ZimmComm was honored to receive the media award from the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) last week for our “decades of dedicated reporting on the people, policies, and progress shaping the U.S. ethanol industry.” This means a lot to us because the ethanol industry was instrumental in our company’s success and we have been able to cover the most consequential …
Ethanol Report on the RFS at Twenty
The Energy Policy Act of 2005 was signed by President George W. Bush on August 8 of that year at Sandia National Laboratory in Albuquerque, New Mexico – symbolizing a new approach to energy economics and security, diversifying our transportation fuel supply by incentivizing ethanol and biodiesel by initiating the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). This month marks the 20th anniversary …
U.S. Grains Council Adds BioProducts to Name
The U.S. Grains Council is officially changing its name to the U.S. Grains & BioProducts Council (USGBC). “The Council stands on the precipice, and there is the opportunity for exponential growth with becoming the U.S. Grains & BioProducts Council,” said Ryan LeGrand, U.S. Grains and BioProducts Council CEO and President. “The U.S. Grains & BioProducts Council encompasses both the organization’s …
Ag Groups React to Big Beautiful Bill Passage
House Committee on Agriculture Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA) says the One Big Beautiful Bill passed by Congress Thursday is a “game-changer for America.” “The One Big Beautiful Bill is a victory for rural America, making the largest investment in agriculture in decades, restoring integrity to SNAP, and saving millions of family farms from the death tax. This bill gives …
Ethanol Report on E15 Optimism
U.S. sales of E15 reached a record 1.24 billion gallons in 2024, an increase of 11% over 2023, according to a Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) analysis of data released by state agencies in Minnesota and Iowa. While it appears the Trump administration will have to continue the practice of issuing waivers this summer to keep E15 at the pump, there …
Rollins Gets Airtime for Agriculture
Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins has taken a much more visible role in the new Trump Administration than previous agriculture secretaries, appearing three times this month already on Fox News, most recently this past Sunday. In a wide-ranging interview with Shannon Bream, Rollins talked about a number of issues, from tariffs and trade to the price of eggs, and spent …
USTR Greer Questioned on Agricultural Tariffs
The Senate Finance Committee grilled U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer during a hearing Tuesday on the administrations trade policy, including how agriculture may be impacted. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) questioned Greer about the impact of, and goals for, tariff usage. “My question to you is, in the medium to the long term, do you plan to turn these tariffs …
Ag Secretary Visits Iowa
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins visited Iowa Monday, starting the day at an ethanol plant where she was joined by Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA), Reps. Zach Nunn and Mariannette Miller-Meeks, and Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig. Rollins also toured a hog farm, and met with soybean producers and agriculture leaders from across Iowa, before …
Sen. Thune Calls for Farm Bill and Year-round E15
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) took to the floor yesterday to urge Congress to help farmers who are struggling. “Many commodity producers are bracing for the prospect of serious financial losses this year,” said Thune. “These challenges are real. That’s why last December, Congress approved relief funding for agriculture producers hit by economic headwinds, as well as those affected …
Ethanol Report on Industry Roots
The theme of the recent 30th National Ethanol Conference was Back to Our Roots and it was a celebration of how the industry started and how it’s going. One panel featured a walk down memory lane with some industry pioneers who talked about the early days and how the roots of the ethanol industry were firmly planted by farmers. Included …