FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 25, 2007

CONTACT: Becky Grisham, Missouri Corn Growers Association, (573) 893-4181 or (800) 827-4181

NATIONAL LEADERS ECHO MISSOURI’S STRONG SUPPORT OF BIOFUELS
Ethanol No Longer Considered a Midwestern Fuel

(JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.) --Last night Governor Matt Blunt once again reaffirmed his longstanding commitment to Missouri’s renewable fuels industry in his State of the State address. His comments and continued support were applauded by the Missouri Renewable Fuels Association (MoRFA), an organization representing the state’s farmer-owned ethanol plants.

"Missouri’s ethanol industry plays a crucial role in local economies and this nation’s energy security," said John Eggleston, MoRFA president and president of Northeast Missouri Grain Processors, LLC, an ethanol plant in Macon, Mo. "It is extremely rewarding to receive this ringing endorsement of our homegrown renewable fuel."

In his comments, Governor Blunt called for full funding of the Missouri Qualified Fuel Ethanol Producer Incentive Fund as well as commitments left unfulfilled from previous years. There are also plans for $35.7 million to be directed to the Missouri Life Sciences Research Fund to further study biofuels and plant sciences.

"We are grateful for Governor Blunt’s unwavering support of Missouri’s farmer-owned ethanol industry," said Eggleston. "The construction of additional farmer cooperatively-owned plants and increased research of biofuels will advance the corn-based ethanol platform that Missouri farmers have worked so hard to build."

On the federal level, President Bush has called for an increase in the use of renewable fuels as well. In his State of the Union address Tuesday evening, the president outlined an aggressive goal of 35 billion gallons of renewable fuel use by 2017. The current federal Renewable Fuel Standard is set at 7.5 billion gallons of use by 2012. Industry experts now predict the nation’s ethanol production will surpass this standard by 2009 – three years earlier than originally slated.

"Thanks to the strong support of President Bush, Governor Blunt and congressional members in Washington, D.C. and Jefferson City, corn growers will possess the tools needed to meet the nation’s call for feed, food and fuel," said Eggleston.

With the continued growth of the ethanol industry comes the expanded supply of distillers grains, a valuable livestock feed that contains three times the protein of whole corn.

"Distillers grains have proven to be a cost-effective component in many livestock rations," according to Eggleston. "We expect the availability of this value-added feedstuff to rapidly expand as the ethanol industry continues to grow."

The MoRFA is comprised of the state's four farmer-owned ethanol plants currently in production and the Missouri Corn Growers Association. Missouri's ethanol plants are Northeast Missouri Grain Processors, Macon; Golden Triangle Energy Cooperative, Craig; Mid-Missouri Energy, Malta Bend; and Missouri Ethanol LLC in Laddonia. These four plants contribute over 170 million gallons of ethanol to the fuel supply each year.