USDA’s trade mission to Japan last week pressed Tokyo for ethanol sales as many countries look for new ways to reduce carbon emissions.
USDA Under Secretary for Trade Alexis Taylor on the trade mission’s efforts to sell ethanol in Japan, after Tokyo issued a green light in March. Taylor; “I met with the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, they call them ‘METI’ in Japan, has been a key interlocutor in making some of those changes to eliminating the cap on US ethanol exports.”
Japan issued a new biofuels policy earlier that could boost U.S. ethanol sales by over 80 million gallons a year, worth up to an added 200 million dollars.
Taylor says ethanol is a key way for countries to reduce their carbon pollution; “As we, globally, are trying to deal with changing climate, lowering our on-road vehicle gas emissions, ethanol is a key tool for many countries, certainly for the United States, but for many countries around the world.”
Where Canada, India, the Netherlands, and the UK are leading U.S. ethanol importers, as industry leaders push to sell in new markets like Japan. Taylor; “The U.S. Grains Council was on this trade mission, and they also had a set of meetings with key officials to continue to promote U.S. ethanol, and continue to engage with government officials on the additional benefits that increasing ethanol use in on-road vehicle fleets can have.”
The latest efforts come at a key moment for biofuels, with the EPA about to issue final rules for ethanol and biodiesel use this year through 2025.
