To say that 2020 has been a challenging year for the ethanol industry would be a severe understatement.
A recent analysis by the Renewable Fuels Association shows that the industry has already suffered $3.4 billion in lost revenue this year with the possibility of losing up to $9 billion next year.
Just to reiterate, this is an industry that annually supports some 350,000 jobs nationwide and contributed $43 billion to GDP last year.
But somehow, every time the Senate comes up with a coronavirus relief package, the ethanol industry gets passed over.
Their latest relief package includes $20 billion allocated for agriculture which could theoretically be used to help ethanol producers. But considering what the industry has been put through in the last few years, you’ll forgive us if we’re a bit skeptical that this would actually happen.
Even more absurd is the fact that the Senate is refusing to include a proposal by Sen. Chuck Grassley and Sen. Amy Klobuchar to provide direct financial aid to ethanol producers through the Renewable Fuel Feedstock Reimbursement Act of 2020.