• Crops
•    Cost & Return
•    Markets
•    Outlook & Prices
•    Machinery
•    Other

• Livestock
•    Cost & Return
•    Markets
•    Outlook & Prices
•    Other

• Whole Farm
•    Cost & Return
•    Leasing
•    Land Values
•    Financial
•    Legal & Taxes
•    Succession
•    Strategic Planning
•    Weight and Measurements
•    Other

• New Business Dev.
•    Business Start-up
•    Marketing
•    Operations
•    Analysis

• Renewable Energy
•    Ethanol
•    Outlook & Prices
•    Other

 

 

Updated March, 2008					File D1-10

Tracking Ethanol Profitability

Don Hofstrand, extension value-added agriculture specialist, co-director Ag Marketing Resource Center, 641-423-0844, dhof@iastate.edu

View the monthly profitability and underlying assumptions.

The profitability of ethanol production is extremely variable. Due to the volatile price nature of ethanol and corn, its major feedstock, ethanol profitability can change rapidly from month to month. In addition, price variations of its co-product (distillers grains with solubles, DGS) and its energy source (natural gas) add to the variability of ethanol profits.

The profitability of a typical corn ethanol production facility is tracked each month using current ethanol, corn, distillers grains with solubles and natural gas prices.