Des Moines, Iowa
April 25, 2007
Effort boosts support to
educate consumers about the benefits of biofuels
Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc., a subsidiary of
DuPont, announced today that
it is teaming up with the
Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC) in an
effort to educate consumers about the benefits of
ethanol-enriched fuel. The effort includes funding for ethanol
promotion and education programs.
“Ethanol is a factor in the effort to reduce our nation's
reliance on petroleum,” says Dean Oestreich, Pioneer president
and DuPont vice president and general manager. “EPIC has already
helped to significantly raise awareness about the benefits of
biofuels, and we are proud to be joining forces with them to
continue their efforts to promote ethanol.
“EPIC's efforts, combined with our commitment to develop traits
and technologies that help increase harvestable yield and
ethanol production per acre, are helping create a promising
future for biofuels,” says Oestreich.
The investment from Pioneer includes a sponsorship of Team
Ethanol in the IndyCar® Series for the 2007 season. This will be
the first year in IndyCar Series' history that all IndyCars will
run on 100 percent fuel-grade ethanol.
“This partnership will help raise awareness of the performance
and environmental benefits of ethanol to consumers across the
country,” says Tom Slunecka, EPIC executive director. “EPIC is
pleased to have the support of Pioneer and applauds the
company's commitment to ethanol.”
The Pioneer commitment is one part of a three-part strategy by
DuPont to deliver new technologies to the growing biofuels
market while continuing to meet growing demand for grain corn,
soybeans and other crops. The strategy includes: 1) improving
the yield of grain ethanol production through the research and
technology expertise of subsidiary Pioneer; 2) developing
technologies to convert other agricultural feedstocks and energy
crops into biofuels; and 3) discovering new technologies to make
advanced biofuels with enhanced fuel properties such as
biobutanol.
Pioneer is enhancing ethanol and co-product production by taking
a holistic approach toward increasing ethanol yield per bushel,
overall corn yield per acre and improving feed quality of
ethanol co-products. The company has nearly 180 Pioneer® brand
high total fermentable ethanol hybrids that are part of the
Pioneer IndustrySelect® program which provides seed products
with specific grain traits to end users, including the ethanol
industry.
Through a $38 million matching grant partnership with the U.S.
Department of Energy (DOE), DuPont is developing an integrated
technology package to harvest, store and produce cellulosic
ethanol from entire corn plants. DuPont is collaborating with
POET to accelerate the commercialization of cellulose to ethanol
at Emmetsburg, Iowa. POET also has been selected by the DOE to
receive up to $80 million in federal funding during the next
four years to bring cellulosic ethanol to market.
DuPont also has partnered with BP to develop, produce and market
next-generation biofuels to help meet increasing global demand
for renewable transport fuels. The first product to market will
be biobutanol.
“We're racing to leverage our research, technology and agronomy
expertise to help accelerate the availability and adoption of
ethanol and other biofuels,” Oestreich says. “What better way to
showcase the advances being made in alternative fuels than
through our partnership with EPIC.”
The Ethanol Promotion and Information Council is a nonprofit
organization of ethanol producers and industry leaders who have
come together to spread the word about the benefits of ethanol
through information and promotional programs. To learn more
about ethanol, visit
www.drivingethanol.org.
Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc., a subsidiary of DuPont, is
the world's leading source of customized solutions for farmers,
livestock producers and grain and oilseed processors. With
headquarters in Des Moines, Iowa, Pioneer provides access to
advanced plant genetics in nearly 70 countries. DuPont is a
science-based products and services company. Founded in 1802,
DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions
essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people
everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a
wide range of innovative products and services for markets
including agriculture and food; building and construction;
communications; and transportation.
™Registered trademark of Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc.
®Registered trademark of the Indy Racing League. |
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