Iowa’s anger over Trump’s ethanol policy gives Democrats opening – By Stephanie Kelly (Reuters) / Feb 2 2020
NEW YORK (Reuters) – In a speech last month to farmers in Texas, President Donald Trump won applause as he talked up recent U.S. trade agreements. When he tried to boast of his administration’s ethanol policy, however, he was met with silence.
Iowa swung sharply to Trump’s Republicans in the 2016 presidential election, but Democrats hope anger over a relaxation of rules mandating use of ethanol by U.S. refineries could put the corn-producing state in the win column this year.
“I think they haven’t solved the farmers’ problems in terms of ensuring farmers will have a consistent market for the ethanol that they produce,” said Wayne Moyer, a political science professor at Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa. “It’s a sore spot.”
Federal rules require refineries to blend 15 billion gallons of conventional biofuels like ethanol, which is made primarily from corn, into the nation’s fuel pool every year. Refiners have long sought waivers exempting them from these rules, while corn growers argue they are crucial to sustain ethanol demand.
Over the past two years, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has granted more than 30 waivers to refineries, including facilities owned by Exxon Mobil and Chevron Corp, stoking the ire of farmers and spurring numerous meetings in which the White House has tried to placate growers’ anger.
In addition, farmers bore the brunt of the retaliatory tariffs on soybeans and other products imposed by China during an 18-month trade war with the United States. As the world’s second-largest economy stopped buying U.S. agricultural goods, American farmers had to adapt to a smaller export market.
While many farmers were willing to make that sacrifice to target what they saw as China’s uncompetitive behavior, they were less obliging when it came to giving up demand for their products in what they saw as a concession to the oil industry.
Continue to article: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-iowa-biofuels/iowas-anger-over-trumps-ethanol-policy-gives-democrats-opening-idUSKBN1ZW05Q
