Senator Pete Domenici of New Mexico, Chairman of the Senate Energy Committee, led the effort June 15 to include an 8 billion gallon Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) in the comprehensive energy bill under consideration on the Senate floor. The strengthened RFS represents a 60 percent increase over the previous level passed by Congress.

The higher RFS, when passed as part of the Senate's comprehensive energy bill and negotiated through the conference committee process, is strongly supported by the nation's grain sorghum producers and would help further expand ethanol production into the Sorghum Belt.

"Ethanol is a top priority for the National Grain Sorghum Producers," said NGSP President James Vorderstrasse of Hebron, Neb. "In Washington, D.C. this spring, we asked Sorghum Belt senators to support a higher RFS to create new markets for the producers in their districts. We applaud the fact that 18 out of the 20 Sorghum Belt senators voted with Senator Domenici for an 8 billion gallon RFS."

Producers stand to gain through increased prices paid for their grain, while consumers look to save money through decreased prices at the pump. "It's a win, win. Ethanol is the most promising value-added market for sorghum producers with one out of every ten bushels going through an ethanol plant," said NGSP Vice-President for Legislation Greg Shelor, a producer from Minneola, Kan.

Grain sorghum is a competitively priced starch source that yields the same amount of ethanol as one bushel of corn. Approximately 11 percent of the grain sorghum crop grown in the U.S. goes into ethanol production. NGSP estimates that eight ethanol plants in the U.S. produce approximately 258 million gallons of ethanol per year by utilizing grain sorghum as a primary source in their starch mix. An additional four plants under construction or planned expansion would increase ethanol production from sorghum by more than 65 percent.

NGSP represents U.S. sorghum producers nationwide. Headquartered at Lubbock, Texas, in the heart of the U.S. Sorghum Belt that stretches from the Rockies to the Mississippi River and from South Texas to South Dakota, the organization works to ensure the profitability of sorghum production through market development, research, education and legislative representation.

Date: 6/20/05

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