Sustainable Aviation Fuels Conference highlights new use for Nebraska’s corn and soybeans

As Nebraska’s row crop production continues to grow, farmers are looking for new markets for their corn and soybeans.

Jet fuel made from biomass could be the answer they are looking for.

At Friday’s Sustainable Aviation Fuels Conference in Ashland, political and business leaders alike said the state is well-positioned to become a major player in the burgeoning industry. Jacki Fee, a biofuels specialist with Cargill, explained why.

“Nebraska is uniquely advantaged, not only with the rail infrastructure, but also we have blending terminals, and we have pipelines, and we have just infrastructure in general that is going to be very supportive of having a new fuel market come into the state,” she said.

Jan tenBensel, who chairs the Nebraska Ethanol Board, said he’s working to market the state’s biofuels potential to the aviation industry.

“The biggest message that I'd want to get out there is we have this low carbon product right now called corn ethanol, and it is here, and it's available today in mass quantities, and we can make more quickly in 18 months,” he said.

He also stressed that Nebraska’s ethanol production in recent years has not taken away from other uses. Instead, higher yields due to technological advances have allowed the state to produce more corn and soybeans than ever before.

“Since ethanol has come onto the stage, every kernel of corn used for ethanol is new production produced with essentially the same amount of fertilizer we were using 40 years ago,” tenBensel said.

In Washington, Congressman Mike Flood recently introduced the Sustainable Aviation Fuel Information Act. It would direct the federal government to include more data on the industry in its reports.

The $2 billion market for sustainable aviation fuel is projected to grow to more than $25 billion by 2030.