ICYMI: USGC, Growth Energy Submit Comments to Province Of Ontario On E15 By 2025

The U.S. Grains Council (USGC) and Growth Energy jointly submitted comments this week to the Canadian Province of Ontario supporting the expansion of biofuels blending in the Made-in-Ontario Environment Plan.

The comments applaud Ontario’s commitment to implementing a 15 percent renewable content in gasoline by 2025 and highlight the retail success of 15 percent ethanol-blended fuel, or E15.

“For decades now, North American farmers and ethanol producers have continued to benefit from tariff-free borders,” the comments noted. “With an existing North American supply chain, Ontario can rest assured that the increase in demand from a move to 15 percent ethanol will be met by this vibrant marketplace. Collectively, the North American industry is poised to assist Ontario attain its ambitious climate goals and to support this ambitious provincial move.”

The comments also thanked Ontario’s Ministry of the Environment for taking into consideration previously submitted comments, from 2017 and 2018, on the environmental benefits of higher level ethanol blends, such as E15, in their plan. Doing so offers environmental and economic benefits to the people of Ontario and will help to achieve Canada’s long-term climate goals.

“We appreciate the ministry taking our previous comments of March 2017 and January 2018 into account and strongly support the proposal to increase the ethanol content of gasoline to 15 percent by 2025. As we noted in our earlier comments, increasing ethanol concentrations in fuel presents tremendous benefits to the public in the form of lower GHG emissions, lower levels of other pollutants, improved fuel properties (cleaner and cooler burning), and economic benefits to Canada’s critical agricultural economy.”

The Council, Growth, the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), corn state checkoff organizations and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) work together to build demand for U.S. ethanol globally. This work includes offering information about the advantages of U.S. ethanol, sharing experiences with policy development and working with buyers and end-users on technical issues related to ethanol use.

Canada imports close to 20 percent of domestic fuel ethanol, nearly all of it from the United States. Canada ranked as the second largest buyer of U.S. ethanol in 2017/2018 with imports increasing slightly to 337 million gallons (119 million bushels in corn equivalent). Sales of U.S. ethanol to Canada have increased 175-fold since the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was implemented in 1994.

The full Made-in-Ontario Environment Plan can be found here.

Full comments can be found here.