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Demand for U.S. ethanol in Latin America remains strong

Buyers from Latin America are learning about the U.S. biofuels supply chain this week following the Global Ethanol Summit in D.C.

“The volume, the price, the constant supply.”

Those are the main reasons Juan Pablo Rodriguiz, the CFO of Ambiocom, a Colombian sugar cane distillery, has moved to only importing U.S. corn ethanol.  He tells Brownfield the quality is a better fit for distilling spirits and, “I think the biggest issue is we don’t have enough land to grow more sugar cane,” he shares.

U.S. Grains Council ethanol consultant Juan Sebastian Diaz tells Brownfield the region is the second-largest export market for the U.S.

“Most of the ethanol produced in the region is out of a sugar cane where they have like a very specific harvest season,” he says.  “But they have a lot of interest in learning more about the logistics to bring the ethanol to their own countries.”

Jim Zook with Michigan Corn says every farmer benefits from expanded markets.

“We know that next year we’re going to be producing two bushels more an acre than we did this year,” he says.  “We always need to be looking way ahead in order to use our corn up to make sure that our farmers are profitable.”

A delegation from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Dominican Republic, Paraguay, Chile, and Colombia are visiting Michigan this week to better understand how ethanol is produced.

Trade visits to eleven states across the Corn Belt are planned with the U.S. Grains Council as an extension of the summit.

Photo courtesy of Michigan Corn.