Corn Commentary

Distillers Grains Exports Nearly Double

The Renewable Fuels Association this week published a report on the export of distillers grains that demonstrates the growing popularity of this key ethanol coproduct. According to the RFA, citing U.S. Department of Agriculture data, U.S. distillers grains exports nearly doubled last year, rising 91 percent — from 2.36 million metric tons (mmt) in 2007 to 4.51 mmt in 2008.

In its report, the RFA maks a good point:

Considering that more than half of all corn is fed to livestock, increasing the use of distillers grains domestically and internationally reduces the need for increased acres for both corn and soybean production. This factor is critically important to the current debate surrounding the land use change impacts of America’s renewable fuels industry. Properly accounting for the use of distillers grains would dramatically lower any calculated land use change impact for grain-based ethanol.