According to figures released by the Iowa Department of Revenue, ten Iowa biodiesel plants produced nearly 42 million gallons from January through March.   The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) says that’s on pace with 2011 production, although down from year-end levels.

IRFA executive director Monte Shaw says the numbers show Iowa’s new biodiesel production tax credit is having a positive impact. 

In 2011, the Iowa legislature enacted a short-term tax credit to help Iowa’s biodiesel industry compete against states that provide large biodiesel incentives.  The Iowa program went into effect on January 1^st, 2012, the same day the federal biodiesel program expired.

Shaw says with additional biodiesel production set to come on line in Iowa, he hopes to see the production numbers increase throughout the year.

Iowa has 13 biodiesel facilities with the capacity to produce 320 million gallons annually.  A study released earlier this year found that biodiesel production in Iowa supported 7,350 jobs.

The grand opening at the Express Stop Store – is from 2 ‘til 9 pm with music, giveways and other events. The Flex Fuel dispensers will offer ethanol blends of E85, E30 and E20 for use in flex fuel vehicles.

Growth Energy, the USDA Missouri office and Missouri Corn Growers Association are partners with the station for the grand opening.

The Growth Energy ethanol coalition says the number of flex fuel pumps across the nation exceeds 300.  According to the Missouri Corn Growers Association there are now 15 blender pumps in Missouri.

But the savings to Midwestern motorists were even more than that.

According to Lucy Norton of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, without ethanol, pump prices in Iowa have been $1.69 more per gallon.

“So if you take that $1.69 per gallon reduction, it adds up to a very generous $2,363 in annual savings for a typical Iowa family,” Norton says.

Norton explains that the savings are higher in areas with greater ethanol production and ethanol use.

“Iowa is the number one ethanol producing state and ethanol has captured 80 percent of the fuel market here in Iowa—so Iowans are reaping the best benefits from having ethanol available to them,” she says.

Iowa’s  41 ethanol plants produce nearly three-point-seven billion gallons annually.

AUDIO: Lucy Norton (3:50 MP3)

Released by the Center of Agricultural and Rural Development, the study states the average American household used 1,124 gallons of gasoline in 2011 so ethanol reduced the average household’s gasoline expense by more than $1,225.

The $1.09 per gallon in 2011 is up from the 89 cents saved in 2010 due to increasing ethanol production and higher crude oil prices. Crude oil increased from $80 per barrel in 2010 to $95 per barrel in 2011 resulting in a 30 percent increase in the wholesale gasoline price.

Read the study here:

Geoff Cooper with the Renewable Fuels Association had this reaction.

“We’re always cautious, in general, when USDA puts these early numbers out.  We obviously have a long time to go between now and September-October—and a lot of things can change,” Cooper says. “But, you know, we think it just shows what the potential for this year’s crop can be under kind of normal conditions.

“By all accounts, it could be a monster.”

USDA also predicts a one billion bushel build-up in corn stocks by the end of the next marketing year, to nearly 1.9 billion bushels.  

USDA grains analyst Jerry Norton says if that happens, he would expect to see a significant recovery in corn feeding by the livestock and poultry industries.

“Certainly this opens the opportunity for some increased profitability in those livestock sectors that have struggled over the last few years,” Norton says.

The increase in the 2012 corn crop projection was in  part due to yield increasing from 164 to 166 bushels per acre.