ICGA Continues to Stress Importance of the Renewable Fuel Standard

 

As a farmer, I am calling on the Trump Administration to stand on its promise to support a strong Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS). The RFS is critical for rural communities across this country, and especially for farmers like myself. There is a pending proposal being floated within the White House to cap the price of Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs). RINs are the market mechanism that drives biofuels blending. Any cap or other manipulation of the Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) would not only cripple the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), but also pull corn prices down with it. The Trump Administration needs to hear from Iowa farmers!

 

The research shows that a price cap or waiver credit for RINs would be devastating to farmers, especially at a time when net farm income is projected to be at its lowest level in more than a decade. Iowa State University estimates the price of corn will drop 25 cents per bushel because of a RIN cap/waiver. This will put prices well below the breakeven point and threaten the livelihood of my farm.

 

There is no way to cut, cap, or eliminate RINs without cutting, capping, or eliminating gallons of homegrown biofuels. Cutting biofuels means less demand and lower prices for the corn I grow on my farm. It is simple - a RIN cap/waiver = lower prices for farmers. 

Video: What’s at Stake in Every Slice | On The Brink: Episode 7

Six hundred Canadian farms grow grain for Warburton's under custom contract — and that partnership exists because of Canadian plant breeding. Now the man responsible for maintaining it is sounding the alarm.

Adam Dyck is the program manager for Warburton's Canada, a company that produces over two million loaves of bread a day for more than 20,000 retail locations across the UK. He's watched Canadian wheat deliver thirty years of yield gains and quality advancements that make it worth sourcing at scale — and shipping across the Atlantic. But he's also watching the investment conditions that produced those gains come under pressure. Dyck makes the case for a new funding mechanism that brings both public and private dollars into wheat breeding before Canada's competitive window starts to close.