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Many family farmers are facing a challenging year. Between low commodity prices, market consolidation, extreme weather and international trade disruptions, the agriculture economy is in a tough spot. That’s why I was encouraged to see U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar leading on bipartisan policy that will help support farmers, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and strengthen our rural economy.
Our state has long led in innovations in biofuel production that have benefited Minnesota consumers, businesses and farmers. As the president of Minnesota Farmers Union, I see the impact of this work every day. Recently I spoke with a farmer who shared how the dividend payment from his cooperatively owned ethanol plant helped him to reinvest in his operation, adding new equipment that will help him to add more conservation practices like no-till and cover crops. This was the one bright spot on his balance sheet. These additional local markets support farmers and keep wealth in our communities.
There have been several recent articles and opinion pieces published by the Star Tribune critical of biofuels (“Klobuchar wants to extend tax credit for plant-based jet fuel, but environmentalists say the climate could suffer,” StarTribune.com, June 2, and “Your summer driving in the E15 era,” Strib Voices, June 3). While debate is important, these pieces have left out crucial context on the cost-lowering impact of biofuels and the environmental benefits of reducing use of fossil fuels in favor of homegrown energy. The new clean fuel tax credit, which Klobuchar is working to extend, will encourage the adoption of more climate-smart agriculture practices across thousands of acres, using publicly available data to assess the “carbon intensity” of feedstocks. The tax credit encourages continuous improvement, with a higher credit as the carbon intensity is reduced even further.
Many farmers I talk to are excited about the opportunity to have these new markets for low-carbon fuels that reward conservation practices directly. Farmers have long been stewards of the soil and water, but it’s often been a practice without a direct revenue stream. The approach of this tax credit, established in the Inflation Reduction Act, is to incentivize farmers and biofuel producers to produce fuels with lower emissions.
Klobuchar’s bill also prohibits foreign feedstocks from being used in fuels that receive the tax credit. This prioritizes American farmers and avoids subsidizing other countries’ destructive agricultural practices. For example, while cooking oil from China can be used to produce biofuels, and on paper even appears to have a “low carbon intensity score,” it is often sourced from Brazil or Southeast Asia, tying it to the deforestation that has plagued the rainforest.
This is especially relevant to Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), which can be used to replace fossil fuel-based jet fuels in the aviation sector. Minnesota is leading on SAF, with farmers, airlines, researchers and environmental groups partnering to advance this new opportunity. Every gallon of SAF used to fly planes is a gallon less of fossil fuels used to power our economy. We can make this happen, and we can do it with less land, fewer inputs, and we can keep the benefits in our region.
