Ethanol Production Holds Near Record Levels

Nov 12, 2021

U.S. ethanol production and stocks both moved modestly higher last week.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration says production averaged 1.107 million barrels a day, the second highest average on record, and an increase of 1,000 barrels on the week and 56,000 on the year.

The high of 1.108 million barrels a day was set in early December 2017.

Margins have improved recently and plant capacity is reportedly around 97%.

The Renewable Fuels Association says net inputs by ethanol refiners and blenders dipped from the week before, while the volume of gasoline supplied to the market was up and both remained well above year ago levels.

The domestic supply of 20.129 million barrels was a gain of 204,000 from the prior week and 454,000 from last year.

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Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.