Is Corn Ethanol Dead? Two new essays explore new ways of thinking, seeing first-gen biofuels

Is Corn Ethanol Dead?

Two thought-provoking essays express different but compelling views on  opportunities to reverse a year-long trend of bad news for corn as a bioenergy feedstock.

One by Dave Vander Griend, CEO of ICM, argues that analysis of the “net net impact of corn ethanol on the corn supply” is the key to understanding the advantages of corn ethanol. Another by Dr. Tom Konrad, whose looks at lessons learned from first generation biofuels and the “everything vs. fuel” scenario proved a popular “must-read” in yesterday’s Digest, argues that the corn ethanol industry could make positive steps to mend fences with the environmental industry by helping to close the flex-fuel vehicle loophole in CAFE standards.”

According to Vander Griend, “Recognition of the co-products that come from ethanol production is absolutely fundamental to understanding the true value of corn as a food and energy crop. With a current industry average of 2.8 gallons of ethanol per bushel of feed corn processed — and with the near 50% return value of DDG — the net corn use is half of the 5.4 billion bushels  reported by USDA, since 2.6 billion bushels are returned to the feed supply.

“Secondly, the net amount of corn needed to meet the RFS of 15 billion gallons of corn ethanol is just under 3 billion bushels. With significant increases in yield, there will not only be enough corn to meet every other demand sector including exports, but there will be looming surpluses. Thirdly, and the key to the current debate: The increased feed value and increased yields mean the RFS requires no new acres to produce ethanol — and consequently there are no land use changes and no increase in carbon emissions.”

According to Dr. Konrad, the ethanol industry is suffering from “a persecution complex” and “the ethanol industry could do itself a lot of good by avoiding the exaggerated claims they are prone to. General Clark said, ‘There’s plenty of all we need to have all the fuel we want and all the food we want…This is simply false.”

But Konrad adds, “any green washing we see in the ethanol industry pales against that coming out of the coal industry.  Given limited political capital, this is where environmentalists should be focusing our efforts. Environmentalists should not be joining oil companies and food processors by piling on the ethanol industry over its imperfect environmental record.”

Konrad says that “the use by carmakers of flex fueled vehicles as a loophole in CAFE standards serves to undermine environmental goals.  If the industry wants more environmental allies today, it will need to be clear than environmental goals will not again come second. I think most environmentalists would get behind a 50% or higher requirement for flex fuels vehicles if it were in conjunction with the closure of the flex fuel loophole in CAFE standards.”

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