RFA CEO Bob Dinneen, shown here last March in New Orleans, has said the group is optimistic for biofuel’s prospects under a Trump administration. (EthanolRFA.org)

U.S. ethanol sector pumped on Trump

San Diego | CNS Canada — “Building partnerships and growing markets” was the theme of the National Ethanol Conference in San Diego — a theme members of the U.S. Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) believe aligns well with an increased focus on national security and protectionist policies under new President Donald Trump. Speaking Tuesday, the head […] Read more

A view from Minnesota Soybean Processors’ crush plant and biodiesel facility at Brewster, Minn. (MNSoy.com)

U.S. soy grower co-op plans North Dakota crush plant

A U.S. soybean growers’ co-operative has picked its site for what it says would be the first soybean processing plant of its kind in North Dakota. Minnesota Soybean Processors and its North Dakota Soybean Processors (NDSP) subsidiary announced Tuesday their site will be on 150 acres near Spiritwood, N.D., 260 km south of the Manitoba […] Read more

(BiodieselofLasVegas.com)

Corn/soy price ratio favours soybean acres, analyst says

Chatham, Ont. — Most underpinnings for higher corn, soybean and wheat prices appear to have fallen away — leaving biodiesel the only area that could drive higher prices. A growth mandate for U.S. ethanol production ends in 2017, and oil prices continue to stagnate well below the highs of a few years ago, according to […] Read more

(Scott Bauer photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

U.S. grains: Soybeans down on profit-taking before USDA data

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. soybean futures dropped two per cent on Thursday, the steepest decline in 2-1/2 months, on profit-taking tied to lower veg oil prices and extended weather outlooks for rainfall in Argentina, traders and analysts said. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to run the nation’s Environmental […] Read more

(Lisa Guenther photo)

CBOT weekly outlook: Technicals trump recent support in soy

CNS Canada — Soybean futures at the Chicago Board of Trade look technically bearish, one U.S. analyst says, but spec-longs may keep support in the market. Corn futures, meanwhile, are expected to continue in a rangebound trend. “Corn is still basically in a trading range; it doesn’t excite people. Beans, they’re all over the place,” […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

ICE weekly outlook: Traders look to StatsCan, U.S. veg oil

CNS Canada — With questions about the size of Western Canada’s canola crop remaining, ICE Futures Canada traders are looking to an upcoming Statistics Canada report for indications on where to move next. Sharp advances in the Chicago Board of Trade soyoil market underpinned canola on the week, and investors are waiting to see if […] Read more


The Big River Resources ethanol plant at West Burlington, Iowa, about 120 km southwest of Davenport. (Steven Vaughn photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

U.S. ups biofuel requirements in win for Big Corn

New York | Reuters — The U.S. government on Wednesday announced finalized targets for biofuel use for next year, requiring that energy companies blend 19.28 billion gallons of renewables into the nation’s fuel supply. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in a statement set the target for conventional biofuel, or ethanol, at 15 billion gallons and […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

U.S. biodiesel executives plead guilty over fraud scheme

New York | Reuters — Two men pleaded guilty in a U.S. court on Wednesday to conspiracy, fraud and making false statements related to the U.S. government’s controversial policy designed to boost use of renewable fuels, according to court documents. The case comes in the last four weeks of a contentious U.S. presidential election campaign […] Read more