Take This Cob And Burn It!

One of the more forward-thinking and innovative ethanol refineries in the United States is the Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company in Benson, Minnesota. The same refinery that produces Shakers and Prairie premium vodkas as well as fuel for vehicles is using biomass --a combination of corn cobs, wood and glycerin (a co-product of biodiesel production) --to generate 20% of the power needed to generate steam to produce ethanol. Eventually, they hope to replace 90% of the natural gas the plant uses to make steam with biomass-generated steam.