Industry News
US maize market grows with ethanol demand
16th August 2006
US Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns released an analysis prepared by USDA economists of the Department's renewable energy and energy efficiency programmes on 8 August. In 2005, 4 billion gallons of ethanol and 91 million gallons of biodiesel were produced in the US, and the Dept. of Agriculture sees potential for significant expansion in biofuels production through technological breakthroughs to come.
The U.S. Department of Energy forecasts that by 2030 energy consumption in the U.S. will increase by over 30% from current levels, with the growth in energy to meet the needs of the transportation sector forecast to increase by over 40%. Therefore, the US administration believes the supply of renewable energy must also grow simply to maintain its current share of the overall energy market, and even faster if it is to reduce fossil-energy dependence.
According to forecasts quoted by a Reuters report carried by Planetark.com yesterday, US ethanol manufacturers, food manufacturers and livestock feeders are already consuming so much maize that stockpiles could be depleted by 2008 unless plantings expand sharply. The US Dept. of Agriculture forecast on Friday that this year’s maize crop at 278.8 million tonnes, will be the third-largest ever. Nevertheless, in the 2006/07 marketing year, which begins next month, importers and US industry will consume 7% more corn than is being grown, again according to the Dept. of Agriculture, and ethanol will account for 18% of usage. Over 80m more acres are likely to be devoted to maize crops next year.
(www.usda.gov, www.planetark.com)
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