09/02/2011
NAFB News Service
Global production of biofuels increased 17 percent in 2010 to reach an all-time high of about 27.7-billion gallons, up from almost 23.8-billion in 2009. According to the Worldwatch Institute's Climate and Energy Program, high oil prices, a global economic rebound, and new laws and mandates in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, and the United States, among other countries, are all factors behind the surge in production,
The United States and Brazil remain the two largest producers of ethanol. In 2010, the United States generated 12.9-billion gallons, while Brazil produced almost 6.1-billion gallons. Corn is the primary feedstock for U.S. ethanol, and sugarcane is the dominant source of ethanol in Brazil.
Legislation proposed in the Senate would cut current ethanol production subsidies, but maintain tax credits for related infrastructure such as blender pumps at filling stations. Worldwatch says if the U.S. blenders' tax credit and the ethanol import tariff expire at the end of this year, as scheduled, sugarcane ethanol from Brazil will likely become more prevalent.
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