WASHINGTON: The US grain industry aims to double exports of ethanol, volumes that could boost demand for corn and aid a struggling farm economy. The US Grains Council, a non-profit export group, is preparing plans to promote American-made fuel ethanol in countries including Mexico, Japan and India, said Tom Sleight, its president. It comes after the council held a series of workshops on ethanol use in China, according to its annual report.
The US, the leading biofuel producer, is on track to export 891m gallons of ethanol this year, according to the Renewable Fuels Association. “Two billion gallons is a short-term goal,” Mr Sleight said in an interview. “We know it’s not going to happen overnight”.
Fuel ethanol has been embraced by governments as a way to clean tailpipe exhaust. Widening car ownership in emerging markets has also supported demand. The domestic US market is saturated because most vendors sell petrol with no more than 10 per cent ethanol. Most US ethanol is made from corn, and the amount of corn used by the industry has levelled off at an estimated 5.275bn bushels this year after a furious rise in the previous decade.
