Now approved for year-round sale, E15 fuel offers environmentally-conscious consumers a new choice and provides farmers an expanded market for corn, says North Dakota State University.

Media coverage of the controversy surrounding the use of certain non-native feedstocks for bioenergy is as pervasive as invasiveness itself. Plants such as giant reed (Arundo donax) and elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum) are known to be weedy or invasive in natural habitats; the concern lies in their ability to spread propagules into natural habitats outside intended areas.

Since early October, corn prices have bounced in a wide trading range. March 2012 futures have traded between about $5.75 and $6.75 while December 2012 futures have been between about $5.35 and $6.20.

Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore reportedly has had a change of heart on ethanol, telling a conference on green energy in Europe that he only supported tax breaks for the alternative fuel to pander to farmers.

Giant miscanthus, which is a perennial warm-season grass from Asia, is garnering attention across the Midwest because of its high biomass output, its potential for conversion to ethanol and its adaptability to many different soil types.