In Washington, the U.S. Grains Council (USGC), the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), Growth Energy and their member organizations welcomed the news Tuesday that the Japanese government’s new biofuel policy will allow imports of ETBE made from U.S. corn-based ethanol. The change comes as part of the country’s update of its existing sustainability policy, approved in […]
In Germany, UFOP views the prospects of European rapeseed cultivation as being acutely jeopardized. “The dumping imports from Argentina and Indonesia are becoming a question of survival for European rapeseed producers”, said the Chairman of UFOP, Wolfgang Vogel. The shutdowns and production cutbacks carried out by European biodiesel producers will continue to increase the pressure […]
In Washington, after meeting with members of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, Congressman Steve King, a member of the House Agriculture Committee, re-affirmed his strong support for biofuels, telling participants that he wants to see ethanol sold in blends that go ‘to, through, and beyond’ the E15 mix. Other items discussed today included Congressman King’s […]
In Luxembourg, the European Investment Bank (EIB) announced the launch of a new financing initiative that aims to unlock close to EUR1 billion of investment in the agriculture and bioeconomy sector. Bioeconomy encompasses the value chains of production and the processing of food, material and energy using renewable biological resources from land and sea. This […]
In Kansas, farmers who grew Viptera and Duracade varieties of corn between 2013 and 2017 are eligible for up to $22.6 million of the $1.51 billion settlement with Syngenta for selling GMO corn seed that was not yet approved by the Chinese government, while a whopping $1.438 billion will go to farmers who didn’t grow […]
In the UK, scientists have engineered an enzyme which can digest some of our most commonly polluting plastics, providing a potential solution to one of the world’s biggest environmental problems. The discovery could result in a recycling solution for millions of tons of plastic bottles, made of polyethylene terephthalate, or PET, which currently persists for […]
In Washington, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) led a bipartisan group of 13 senators in writing to EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt requesting the agency cease issuing so-called “hardship” waivers exempting obligated parties from the Renewable Fuel Standard, provide topline information about the waivers already issued, disclose whether or not the agency […]
By Gregory T. Benz, Lee Enterprise Consulting Special to The Digest Small pilot fermenters are used with several different objectives: studying the organism, developing feeding strategies, evaluating potential yields, etc. A major purpose can be to study the mass transfer characteristics of the system, and how they relate to agitation. In the production scale, the […]
In the Netherlands and England, Shell released its most definitive statement yet on its low-carbon future and committed to 50% lower emissions by 2050 and net zero by 2070 in its operations and emissions from its fuels. The road, to Shell, is apparently paved with good intentions. In its analysis of future energy demand, Shell […]
Sierra Energy has created what is billed as “the world’s most efficient gasifier,” FastOx, developed in conjunction with UC Davis, US Army and California Energy Commission. Gasification is the missing link between complex feedstocks and a clean synthesis gas for use in a wide variety of biofuel applications. The medium BTU synthesis gas is 70% […]
