A new economic study shows the Renewable Fuel Standard has added a third to the price of corn and saved the U.S. nearly 18-billion in gasoline costs. The Iowa State University study to be published soon in the American Journal of Agricultural Economics shows specific benefits to farmers, consumers, and the environment, from the nation’s renewable fuels requirement.
Renewable Fuels Association President Bob Dinneen says the study model showed a more than 14-billion-dollar direct benefit to the farm sector…tape
Thereby saving taxpayers on increased farm program costs, and consumers are also saving…tape
The study also shows a 200-million barrel drop in 2015 crude oil imports due to the RFS. Dinneen argues the study undermines the oil industry’s narrative against the RFS, corrects public misperceptions, and should help preserve the RFS in Congress…tape
The Iowa State study model also found that the optimal amount of ethanol blending in the near-term is almost 17-billion gallons, or a blended rate of nearly 12-percent, which would drive gas prices down by 14-percent.
From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting News Service.