An amendment to end the ethanol blenders tax credit (VEETC) passed the Senate today by 73 to 27, a vote that some agricultural groups applaud while some denounce, while the ethanol industry says it is unlikely to matter. “Today the Senate voted against rural America and domestic, renewable energy, and in favor of more foreign oil,” said National Corn Growers …
Pam Johnson Elected National Corn Growers VP
An Iowa farm woman is on track to be the first female president of the National Corn Growers Association next year. The National Corn Growers Association Corn Board today elected Pam Johnson of Iowa to become the organization’s first vice president for the next fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1. When she becomes NCGA president in October 2012, Johnson will …
American Ethanol on the Kansas Speedway
American Ethanol was prominently displayed at the Kansas Speedway on Sunday for the inaugural Sprint Cup Series STP 400 race. The American Ethanol logo and paint scheme was on Clint Bowyer’s No. 33 Chevrolet and larger than life along the backstretch wall of the 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway to spotlight the partnership between the National Corn Growers, ethanol and NASCAR, which …
Marquis Energy Sees Great NASCAR Ethanol Opportunity
The President of Marquis Energy is Mark Marquis, seen here introducing NASCAR driver Kenny Wallace to the crowd attending yesterday’s event held at the Hennepin ethanol plant. I spoke with Mark and learned that Marquis Energy is a real family type business that he had built after growing up on a family farm in this area and branching out into …
Getting Ready To See NASCAR Burn Ethanol
Cindy and I are going NASCAR this weekend with most of our activity being posted onto Domestic Fuel.com. I’ll start things off with the Nationwide Series STP 300 at Chicagoland Speedway on Saturday with support from the Illinois Corn Marketing Board. Then Cindy will pick up at the Sprint Cup Series STP 400 at Kansas Speedway on Sunday with support …
Corn Farmers Coalition Ads Target Lawmakers
For the third year in a row, the Corn Farmers Coalition (CFC) is targeting policy makers with information about the nation’s corn crop and the people who produce it. The new ads highlighting corn farming families showed up this week all over Union Station, an important venue for reaching policymakers inside “The Beltway,” as well as in Capital Hill publications, …
Ag Groups Call For Trade Agreement Approval
Since May is both World Trade Month and National Beef Month, it was appropriate for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) to host a news conference on Capitol Hill today urging the Obama administration to send pending free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and South Korea to Congress immediately. NCBA was joined by the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), American …
Lots of Trade Talking This Week
Since May is World Trade Month, you would think it would be a great time for Congress to pass those pesky pending Free Trade Agreements with Korea, Colombia and Panama that have been awaiting approval for years. Several of the nation’s largest agricultural organizations who testified before the House Agriculture Committee this week on why it is so important to …
Agriculture Excited About Colombia Free Trade News
It’s taken over four years to get to this point, but some action is finally happening on the Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement (TPA) and U.S. agriculture interests are thrilled. President Obama announced today that an agreement has been reached on the deal that was signed by the U.S. Trade Representative and the Colombian trade minister on Nov. 22, 2006. The …
Republican Budget Would Cut Farm Spending
The FY 2012 Budget Resolution unveiled by House Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan (R-Wis) includes reforming current farm programs. The Republican budget plan would cut farm program spending by $30 billion over the next decade to “reflect the economic reality of record-high farm income by restructuring farm programs, saving taxpayers money and increasing farmer independence.” Net farm income this year …