Herald and News: Biofuels not liked by every ag group

Biofuels not liked by every ag group

Discouraging words heard in reports to local cattlemen

By TY BEAVER

H&N Staff Writer

March 8, 2007

The blossoming biofuel industry isn’t enticing everyone with its reputed clean-burning scent.

The Klamath County Cattlemen’s Association heard a report from Wednesday from William Jaeger, who called his presentation on biofuels “kind of an inconvenient truth.”

As government, private industry and segments of the agricultural market are investing more interest and resources into biofuels, others are questioning the benefits and raising concerns of the energy source’s side effects.

Critical OSU report

Jaeger is one of them.

A member of the Department of Agriculture and Resource Economics at Oregon State University, he provided information about biofuels, including their economic and environmental benefits. The results weren’t as favorable to what proponents of the market are pushing, he said. While corn-based ethanol and canola-based biodiesel are commercially viable, their cost is partially supported by federal subsidies. Ethanol also is not energy efficient, yielding only about 20 percent more energy than what it takes to produce it, Jaeger said.

One of the biggest problems resulting from ethanol production is its effect on the livestock market, he added. Corn prices are high as ethanol plants buy up the commodity, competing with those raising cattle, swine and poultry.

It was a concern shared by those attending the meeting. Cattleman Glenn Barrett noted the livestock industry is already struggling, and growing expenses are resulting in willingness to sell stock cheaper.

“You see higher corn, and you’re going to see calves go cheaper,” he said.

Ethanol problems

Proponents of ethanol have said the production of the fuel would help the livestock market, by providing feed in the form of distillers grain as a byproduct. Jaeger said that could provide logistic problems.

If the feed isn’t dried after processing, it is only usable for about three days, thus necessitating a strong market that is close to a plant. Jaeger said most of the facilities proposed for the Pacific Northwest would likely not opt to dry the grain, requiring quick disposal of the by-product.

The amount generated also could be troublesome. An ethanol plant that generates 100 million gallons of ethanol a year would create enough feed for 182,000 head of cattle. Oregon has only 90,000 head of cattle.

Jaeger said the demand for corn could drive up the price of other commodities as well. The Mexican government has put a cap on the price of tortillas because of the demand for the country’s corn for ethanol production. Food prices also could also rise in the United States, he said.