In November, the U.S. Grains Council conducted an ethanol trade mission to Brussels and London to attend a global biofuels conference and follow-up on E10 deployment in the United Kingdom. Brian Healy, the U.S. Grains Council’s director of global ethanol market development, Isabelle Ausdal, USGC manager of ethanol trade policy and economics, USGC’s Middle East and Africa representative Jad Wakileh and Josh Roe, a USGC ethanol advisory team (A-Team) member, took part in the mission.

“Our A-Team members are critical components of the Council’s work in expanding global ethanol use,” Healy said. “This mission was a great opportunity to reconnect in person with many of our global ethanol stakeholders and check in on progress toward higher ethanol blends.”

The team met with government officials and interacted with key ethanol traders, multilateral organizations and the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) regional posts to gain further support for ethanol policy development in the region.

At the global biofuels conference in the European Union (EU), the team met with its in-country consultants to craft strategies for interacting with multilateral stakeholders and
elevating ethanol in net-zero scenarios in the new year.

“We have seen the EU make increasingly ambitious, commitments to decrease their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Working with allies on the ground is necessary to ensure ethanol has a growing role in future policies,” Ausdal said.

In the U.K., the Council met with USDA FAS, organizational stakeholders and traders to learn about the state of E10 implementation and get updates on the U.K. ethanol market. E10 deployment is underway and there will be an additional rollout of E10 in Northern Ireland in 2022. The delegation discussed ongoing engagement and provided input on potential areas to elevate ethanol in future climate discussions.

“The Council applauds the U.K.’s ongoing E10 rollout and appreciates both the EU and U.K.’s efforts in utilizing higher blends of ethanol,” Ausdal said. “As policies continue to evolve, we look forward to continued work in the region to provide a greater role for ethanol as a low carbon fuel.”