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US Biofuel Makers Set to Produce More Corn-Based Ethanol and Soybean Oil in 2026, USDA

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US biofuel makers will use more corn to produce ethanol and increase soybean oil production in 2026, according to the US Department of Agriculture's Bioenergy Statistics Report on Monday.

For the 2026 calendar year, including data through March 2026, 1.4 billion bushels of corn have been used to produce ethanol.

For the 2026 marketing year, USDA projects 5.6 billion bushels of corn will be used to produce the gasoline-blended product, above 5.5 billion bushels in the 2025 marketing year.

The fuel ethanol share of total corn use for the 2026 marketing year was projected at 34.5%, above 33.5% a year ago.

July's quarterly report showed that US ethanol production in calendar year 2025 totaled 16.5 billion gallons, up from 16.2 billion gallons in 2024.

US biodiesel production, as of January 1, 2025, totaled 2.0 billion gallons, up from 1.7 billion gallons in 2024.

During that same period, renewable diesel output totaled 4.7 billion gallons, with California, Louisiana, and Texas the largest state producers.

From October to September, during the 2026 marketing year, soybean oil production is projected at 32.6 billion pounds, up from 30.9 billion pounds a year ago.

The share of domestic soybean oil consumption used for biofuels in the 2026 marketing year from October to September is projected at 53.7%, up from 46.8% in the previous marketing year.

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