Biofuels Digest Finds Global Impact on Rising Food Costs

Laura McNamara

The media has been pointing fingers at biofuels, blaming them for rising food costs. But a study from The Biofuels Digest suggests rising food costs are the result of global pressures, such as China’s increasing demand for meat. Biofuels Digest says their study finds that for every bushel of grain used to make U.S. ethanol, six are used to support …

Agribusiness, Beef, Energy, Ethanol, Farming, Food

Ceres First to Brand Bioenergy Seeds

Laura McNamara

As technology unleashes more and more energy possibilities from more and more crops, it can get a little confusing as to which plants can do what. Ceres, Inc. plans to clarify bio-friendly seeds with its new bioenergy seed brand. Energy crop company Ceres, Inc. plans to market its agricultural seeds and traits under the trade name Blade Energy Crops in …

Agribusiness, Corn, Energy, Farming, Seed

Schwarzenegger to Speak at BIO International Summer Convention

Laura McNamara

The state of sustainable agriculture in developing countries will be one of the main issues addressed at the BIO International Convention this summer. The Biotechnology Industry Organization is hosting the convention in San Diego from Tuesday, June 17 through Friday, June 20. Biotechnology leaders from around the globe will be descending upon San Diego, one of the leading biotech hubs …

Ag Groups, Agribusiness, Energy, Environment, Food, Technology

Alltech Receives DOE Grant For Ethanol Plant

Chuck Zimmerman

The Alltech Symposium agriblogger has arrived in Lexington, KY, still just a little bit NAMA lagged (kind of like jet lag). I’m in the Radisson right across the street from the convention center. There’s going to be lots of news from here and on the Alltech Symposium Blog. But we’ve already got news. The U.S. Department of Energy awarded grants …

Alltech, Energy, Ethanol

Green Wine

Laura McNamara

No, not the color green. Environmentally green. Parducci Wine Cellars says its the first winery to go carbon neutral. And, the winery is now operating on 100 percent solar and wind power. Parducci effectively transferred all of its energy needs to non-polluting, renewable sources by supplementing its on-site solar power with Green-E(R) certified wind energy purchased from the Bonneville Environmental …

Ag Groups, Agribusiness, Energy, Environment, Food, Technology

Family Farm is Saving Lungs with Cow Dung

Laura McNamara

Pennsylvania is honoring a family farm operation that has developed a new “manure digester.” The farm developed the new system in collaboration with NativeEnergy. The project is meant to help residents will breathe easier with cleaner air. High quality carbon offsets provider NativeEnergy is proud to announce the Brubaker Farms’ family dairy farm methane project, a new anaerobic digester/generator system …

Agribusiness, Energy, Environment, Farming, Technology

New Podcast on Domestic Fuel

Chuck Zimmerman

Over on our sister Domestic Fuel site we just introduced a new podcast today to feature renewable energy news twice a month (or more often). The Domestic Fuel Cast will feature people and news of interest in the alternative fuels industry. If you’d like subscribe to the podcast then here’s the url/feed link: http://zimmcomm.biz/domesticfuel/domestic-fuel-cast.xml. You can use your browser (IE, …

Energy, Podcasts

Meet The New EPIC Executive Director

Chuck Zimmerman

The Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC) has a new executive director. She’s Toni Nuernberg, who comes to EPIC from ACA International in Minneapolis where she worked for 29 years, the last 12 as chief operating officer of ACA International Holding Company Inc. and its for-profit subsidiaries. Nuernberg says when she decided to make a career move she was looking …

Audio, Energy, Ethanol

Farming Wind Energy

Chuck Zimmerman

Noting runs like a Deere, except maybe the wind. And now John Deere is farming that wind. John Deere Wind Energy is into lots of domestic energy projects these days and that includes investing in and providing value-added services to utility-scale wind projects that involve multiple wind turbines with a nameplate capacity of 1.25 megawatts or greater. For example, Corn …

Energy, John Deere, Video