By Elizabeth Elkin and Michael Hirtzer
The American Soybean Association said it “cannot support” legislation that would expand higher-ethanol gasoline, creating a split with corn farmers who stand to benefit from an expanded biofuels market.
The relatively rare rift between growers of America’s two biggest crops comes ahead of a crucial vote in the House of Representatives this week that would allow year-round, nationwide sales of E15 gasoline.
A spokesperson for the ASA pointed to research by the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute at the University of Missouri, which found that small gains in corn prices from year-round, nationwide E15 gasoline are more than offset by decreases in soybean prices. The study looked at different scenarios in how nationwide E15 could impact biofuel demand, with “mixed impacts” on farm income.
“Based on the study’s findings, we advised ASA members that we could not support the amendment in its current form,” the spokesperson said, adding that ASA has not yet taken a public position on the amendment.
The decision was met with criticism from biofuels and corn groups, with some supporters of the legislation taking issue with the study’s conclusions.
“E15 strengthens corn demand and farm income for corn farmers, most of whom also raise soybeans,” Nicole Hasheider, vice president of marketing and communications for the National Corn Growers Association. “Year-round E15 saves drivers money at the pump, supports America’s corn farmers and improves energy security for our country.”
John Fuher, vice president of government affairs for biofuels trade association Growth Energy, criticized the study, saying it’s impossible to make a reasonable calculation on how the legislation would impact soybean farmers without knowing how big blending mandates will be in years to come.
The U.S. sets blending mandates for mixing biofuels with gasoline. Corn and soybeans are both used to make fuel. For corn, that fuel is ethanol, while soybeans are primarily used for biodiesel and renewable diesel.
The ASA’s stance could complicate the vote on E15, which may come as early as Wednesday, as the group represents U.S. soybean farmers on policy issues.
For corn farmers, the stakes are high. E15 — gasoline made with 15% corn-based ethanol — could provide a meaningful boost to demand at a time when growers are dealing with record crops and rising costs of inputs like fertilizer. A win in the House would represent a major step forward after more than a decade of failed attempts to expand the market for E15, though the measure would still face hurdles in the Senate.
Geoff Cooper, president of Renewable Fuels Association, said the biofuels group doesn’t see the potential for harm to farmers that ASA does.
“Hopefully it’s nothing more than a speed bump in the road today,” Cooper said on the sidelines of the Citi ISO Datagro Sugar & Ethanol Conference in New York Wednesday. “We don’t think it will have any meaningful impact on the vote this afternoon, and this proposal, this legislation has been carefully negotiated.”
The latest proposal has faced other opposition. It pairs E15 expansion with limits on exemptions from biofuel-blending requirements for small refineries — a provision that has drawn support from some large oil companies but sparked fierce resistance from smaller operators.
Some farmers didn’t take well to the ASA news. Chet Edinger, who rotates fields between corn and soybeans in South Dakota, said the matter could have been handled differently, with any issues from the soybean side addressed directly with the corn advocates.
“It is a bad look,” he said. “We all need to row the boat together. We need more uses of soybeans, more uses of corn and more uses of wheat. Without additional demand, I don’t know how we can maintain what we have going.”
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