For anyone wondering, ethanol has NOT BEEN SUBSIDIZED by any tax payer money for several years! As opposed to the oil industry which received over 4 BILLION dollars last year!! EDIT: I'm being told the 'subsidies' for the oil industry are not what I thought they were. I will look into this. Thanks.
The states produces a lot more corn than it uses so until there is a shortage of corn the prices will stay low for all end users kinda sucks for farmers would be nice to see 5 dollar corn again
We export a LOT of corn. The U.S. isn't short on corn supply. We also have the most affordable, most efficient, and safest food system Earth has ever seen. I can't directly answer your question, but I would rather pay a few more pennies for my food if it meant cleaner air and water from clean burning engines versus oil.
MN Millennial Farmer 👨🌾 👩🌾 Hey! I was at Blue Flint Ethanol this morning!!!!!!! It’s down in Underwood ND. We sell to Blue Flint Ethanol. It’s down in Underwood ND. It’s been online since 07. Blue Flint Ethanol is located between Underwood and Washburn, ND off of US Highway 83. From Highway 83, turn west on McLean County Road 18 or at Great River Energy's Coal Creek Station sign and travel for approximately 3 miles. The facility is on the north side of the road. For Corn Marketing or Distillers Grain purchasing call 701-442-7575 Also, we sell to Tharaldson Ethanol Ethanol in Casselton, N.D. The cost was $200 million when the plant broke ground, back May 2007. Oh. It’s the fourth to come on line in North Dakota and the state's largest by output volume. Here is our other three ethanol facilities, Blue Flint Ethanol LLC, a 50 MMgy facility in Underwood, N.D.; Red Trail Energy LLC, a 50 MMgy plant in Richardton, N.D.; and Archer Daniels Midland Co., which owns and operates a 28 MMgy facility in Walhalla, N.D. Bios. Blue Flint Ethanol Blue Flint Ethanol is located in Underwood, N.D. Blue Flint Ethanol uses about 23 million bushels of corn annually, which will in turn produce 65 million gallons of ethanol and about 190,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year. Dakota SpiritAgEnergy Dakota Spirit AgEnergy (DSA) is located in Spiritwood, N.D. DSA uses about 23 million bushels of corn annually, which will in turn produce 65 million gallons of ethanol and about 190,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year. It is the newest plant in the state, coming online in 2015. Dakota Spirit AgEnergy PO Box 66 3361 93rd Ave Se Spiritwood, ND 58481 701-251-3900 Hankinson Renewable Energy, LLC Hankinson Renewable Energy is a corn-based ethanol plant located in Hankinson, N.D. The plant uses approximately 46 million bushels of corn annually, which will in turn produce 130 million gallons of ethanol and about 395,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year. Corn receiving hours: Monday - Friday: 6:30am to 5pm To sell corn: 701-242-9432 Scale-House: 701-242-9493 Red Trail Energy, LLC Red Trail Energy, LLC (RTE) is a North Dakota-based investor group formed to finance, construct and operate a corn-based ethanol production facility located near Richardton, N.D. RTE produces 50 million gallons of ethanol annually using 18-20 million bushels of corn and 100,000 tons of coal. Coproducts produced by RTE include 125,000 tons of dried distillers grain and 80,000 tons of modified-wetcake annually. Office Hours Richardton ND Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. GRAINS PHONE NUMBER (701) 974 3880 Corn Unloading Hours Monday-Friday 6:30 a.m.- 5:30 p.m.CT Dried Distiller’s Loading Hours Monday-Friday 7:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m.CT Tharaldson Ethanol Tharaldson Ethanol is located just west of Casselton, N.D., an area known for its rich farming tradition. Tharaldson Ethanol uses 54 million bushels of corn annually, which produces 150 million gallons of ethanol and about 450,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year. THARALDSON ETHANOL 3549 153rd Avenue SE Casselton, ND 58012 Phone: 701-347-4000 since 07. Blue Flint Ethanol is located between Underwood and Washburn, ND off of US Highway 83. From Highway 83, turn west on McLean County Road 18 or at Great River Energy's Coal Creek Station sign and travel for approximately 3 miles. The facility is on the north side of the road. For Corn Marketing or Distillers Grain purchasing call 701-442-7575 Also, we sell to Tharaldson Ethanol Ethanol in Casselton, N.D. The cost was $200 million when the plant broke ground, back May 2007. Oh. It’s the fourth to come on line in North Dakota and the state's largest by output volume. Here is our other three ethanol facilities, Blue Flint Ethanol LLC, a 50 MMgy facility in Underwood, N.D.; Red Trail Energy LLC, a 50 MMgy plant in Richardton, N.D.; and Archer Daniels Midland Co., which owns and operates a 28 MMgy facility in Walhalla, N.D. Bios. Blue Flint Ethanol Blue Flint Ethanol is located in Underwood, N.D. Blue Flint Ethanol uses about 23 million bushels of corn annually, which will in turn produce 65 million gallons of ethanol and about 190,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year. Dakota SpiritAgEnergy Dakota Spirit AgEnergy (DSA) is located in Spiritwood, N.D. DSA uses about 23 million bushels of corn annually, which will in turn produce 65 million gallons of ethanol and about 190,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year. It is the newest plant in the state, coming online in 2015. Dakota Spirit AgEnergy PO Box 66 3361 93rd Ave Se Spiritwood, ND 58481 701-251-3900 Hankinson Renewable Energy, LLC Hankinson Renewable Energy is a corn-based ethanol plant located in Hankinson, N.D. The plant uses approximately 46 million bushels of corn annually, which will in turn produce 130 million gallons of ethanol and about 395,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year. Corn receiving hours: Monday - Friday: 6:30am to 5pm To sell corn: 701-242-9432 Scale-House: 701-242-9493 Red Trail Energy, LLC Red Trail Energy, LLC (RTE) is a North Dakota-based investor group formed to finance, construct and operate a corn-based ethanol production facility located near Richardton, N.D. RTE produces 50 million gallons of ethanol annually using 18-20 million bushels of corn and 100,000 tons of coal. Coproducts produced by RTE include 125,000 tons of dried distillers grain and 80,000 tons of modified-wetcake annually. Office Hours Richardton ND Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. GRAINS PHONE NUMBER (701) 974 3880 Corn Unloading Hours Monday-Friday 6:30 a.m.- 5:30 p.m.CT Dried Distiller’s Loading Hours Monday-Friday 7:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m.CT Tharaldson Ethanol Tharaldson Ethanol is located just west of Casselton, N.D., an area known for its rich farming tradition. Tharaldson Ethanol uses 54 million bushels of corn annually, which produces 150 million gallons of ethanol and about 450,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year. THARALDSON ETHANOL 3549 153rd Avenue SE Casselton, ND 58012 Phone: 701-347-4000
1. Grow corn, 2. Add water to make slurry turning into mash, 3. Add yeast to consume the sugar, 4. ferment, 5. End product= Bottles of alcohol. Sounds like a Moonshine Still to me.............................lol. Very interesting video. Thanks for sharing
jfmaniac There are a couple of customers from CVE that do use it for consumption. The rail cars you see going down the tracks are full boar booze. The gas is added to poison it against human consumption.
At Midnight oil refinement is basically the same too. You basically put crude oil into a giant column still and boil it, the heavier fuels like diesel are lower on the column and the higher grade fuels are higher up the column, then the remnants in the bottom are molecularly separated to make even more fuel. Ethanol is still a better product, but their processes are very similar
Thanks for the tour, like probably most people. I thought the ethanol plants were for gasoline additive only. Nice to see corn is being used and not wasted.
I truly appreciate your taking us "TH-cambers" on plant visits and explaining how things work. I love the way you summarize in "layman's terms" what the experts are explaining. And finally ... knowing and asking the questions that get to the core of what is happening is very much a skill. Thanks for opening my mind and knowledge base!
Excellent video - great to see the plant and some actual facts about the industry. Always enjoy your vids, but had somehow missed this one until now...
Jason, Thank for the tour. My wife is from Benson, and I have often wondered what goes on at that Ethanol plant. Now I have a much better understanding.
I just learned a lot of things. I didn’t realize how many byproducts were produced. I also thought that our government paid large subsidies to ethanol producers, even without that money the still strive for efficiency at the plant great news for everyone. But the best part is that they buy the corn from local farms and that keeps America moving forward. Thank you for the tour and the information. Great video
I used to deliver stuff to that plant in Benson, and watching this from my house in Minneapolis i can smell it, not literally but in my mind... Unique smell it is... Thank's for sharing this.....
Great tour! I particularly identify with the 'working knowledge' approach to the questions asked and details covered. The plant manager was a great host and very informative.
you ask all the right questions, thank you for your time and knowledge. I wish I was born into a farming family but at least with these videos i get to experience it.
Great video learned a lot about the making of Ethanol thank you for taking the time with ethanol plant team to show us the uses of corn to help corn farmer
Thanks for the awesome tour Zach, I'm not a farmer but I found this to be very informative, it is good to see the kids enjoying the tour as well, thanks for taking the time to do this and film on a day that looks like was pretty cold the kids faces looked pretty red at times.
I am so glad I got to see this video. I have a 2010 Chev HHR that uses a blend of ethanol. I fill up when I need fuel and never had a problem with my car. Now, since watching this I am so relieved knowing about ethanol!
This is a big industry at the other end of Minnesota that I knew or hear very little about. Thanks for recording the tour, and kudos for bringing your kids along. They'll probably remember it the rest of their life.
I appreciate this content. A practical review of a fundamental part of our biofuels industry. Your curiosity really helped in filling in some of the gaps, thanks for that.
Great video. I've driven by the plant in Fergus many times but have never actually driven in as we don't haul any corn there. Learned a lot about ethanol production. Thanks for the great tour of an ethanol plant.
I have always wondered about this plant. I have driven by this Ethanol plant tons of times, Thanks for the great video. This plant reminds me of the sugar beet plant in East Grand Forks where I had worked. A lot of heat, scrubbers etc. lots of valves etc. One big still.
Zach I loved the tour of the ethanol plant. I spent may hours in them when I use to haul ethanol. One thing that you didn't touch on was why ethanol is "bad" for small engines and it is because ethanol is very acidic and it will eat away at aluminum parts. This is also another reason why it can only be hauled by Tank truck or a rail tanker and not be transported by pipeline because it will harm the pipes. Love the channel and keep up the good work.
Great video. Lots of information given to people that do not totally understand ethanol. Enjoyed watching the tour. Excited to see where you will tour next!
This was actually better than a How It's Made episode. I used to work at the Port of Tampa, unloading ethanol trains of up to 90 cars though the average was ~74. Took all day to unload a full train and send it to the storage tanks and it was a hard job but I enjoyed it. We did between 4-6 trains per week and a lot of them came out of Iowa and Illinois but I am sure that a few Minnesota cars ended up down my way as well.
Thanks for a very through tour and the questions you asked enhanced the video. I am from the city, this the a great behind the doors tour. I learned a lot.Thanks
Great video Zach and family. Who knew that Oregon(where i live) would play a part in Minnesota's (hope i spelled it right!) agriculture process! I learned a lot from your video and i thank you for that.
Great video and very cool plant. Ethanol has been a great trade simulator for me. I'm rebuilding and replacing carbs right and left. Spend the little bit more for pure gas in your older engines and you will save money and head ache in the long run. Save the ethanol for newer engines that can run it all day with no ill effects.
What an interesting video, thank you to all involved for taking the time to put this together. Being from central Illinois and having one of these plants right down the road I have to admit I was woefully uninformed on some of the process involved.
I have worked in the refining for over 20 years, there are only 2 refineries of any type in Canada that I know of that allow tours of any kind. Our OH&S is very strict in accessing facilities, as well as fear of public scrutiny.
I had been a skeptic of ethanol from corn. (I have been involved with it, and even been indirectly paid by the industry). Slowly but surely, I have come to believe in it. Thanks MMF, Kaapa, and Chippawa Valley Ethanol.
Ethenol, is hygroscopic, the heet is what we in PA call dry gas, the ethenol absorbs the moisture and allows it to be "burned" off and acts like an antifreeze. Great video 👍👊👍
Awesome video! We have an ethanol plant about 20 miles from here. Always see a line of trucks hauling corn in and railroad tank cars hauling fuel away.
Terrific video. We use some of the distillers grain here in Colorado, not sure if it comes from this plant, but we do use distillers grain on our cows and calves as a supplement to improve performance and supplement our hay production. We raise wheat, hay and cow/calf operation. Really an eye opening effort here good on ya for a fine video
My family all lives in Iowa, my sister works at the ethanol plant in Atlantic Iowa. It's claim to fame is world's largest grain bins at 2 million bushels. They have 2. They had bunker crop a couple of years ago and one of the smart guys figured they were going to quickly run out of storage space. They had up to about 5 million bushels on the ground. You know better than most how wet corn is undesirable, it was taking way too long to pick up that corn. They contracted a guy to bring his huge machine to pick up corn that cut the time exponentially.
This is yet another great example of your willingness to provide the "how-things-work" aspect important to not just farming but to related topics relative to processes. One of the things that so impressed me when I first started watching your videos was that you take the time to explain things, e.g., the video of how a combine works. Thanks, and please keep those videos coming! Regarding this video, the demand for ethanol has shifted due to alternative energy sources like shale oil. So, is the supply of ethanol also being exported to maintain corn production levels here in the U.S.?
What a great video. Have you tried to market it to schools either high school or Jr high schools. There are some great comments also, I think you are doing us all a great service with your channel. Keep up the informative work, an educated populace is the foundation of a productive great society.
A most interesting and educational video. Their profit margins must be truly exceptional currently what with low energy costs and low, low prices for corn it is no wonder they are expanding and investing heavily!!
Great interview. This is a much needed topic with all the misinformation out there. You did a good job documenting the process and clearing up a lot of what I never was able find out for sure about ethanol. Thanks.
I love ethanol! In a college class I had a Doctorate professor tell me we could not put corn into ethanol production, because she said there would not be enough corn for human consumption, with about an hours worth of explaining I guess I could of just linked this video haha!
Awesome video!! Like you Zack, I also found the area below the dump pits interesting! I’ve hauled corn to ethanol plants quite often and have never been down there, although curious to see what it looked like. Thanks for sharing!!👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Trucks have pup trailers in Idaho to haul grain, My brother hauls corn into that same plant, its a real good use of corn to keep demand up for all the production rather than shipping it down the Miss river or trucking it to a distant terminal. Good Job out there on the frozen Tundra
It always amazes us the folks that will come out to North Dakota or Montana Wyoming and go on tours of Refineries Drilling Sites, Ethanol Plants, Synfuel Plants Here ND. And they are always so amazed. WIDE EYED. It always shows me just how tight of a bubble big city folks live in. They really don’t get outside of such said bubble. Yet my wife and I have traveled to all 50 States. The only thing I’ve gotten wide eyed about lately is the new Cat Challenger 1000 series tractor. Lol lol. Fully loaded!:) :) :)
MN Millennial Farmer The Weckerly farming family bought 2 and the Jonsered farming family bought 1. Both run the Cat Challenger MT975. It’s the one I use for my photon lll I’m sitting in. I love them. My God I love them!!
Very educational! The only thing I have against ethanol is that it is hard on engines, especially small engines, mowers, string trimmers etc. I never use it in those engines.
Where I live in Indiana, we have ethanol plants at 20 miles, another at 30 miles, one at 42 miles, and the WORLDS LARGEST soybean diesel plant at 38 miles. We're in the thick of it!!!
A very interesting video it’s great to see a massive company looking after the local farmers and also doing a great job looking forward in to protecting the environment and plant but also ways in improving there product quality and efficiency let’s hope more companies can do this great video mate
For anyone wondering, ethanol has NOT BEEN SUBSIDIZED by any tax payer money for several years! As opposed to the oil industry which received over 4 BILLION dollars last year!! EDIT: I'm being told the 'subsidies' for the oil industry are not what I thought they were. I will look into this. Thanks.
How much more in price do all of the food manufacturers pay for corn since so much supply is directed to ethanol ??
The states produces a lot more corn than it uses so until there is a shortage of corn the prices will stay low for all end users kinda sucks for farmers would be nice to see 5 dollar corn again
We export a LOT of corn. The U.S. isn't short on corn supply. We also have the most affordable, most efficient, and safest food system Earth has ever seen. I can't directly answer your question, but I would rather pay a few more pennies for my food if it meant cleaner air and water from clean burning engines versus oil.
MN Millennial Farmer 👨🌾 👩🌾
Hey! I was at Blue Flint Ethanol this morning!!!!!!! It’s down in Underwood ND. We sell to Blue Flint Ethanol. It’s down in Underwood ND. It’s been online since 07.
Blue Flint Ethanol is located between Underwood and Washburn, ND off of US Highway 83. From Highway 83, turn west on McLean County Road 18 or at Great River Energy's Coal Creek Station sign and travel for approximately 3 miles. The facility is on the north side of the road.
For Corn Marketing or Distillers Grain purchasing call 701-442-7575
Also, we sell to Tharaldson Ethanol Ethanol in Casselton, N.D. The cost was $200 million when the plant broke ground, back May 2007. Oh. It’s the fourth to come on line in North Dakota and the state's largest by output volume.
Here is our other three ethanol facilities, Blue Flint Ethanol LLC, a 50 MMgy facility in Underwood, N.D.; Red Trail Energy LLC, a 50 MMgy plant in Richardton, N.D.; and Archer Daniels Midland Co., which owns and operates a 28 MMgy facility in Walhalla, N.D.
Bios.
Blue Flint Ethanol
Blue Flint Ethanol is located in Underwood, N.D. Blue Flint Ethanol uses about 23 million bushels of corn annually, which will in turn produce 65 million gallons of ethanol and about 190,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year.
Dakota SpiritAgEnergy
Dakota Spirit AgEnergy (DSA) is located in Spiritwood, N.D. DSA uses about 23 million bushels of corn annually, which will in turn produce 65 million gallons of ethanol and about 190,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year. It is the newest plant in the state, coming online in 2015.
Dakota Spirit AgEnergy
PO Box 66
3361 93rd Ave Se
Spiritwood, ND 58481
701-251-3900
Hankinson Renewable Energy, LLC
Hankinson Renewable Energy is a corn-based ethanol plant located in Hankinson, N.D. The plant uses approximately 46 million bushels of corn annually, which will in turn produce 130 million gallons of ethanol and about 395,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year.
Corn receiving hours:
Monday - Friday: 6:30am to 5pm
To sell corn: 701-242-9432
Scale-House: 701-242-9493
Red Trail Energy, LLC
Red Trail Energy, LLC (RTE) is a North Dakota-based investor group formed to finance, construct and operate a corn-based ethanol production facility located near Richardton, N.D. RTE produces 50 million gallons of ethanol annually using 18-20 million bushels of corn and 100,000 tons of coal. Coproducts produced by RTE include 125,000 tons of dried distillers grain and 80,000 tons of modified-wetcake annually.
Office Hours Richardton ND Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
GRAINS PHONE NUMBER
(701) 974 3880
Corn Unloading Hours
Monday-Friday 6:30 a.m.- 5:30 p.m.CT
Dried Distiller’s Loading Hours
Monday-Friday 7:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m.CT
Tharaldson Ethanol
Tharaldson Ethanol is located just west of Casselton, N.D., an area known for its rich farming tradition. Tharaldson Ethanol uses 54 million bushels of corn annually, which produces 150 million gallons of ethanol and about 450,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year.
THARALDSON ETHANOL
3549 153rd Avenue SE
Casselton, ND 58012
Phone: 701-347-4000 since 07.
Blue Flint Ethanol is located between Underwood and Washburn, ND off of US Highway 83. From Highway 83, turn west on McLean County Road 18 or at Great River Energy's Coal Creek Station sign and travel for approximately 3 miles. The facility is on the north side of the road.
For Corn Marketing or Distillers Grain purchasing call 701-442-7575
Also, we sell to Tharaldson Ethanol Ethanol in Casselton, N.D. The cost was $200 million when the plant broke ground, back May 2007. Oh. It’s the fourth to come on line in North Dakota and the state's largest by output volume.
Here is our other three ethanol facilities, Blue Flint Ethanol LLC, a 50 MMgy facility in Underwood, N.D.; Red Trail Energy LLC, a 50 MMgy plant in Richardton, N.D.; and Archer Daniels Midland Co., which owns and operates a 28 MMgy facility in Walhalla, N.D.
Bios.
Blue Flint Ethanol
Blue Flint Ethanol is located in Underwood, N.D. Blue Flint Ethanol uses about 23 million bushels of corn annually, which will in turn produce 65 million gallons of ethanol and about 190,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year.
Dakota SpiritAgEnergy
Dakota Spirit AgEnergy (DSA) is located in Spiritwood, N.D. DSA uses about 23 million bushels of corn annually, which will in turn produce 65 million gallons of ethanol and about 190,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year. It is the newest plant in the state, coming online in 2015.
Dakota Spirit AgEnergy
PO Box 66
3361 93rd Ave Se
Spiritwood, ND 58481
701-251-3900
Hankinson Renewable Energy, LLC
Hankinson Renewable Energy is a corn-based ethanol plant located in Hankinson, N.D. The plant uses approximately 46 million bushels of corn annually, which will in turn produce 130 million gallons of ethanol and about 395,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year.
Corn receiving hours:
Monday - Friday: 6:30am to 5pm
To sell corn: 701-242-9432
Scale-House: 701-242-9493
Red Trail Energy, LLC
Red Trail Energy, LLC (RTE) is a North Dakota-based investor group formed to finance, construct and operate a corn-based ethanol production facility located near Richardton, N.D. RTE produces 50 million gallons of ethanol annually using 18-20 million bushels of corn and 100,000 tons of coal. Coproducts produced by RTE include 125,000 tons of dried distillers grain and 80,000 tons of modified-wetcake annually.
Office Hours Richardton ND Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
GRAINS PHONE NUMBER
(701) 974 3880
Corn Unloading Hours
Monday-Friday 6:30 a.m.- 5:30 p.m.CT
Dried Distiller’s Loading Hours
Monday-Friday 7:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m.CT
Tharaldson Ethanol
Tharaldson Ethanol is located just west of Casselton, N.D., an area known for its rich farming tradition. Tharaldson Ethanol uses 54 million bushels of corn annually, which produces 150 million gallons of ethanol and about 450,000 tons of dried distiller's grain each year.
THARALDSON ETHANOL
3549 153rd Avenue SE
Casselton, ND 58012
Phone: 701-347-4000
"safest food system Earth has ever seen". The GMO corn that Monsanto has given us will be the death of us all, just like in Soybeans. Fact !
Out of all the farmers I watch, you are the most informative & want to thank you.
I'm amazed at the number of products made from a simple grain of corn. then to be able to feed the remaining grain to livestock is a win/win .
1. Grow corn, 2. Add water to make slurry turning into mash, 3. Add yeast to consume the sugar, 4. ferment, 5. End product= Bottles of alcohol. Sounds like a Moonshine Still to me.............................lol. Very interesting video. Thanks for sharing
Same exact process, just with a lot of permits!
Wonder if they have a hidden tap somewhere in the basement :)
jfmaniac There are a couple of customers from CVE that do use it for consumption. The rail cars you see going down the tracks are full boar booze. The gas is added to poison it against human consumption.
Yep. That's what it is, a Giant Moonshine Operation. :-) Cheers...
At Midnight oil refinement is basically the same too. You basically put crude oil into a giant column still and boil it, the heavier fuels like diesel are lower on the column and the higher grade fuels are higher up the column, then the remnants in the bottom are molecularly separated to make even more fuel. Ethanol is still a better product, but their processes are very similar
Thanks for the tour, like probably most people. I thought the ethanol plants were for gasoline additive only. Nice to see corn is being used and not wasted.
More people should see this, thanks for shooting it. Spot on as always.
Thanks to Millennial Farmer for educating us! That was a fantastic presentation.
I truly appreciate your taking us "TH-cambers" on plant visits and explaining how things work. I love the way you summarize in "layman's terms" what the experts are explaining. And finally ... knowing and asking the questions that get to the core of what is happening is very much a skill. Thanks for opening my mind and knowledge base!
Excellent video - great to see the plant and some actual facts about the industry. Always enjoy your vids, but had somehow missed this one until now...
Jason, Thank for the tour. My wife is from Benson, and I have often wondered what goes on at that Ethanol plant. Now I have a much better understanding.
I just learned a lot of things. I didn’t realize how many byproducts were produced. I also thought that our government paid large subsidies to ethanol producers, even without that money the still strive for efficiency at the plant great news for everyone. But the best part is that they buy the corn from local farms and that keeps America moving forward. Thank you for the tour and the information. Great video
I used to deliver stuff to that plant in Benson, and watching this from my house in Minneapolis i can smell it, not literally but in my mind... Unique smell it is... Thank's for sharing this.....
Great tour! I particularly identify with the 'working knowledge' approach to the questions asked and details covered. The plant manager was a great host and very informative.
Wow! Now I'm impressed with ethanol plants! They are really beneficial to our economy and industry.
you ask all the right questions, thank you for your time and knowledge. I wish I was born into a farming family but at least with these videos i get to experience it.
Thank you for your video on ethanol. So glad they are not being subsidized. Much appreciate your time.
Great video learned a lot about the making of Ethanol thank you for taking the time with ethanol plant team to show us the uses of corn to help corn farmer
Keep up the great videos. Your content and level of information is great. It lets people see what start to finish looks like. Great job.
Thanks for the awesome tour Zach, I'm not a farmer but I found this to be very informative, it is good to see the kids enjoying the tour as well, thanks for taking the time to do this and film on a day that looks like was pretty cold the kids faces looked pretty red at times.
Matt Lyvers It was miserably cold in the wind!! It was a fun tour, though. Thanks for watching!
I am so glad I got to see this video. I have a 2010 Chev HHR that uses a blend of ethanol. I fill up when I need fuel and never had a problem with my car. Now, since watching this I am so relieved knowing about ethanol!
This is a big industry at the other end of Minnesota that I knew or hear very little about. Thanks for recording the tour, and kudos for bringing your kids along. They'll probably remember it the rest of their life.
Not a place for kids. Distracting.
One of the most engrossing videos I’ve ever had the pleasure to watch. Milli-man, you’re amazing. Congratulations mate.
I appreciate this content. A practical review of a fundamental part of our biofuels industry. Your curiosity really helped in filling in some of the gaps, thanks for that.
Zack that is one of the most amazing corn ethanol videos I’ve seen. You covered it all keep them coming
Great video. I've driven by the plant in Fergus many times but have never actually driven in as we don't haul any corn there. Learned a lot about ethanol production. Thanks for the great tour of an ethanol plant.
Outstanding video presentation by you and the Chippewa Valley Ethanol Plant manager. What a revelation.
Great video, learned a bunch with this video. I never knew it was so efficient, They get so much out of that corn. Keep the videos coming !
Thank you for enlightening the consumers. Your channel is terrific.
Thanks for taking us on the tour. Very cool they did that. Great content.
you should also do a tour of a biodiesel plant.
Very interesting video. I like how you educate public on farming products and how things work on farms.
Excellent presentation. The man you interviewed really knows the business.
I have always wondered about this plant. I have driven by this Ethanol plant tons of times, Thanks for the great video. This plant reminds me of the sugar beet plant in East Grand Forks where I had worked. A lot of heat, scrubbers etc. lots of valves etc. One big still.
Zach I loved the tour of the ethanol plant. I spent may hours in them when I use to haul ethanol. One thing that you didn't touch on was why ethanol is "bad" for small engines and it is because ethanol is very acidic and it will eat away at aluminum parts. This is also another reason why it can only be hauled by Tank truck or a rail tanker and not be transported by pipeline because it will harm the pipes. Love the channel and keep up the good work.
This was a very informative video. I always wondered what Ethanol was and how it went from corn to fuel. Thanks Millennial Farmer.
Great job Zach, learned a lot from this video. Keep em coming, looking forward to spring!
Great video. Lots of information given to people that do not totally understand ethanol. Enjoyed watching the tour. Excited to see where you will tour next!
This was actually better than a How It's Made episode. I used to work at the Port of Tampa, unloading ethanol trains of up to 90 cars though the average was ~74. Took all day to unload a full train and send it to the storage tanks and it was a hard job but I enjoyed it. We did between 4-6 trains per week and a lot of them came out of Iowa and Illinois but I am sure that a few Minnesota cars ended up down my way as well.
Thanks for making another awesome video for us TH-camrs!! And a farmer like me. You rock man!!
Thank you!
Thanks for showing us where some of are hard work goes. Keep it up! You have a loyal follower here
Daniel Boyd thank you!!
There's 3 ethanol plants within 20 miles of my house. I always wanted to see what each part/building of the plant does. Thank you for the tour.
Great video Zach I didn't know that much about ethanol until this video. That's some great knowledge
Thanks for sharing, Zach. Very informative.
Thanks for a very through tour and the questions you asked enhanced the video. I am from the city, this the a great behind the doors tour. I learned a lot.Thanks
Great video Zach and family. Who knew that Oregon(where i live) would play a part in Minnesota's (hope i spelled it right!) agriculture process! I learned a lot from your video and i thank you for that.
Great video and very cool plant. Ethanol has been a great trade simulator for me. I'm rebuilding and replacing carbs right and left. Spend the little bit more for pure gas in your older engines and you will save money and head ache in the long run. Save the ethanol for newer engines that can run it all day with no ill effects.
I really enjoy all content you put out, specially this type of informative videos.
I really enjoyed this video because I worked at an ethanol plant here in Burley, Idaho and it was cool to see some of the same stuff in the video.
What an interesting video, thank you to all involved for taking the time to put this together. Being from central Illinois and having one of these plants right down the road I have to admit I was woefully uninformed on some of the process involved.
MrDastram s awesome, thank you!
kudos to you and the CVE for the tour. Their openness is outstanding. Great tour the public here in Canada would never get an opportunity to see
DLK HAY they were more than accommodating!
DLK HAY Why wouldn’t the public in Canada get to see??
I have worked in the refining for over 20 years, there are only 2 refineries of any type in Canada that I know of that allow tours of any kind. Our OH&S is very strict in accessing facilities, as well as fear of public scrutiny.
Great video. Very amazed at everything they can do with corn just at that plant
I had been a skeptic of ethanol from corn. (I have been involved with it, and even been indirectly paid by the industry). Slowly but surely, I have come to believe in it. Thanks MMF, Kaapa, and Chippawa Valley Ethanol.
Ethenol, is hygroscopic, the heet is what we in PA call dry gas, the ethenol absorbs the moisture and allows it to be "burned" off and acts like an antifreeze. Great video 👍👊👍
Great Video as always ! You and your family are a credit to your generation !
Dan Halverson Thank you!!
I work in an ethanol plant in Michigan. Cool to see a plant with diversified product streams. Nice video, cool channel.
Awesome video and very informative, well done and thanks for the tour!
Thanks for the video Zach. This was very interesting, educational, and cool to see how an ethanol plant works.
Thanks for sharing this very educational video. Really enjoyed watching it and learning a lot.
Awesome video! We have an ethanol plant about 20 miles from here. Always see a line of trucks hauling corn in and railroad tank cars hauling fuel away.
Terrific video. We use some of the distillers grain here in Colorado, not sure if it comes from this plant, but we do use distillers grain on our cows and calves as a supplement to improve performance and supplement our hay production. We raise wheat, hay and cow/calf operation. Really an eye opening effort here good on ya for a fine video
Thank you for the tour teaching us about this
Delivered there among a few others also one in Iowa. Actually a share holder in Highwater plant , big time Ag Day watcher!
My family all lives in Iowa, my sister works at the ethanol plant in Atlantic Iowa. It's claim to fame is world's largest grain bins at 2 million bushels. They have 2. They had bunker crop a couple of years ago and one of the smart guys figured they were going to quickly run out of storage space. They had up to about 5 million bushels on the ground. You know better than most how wet corn is undesirable, it was taking way too long to pick up that corn. They contracted a guy to bring his huge machine to pick up corn that cut the time exponentially.
This is yet another great example of your willingness to provide the "how-things-work" aspect important to not just farming but to related topics relative to processes. One of the things that so impressed me when I first started watching your videos was that you take the time to explain things, e.g., the video of how a combine works. Thanks, and please keep those videos coming!
Regarding this video, the demand for ethanol has shifted due to alternative energy sources like shale oil. So, is the supply of ethanol also being exported to maintain corn production levels here in the U.S.?
I love your videos. I learn so much off of them. There exciting, fun, and educational. Keep them up man.
Thanks for the tour!!!
I was just at my local Ethanol plant today, will start delivering corn next week. Great vid
I love watching to tours y'all do, rather at a different type of farm, or at factories and warehouses.
Thanks for the awesome video Zach, very cool, a good learning experience for everyone!
What a great video. Have you tried to market it to schools either high school or Jr high schools. There are some great comments also, I think you are doing us all a great service with your channel. Keep up the informative work, an educated populace is the foundation of a productive great society.
That is awesome, great video. Ethanol seems to be great part of the solution to our future fuel needs
A most interesting and educational video. Their profit margins must be truly exceptional currently what with low energy costs and low, low prices for corn it is no wonder they are expanding and investing heavily!!
WOW, that was very interesting and highly impressive. Thanks for the tour (Y)
That was fantastic to watch so interesting , as I live in the uk I had no idea that that's how in all worked
Very cool to see a different layout of an ethanol plant. This is quite a bit different than the one I work at here in Palestine Illinois. Great video!
Great interview. This is a much needed topic with all the misinformation out there. You did a good job documenting the process and clearing up a lot of what I never was able find out for sure about ethanol. Thanks.
This video was very informative answered alot of my questions and yes I'm I kno it's 4 yrs old but still a very informative video.... amazing job 💯😎
That was cool, thanks for showing us the process.
I love ethanol! In a college class I had a Doctorate professor tell me we could not put corn into ethanol production, because she said there would not be enough corn for human consumption, with about an hours worth of explaining I guess I could of just linked this video haha!
Awesome video!! Like you Zack, I also found the area below the dump pits interesting! I’ve hauled corn to ethanol plants quite often and have never been down there, although curious to see what it looked like. Thanks for sharing!!👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Loved the tour. That answered a lot of questions for me.
Very interesting. Thank you!
WOW That was great . Learned a lot . Thanks
That was an excellent video. Learned alot from it.
Thank you for doing this video....so educational!
Excellent video on the process, the product and the by-products. Who knew!!!!
Trucks have pup trailers in Idaho to haul grain, My brother hauls corn into that same plant, its a real good use of corn to keep demand up for all the production rather than shipping it down the Miss river or trucking it to a distant terminal. Good Job out there on the frozen Tundra
Banjo Benson We Use pup trailers here in Montana and North Dakota. For Interstate Travel Only, from Farm to Plant you can haul 2 pups.
I like videos like this, teaches a guy a lot.
Excellent video. Very informative to those who don’t know
It always amazes us the folks that will come out to North Dakota or Montana Wyoming and go on tours of Refineries Drilling Sites, Ethanol Plants, Synfuel Plants Here ND. And they are always so amazed. WIDE EYED.
It always shows me just how tight of a bubble big city folks live in. They really don’t get outside of such said bubble. Yet my wife and I have traveled to all 50 States. The only thing I’ve gotten wide eyed about lately is the new
Cat Challenger 1000 series tractor. Lol lol. Fully loaded!:) :) :)
Garland & Darinda Remington III I have yet to see a 1000 in person but they look beautiful!
Garland & Darinda Remington I
MN Millennial Farmer The Weckerly farming family bought 2 and the Jonsered farming family bought 1. Both run the Cat Challenger MT975. It’s the one I use for my photon lll I’m sitting in. I love them. My God I love them!!
Might be one at NFMS in Louisville.......
That was great to see. I learned something today. Thanks for sharing that.
Great video Zach.
Amazing video. Amazingly info filled.
Great tour Zach
Thank you for an interesting and informative video on ethanol......
Rich Mengel It was excellent!!
Very interesting thanks for putting this on here. Awsome channel
Very educational! The only thing I have against ethanol is that it is hard on engines, especially small engines, mowers, string trimmers etc. I never use it in those engines.
Where I live in Indiana, we have ethanol plants at 20 miles, another at 30 miles, one at 42 miles, and the WORLDS LARGEST soybean diesel plant at 38 miles. We're in the thick of it!!!
I work at cardinal ethanol in union city Indiana
Where is the bean plant?
Another amazing video
A very interesting video it’s great to see a massive company looking after the local farmers and also doing a great job looking forward in to protecting the environment and plant but also ways in improving there product quality and efficiency let’s hope more companies can do this great video mate