The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced its decision to deny a request to waive the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) mandate for the production of corn ethanol. Last month, IDFA and 16 other food industry trade organizations submitted joint comments to the Environmental Protection Agency requesting a waiver of the national volume requirements for the RFS, noting the severe drought and its disastrous impact on this year's corn production.

EPA said in its announcement that it is “clear that Congressional requirements for a waiver have not been met and that waiving the RFS would have minimal impact on ethanol demand.” EPA noted that the “evidence and information does not support a determination that implementation of the RFS program during the 2012-2013 time period would severely harm the economy of a State, a region, or the United States.” 

The Renewable Fuel Standard, first adopted as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, was expanded in 2007 to require the use of 15 billion gallons of biofuels, such as ethanol, by 2015. An estimated 13.8 billion gallons of domestic corn ethanol will be used by oil refiners to blend with gasoline in 2013. The standard requires the use of 36 billion gallons of biofuel, with 21 billion coming from advanced biofuels, by 2022.

The joint comments of IDFA and other food industry trade organizations are available here.  

The full EPA notice is available here.

For more information, contact Jerry Slominski, IDFA senior vice president of legislative and economic affairs, at jslominski@idfa.org.