USDA: Corn use for fuel alcohol down slightly in January

Source: By Erin Voegele, Ethanol Producer Magazine • Posted: Wednesday, March 9, 2016

The USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service recently published the March edition of its Grain Crushing and Co-Products Production report, noting total corn consumed for alcohol and other uses was 491.3 million bushels in January, down 2 percent from December and down 1 percent when compared to January 2015. January usage included 91.6 percent for alcohol and 8.4 percent for other purposes.

Corn for fuel alcohol was 441.3 million bushels, down 2 percent from December and down 1 percent from January of the prior year. Corn consumed for dry milling fuel production and wet milling fuel production was 89.3 percent and 10.7 percent, respectively.

Dry mill production of distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) was 1.87 million tons in January, down 4 percent from December, but up 2 percent from January 20115. Distillers wet grains (DWG) of 65 percent or more moisture was 1.31 million tons, down 6 percent from December and down 11 percent from January of the previous year. Condensed distillers solubles production reached 133,919 tons, down  from 134,196 tons in December and 162,127 tons in January 2015. Corn distillers oil was 124,541 tons, down from 130,652 tons in January, but up from 103,780 in January 2015. Distillers dried grains (DDG) was 383,131 tons, down from 423,632 tons in December and 438,936 tons in January of the previous year. Production of modified DWG of 40 to 64 percent moisture was 449,256 tons, up from 442,448 tons in December, but down from 476,760 tons in January 2015.

Wet mill corn gluten feed production was 322,000 tons in January, down 5 percent from December but up slightly from January of the previous year. Wet corn gluten feed of 40 to 60 percent moisture was 291,900 tons, down 5 percent from December and 7 percent when compared to January 2015. Corn germ meal production was 63,787 tons, down from 69,669 tons in December and 71,438 tons in January 2015. Corn gluten meal production reached 87,266 tons, down from 88,921 tons in December and 90,617 tons in January of the previous year. Corn oil production was 45,976 tons, down from 57,578 tons in December, but up from 41,961 tons in January 2015.

Carbon dioxide captured at dry and wet mill facilities was 202,150 tons, down from 211,352 tons in December, but up from 193,460 tons in January of the previous year.

According to the report, approximately 6.76 million hundredweight (cwt) (378,392 tons) of sorghum was consumed in dry mill plants in January, down from 7.62 million cwt in December.

|