HAVE A GREAT MONDAY READERS!  

The LSU Tigers took care of business Saturday night, although there were still quite a few mistakes.  The 2nd quarter looked really bad for LSU when you consider Idaho is not a ranked team. But, they made adjustments at halftime and came out on fire the 2nd half.  They really need to clean up some of these penalties and interceptions as they enter SEC play this upcoming Saturday against Auburn.  Was good to see Miles let a lot of rookies play in the 4th quarter.  They really need those reps to improve as backups.  It also looks like true freshman Jeremy Hill is "the real deal" at running back.  However, do hope Alfred Blue does not have a serious knee injury.  He and Hillard are the two best of the stable of running backs so far this year.

I really wonder what's going wrong with the Saints??  The defense is not holding up their end of the bargain it appears.  I also wonder how much Coach Payton's absence if affecting the team. They haven't been 0-2 to start the season in quite some time.

Here's another article on the search by the ethanol manufacturing industry to find an alternate feed stock to make ethanol other than corn.   I sure wish they would as the increasingly higher and higher portion of the corn crop going to ethanol is causing continued increases in corn prices and all food products that use corn, directly or indirectly.

Will NOT post tomorrow night as the wife and I will be away on an overnight stay to get away for a day or so.

NOTE:  I'll have a BIG announcement about the website hopefully later this week.  We've been in a total re-design of the website for several months.  We have only one page remaining to populate before we go "live" with the new site.  I think you'll be very pleased with the new website look and additional information that will be included.  I'll announce the launch the new and improved website here before we go live.

"Pete"
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09/13/2012 03:32 PM          
Sugar Beets, Sorghum Vie for Credibility as Ethanol Feedstocks
SustainableBusiness.com News

The prolonged US drought has got us wondering about the progress of ethanol feedstock alternatives to corn that would have less of an impact on the global food supply.
So, we read with interest that biofuels company Patriot Bioenergy Corp. – which is testing a system for converting non-edible sugar beets into ethanol – is planning a facility on 99 acres in Kentucky.
If its plans are approved, the plant – which you can think of as a new-fangled distillery -- could be up and running in 24 to 28 months.
Patriot Bioenergy will use natural gas to run its refining process. But we have mixed feelings about the feedstock: genetically engineered Roundup-Ready sugar beets. Those crops would be grown by farms surrounding the plant's site.
Roger Ford, the CEO of Patriot, told local reporters at press conference announcing the project:

"They're phasing out the ethanol corn subsidy in America, and after 30 years, it's gone as far as it can go. Why energy beets? First, it's been selectively bred as a crop. We hope to produce two crops a year. It's such a high sugar yield crop, and we can get on average 800-1,500 gallons an acre. We'll need less land to produce it in the spring and fall months. And second, there's a longer timeline in harvesting it. Once it comes in, it will continue to grow. Processing the beets would use natural gas more efficiently than with corn. We'll get sugar directly from the beets, and we won't need an extra step to convert the starch from corn into sugar. So that process is removed, and you shorten the distillation time," Ford said.
Patriot Bioenergy's plan took shape after the US Department of Agriculturederegulated the GMO sugar beets, which are resistant to the herbicide glyphosate.
The plan still has to clear a number of other administrative hurdles, including funding and construction of certain infrastructure at the site. At full production, the plant would create up to 120 green jobs, says Patriot Bioenergy.

Sorghum Nears Federal Approval
The US may soon approve sorghum, a grain used mainly for livestock feed, as a feedstock alternative that could help create a cleaner version of ethanol.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been accepting comments about the grain's potential, which would give biofuels makers a domestic alternative to sugar cane-based ethanol typically imported from Brazil. It hasn't said when it will issue its policy ruling on sorghum, but the pressure for a decision is mounting.

Almost all of the nation's ethanol today is made from cornstarch, which has been a cause of grave concern during the prolonged US drought this summer.
Sorghum is more drought-tolerant than corn, and it requires one-third less water to cultivate. Right now, it is mainly used to feed poultry, cattle and other livestock. The downside is that there isn't as much of it as corn: right now, the number of acres used for US corn outnumber those for sorghum by about 16 to one.
There is also a matter of geographic: sorghum is grown primarily in states like Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Texas while most of the nation's ethanol plants are centered around Iowa and Illinois. That means adopting sorghum will take investment in new equipment.

Among the first companies poised to upgrade their technology is Western Plains Energy LLC in Oakley, Kansas, which makes conventional ethanol today, reports Associated Press. The company is investing $30 million-$40 million in equipment that will use methane for the distillation process and turn the waste materials into fertilizer.
"We're going to try to produce over 50 million gallons (of advanced ethanol) per year," Curt Sheldon, the plant's chief accounting officer, told AP. "At today's prices, we could probably pay for the project in two to three years."

Another company already investing in sorghum production is Abengoa Bioenergy, which has converted its ethanol plant in Portales, New Mexico, to produce up to 30 million gallons per year of ethanol from grain grown on the High Plains of West Texas and Eastern New Mexico.
Abengoa Bioenergy is a subsidiary of Abengoa S.A. (ABG.MC). It is the largest European ethanol producer, one of the largest producers in the U.S., and the only worldwide bioethanol manufacturer with production facilities on three continents.
The worldwide ethanol market could reach 27.7 billion gallons by the end of 2012, according to a new report from Global Industry Analysts.  
The US and Brazil dominate the market in terms of production. Brazil is also a big consumer, projected to use 7.45 billion gallons by 2015, while Canada is one of the fastest growing markets.
For more on sorghum's status as an ethanol feedstock:
Website: www.epa.gov/oms/fuels/renewablefuels/regulations.htm