Red River Biorefinery now producing USP grade ethanol
PHOTO: Red River Biorefinery LLC
October 6, 2020
BY Red River Biorefinery LLC
Red River Biorefinery LLC announced today that it is now producing ethanol that meets the strict U.S. Pharmacopeia (USP) purity and quality standards. USP-grade ethanol has long been the preferred standard for manufacturers of safe hand sanitizers and disinfectants. RRB’s domestically produced USP-grade ethanol has one of the lowest carbon footprints available on the market today. RRB is poised to meet the increasing global demand for hand sanitizer and disinfectant products due to COVID-19 and to supply hand sanitizer manufacturers with large quantities of ethanol, a critical ingredient, immediately.
“It is extremely gratifying to have a local producer supplying safe ingredients for hand sanitizers while providing local jobs to support our communities. The Red River Biorefinery serves a vital role in the region’s value-added agricultural, energy, and low carbon economies,” said James Leiman, director of economic development and finance division for the State of North Dakota.
Since commencing commercial operations earlier this year, RRB has seen a sharp rise in demand from its key customers—sanitizer and disinfectant manufacturers. Those customers, in turn, are seeing demand from hospitals, pharmacies, retailers and consumers across the U.S. for sanitizers that are safe and high quality. RRB’s USP specification ethanol is the preferred base ingredient in an expanding range of consumer and industrial products including hand sanitizers, disinfectants, wet wipes, spray sanitizers and other cleaners.
The RRB production facility in Grand Forks, North Dakota, uses agricultural byproducts to produce ethanol and recycles its own waste to generate renewable natural gas that powers the facility’s operations. The company has partnered with local agricultural cooperatives and food manufacturers to divert over 500,000 tons per year of residual agricultural byproducts into ethanol. As a result, RRB’s operations are highly sustainable with one of the lowest carbon footprints of any ethanol production facility in the U.S.
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“Now more than ever, consumers are concerned about the quality of ingredients in hand sanitizers and disinfectants,” said Keshav Rajpal, president of Red River Biorefinery. “RRB is committed to supplying safe, high-quality USP-grade ethanol for use in hand sanitizers and other products that fight COVID-19. We produce ethanol that is “made green” to help everyone ‘stay clean’ during the pandemic and beyond.”
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