Derek Pickett, a graduate student at the University of Kansas, was in San Diego, Calif., Jan. 20 to 23 for the 2014 National Biodiesel Conference and Expo. With financial assistance from the Kansas Soybean Commission, he was part of the Next Generation Scientists for Biodiesel program that aimed to educate and collaborate with young scientists.
Since 2009, the biodiesel tax credit expired three times. But a bipartisan freestanding Senate bill could give an extra push toward the dollar-per-gallon tax credit.
Commodity Classic is the annual meeting that attracts more than 7,000 corn, soybean, wheat and sorghum farmers, but it’s also a great place to find biodiesel and ethanol producers. Joe Jobe, CEO of the National Biodiesel Board (NBB) says they make sure to connect with their allies from the commodity groups, especially those soybean growers.
Part of the massive, nearly $1 trillion Farm Bill that President Obama recently signed included reauthorization of the National Oilheat Research Alliance, which is resuming full operations after four years of no funding. The extension is for five years. NORA is a checkoff program that allows industry, not government, to support and fund initiatives for heating oil businesses, technicians and consumers.
During the recent National Biodiesel Conference and Expo, Arkansas farmer Robert Stobaugh heard about lots of exciting developments in the industry. The most gratifying was an update on how biodiesel continues to return the investment of soybean farmers back home.
An expired tax incentive for the production of biodiesel may be reinstated. United States Sens. Maria Cantwell, Washington, and Charles Grassley, Iowa, have introduced a bill that would reinstate a $1 per gallon incentive, which expired Dec. 31, 2013.
Senators Chuck Grassley and Maria Cantwell have introduced legislation to extend the one dollar per gallon biodiesel tax credit through 2017.
The cutting edge of innovation was certainly on display at the recent National Biodiesel Conference & Expo in San Diego. Among the many innovations was a University of Kansas graduate student, who, with a little financial assistance from the folks at the Kansas Soybean Commission (KSC), talked about a new use for the biodiesel by-product, glycerin.
Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, along with Washington Senator Maria Cantwell, has introduced bipartisan legislation to reinstate a tax incentive for domestic biodiesel production.
Derek Pickett, a graduate student at the University of Kansas, was in San Diego, Calif., Jan. 20-23 for the 2014 National Biodiesel Conference & Expo. With financial assistance from the Kansas Soybean Commission (KSC), he was part of the Next Generation Scientists for Biodiesel (NGSB) program that aimed to educate and collaborate with young scientists.
