushel of corn used for ethanol production ends up as livestock feed, and the Governors' Biofuels Coalition wrote in a recent letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack that USDA was "inadvertently perpetuating" a damaging misconception about how much corn is available for feed. (Read more)
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