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Ethanol production in Iowa hits record
Ethanol production in Iowa has increased to a record 3.7 billion gallons in 2011.
The Des Moines Register says production for the state's 41 plants has jumped by about 200 million gallons from last year.
Monte Shaw, the executive director of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, says the industry has relied on export markets for growth.
The overall production for ethanol in the U.S. for 2011 is estimated at 13.8 billion gallons. Foreign sales of U.S. ethanol have added an additional 1 billion gallons of production this year.
Much of the foreign demand has come from Brazil. A shortfall in the sugar cane crop caused that nation to turn to imports for domestic use.
An ethanol plant is seen May 16, 2005, east of Coon Rapids, Iowa. (AP Photo/Des Moines Register, Robert Nandell)
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