The U.S. population is predicted to grow from 309 million in 2010 to 439 million by 2050. A significant portion of that growth is expected to occur in traditionally water-deficient areas like the southwestern U.S....More

“In light of the most widespread drought to face the country in more than 50 years, the refusal to grant this waiver is a blatant example of the flawed policy of the RFS,” said NCBA President J.D. Alexander, a cattle feeder from Pilger, Neb. “The artificial support for corn ethanol provided for by the RFS is only making the situation worse for cattlemen and women by driving up feed costs.”...More

A retired U.S. Navy vice-admiral urges the continued expansion of the biofuels industry to enhance U.S. national security and help ward off threats from petroleum-exporting countries with opposing political views to the U.S....More

As drought exerts a tighter grip on the nation’s breadbasket, rural economies are feeling the effects. One of the segments of the rural economy that is being hit hard is biofuels. Low supplies and high prices for corn and soybeans are forcing ethanol and biodiesel plants to reduce production or shut down completely....More

As ethanol expansion continues, beef producers will be forced to become better managers in order to stay in business. That’s the message delivered by a Kansas State University economist Ted Schroeder during the recent Range Beef Cow Symposium in Mitchell, NE. In 2011, an estimated 40% of the U.S. corn crop was diverted to the production of ethanol. With more and more corn going into ethanol, producers are faced with growing feed costs, higher land values, and less revenue from what they produce....More