Promoting Missouri’s ethanol

Rep. Allen Andrews

The House passed legislation this week that would extend the state’s ethanol producer incentive fund until Dec. 31, 2020.

The legislation is now under consideration in the Senate.

The ethanol incentive is meant to promote increased ethanol production and use. Ethanol production has a very positive impact on the agriculture industry and the state’s economy.

Missouri has six majority farmer-owned ethanol plants in operation in the state and each year, the plants use slightly more than 30 percent of the state’s corn crop to produce approximately 300 million gallons of ethanol and 825,000 tons of distillers grains.

Ethanol is 100 percent renewable and plays an important role in reducing the country’s dependence on foreign oil. According to the Renewable Fuels Association, in 2012, ethanol displaced an amount of gasoline refined from 462 million barrels of imported crude oil, reducing expenditures on imported oil by $44 billion.

Since the first ethanol plant began producing in 2000, the Missouri corn and ethanol industries have contributed $13.4 billion to our state’s economy.

Golden Triangle, our local ethanol plant located in Craig, employs 35 people and is the second ethanol plant in the state.

Golden Triangle has been operating since 2001 and buys 6.5 million bushels of corn each year and produces 20 million gallons of high quality ethanol.

They have a very impressive operation and northwest Missouri is blessed to have them.

The ethanol incentive has proven to be excellent for our state as Missouri has more than doubled our return on investment in property and income taxes alone.

Another reason to be proud of Missouri agriculture and those who support it.