Midwest Co-Ops Close the Gap in Low-Carbon Ethanol

Ethanol is supposed to be the cleaner fuel. But the fertilizer used to grow the corn that feeds ethanol plants is one of the most carbon-intensive inputs in the entire production chain.

Now, CF Industries and POET, the world's largest biofuel producer, have expanded their low-carbon fertilizer collaboration to include WinField United (the crop inputs business of Land O'Lakes) and three farmer-owned cooperatives. The result is a full supply chain pilot that tracks low-carbon ammonia from factory floor to fuel pump, with co-ops serving as the critical connective tissue.

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From Two Partners to a Full Value Chain

CF Industries and POET first announced their collaboration in 2024, targeting fall applications of low-carbon ammonia at select corn-growing regions. The expanded pilot now brings in NuWay-K&H Cooperative, NEW Cooperative Inc., and Farmers Cooperative, all member-owned organizations serving growers across Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, and Nebraska.

The consortium completed its first round of low-carbon ammonia applications in fall 2025. POET expects to produce an estimated 5 to 6 million gallons of lower-carbon-intensity ethanol from corn grown with that fertilizer.

The CCS Engine Behind the Fertilizer

The low-carbon ammonia powering this pilot comes from CF Industries' Donaldsonville Complex in Louisiana, where the company captures CO2 during ammonia production and permanently stores it underground with ExxonMobil handling transport and sequestration. At full capacity, the facility produces up to 1.9 million tons of low-carbon ammonia annually, enough to serve roughly 19 to 22 million acres of corn.

This operation is part of CF Industries' broader clean ammonia strategy that includes the $4 billion Blue Point joint venture with JERA and Mitsui, alongside a wave of CCS investment across Louisiana.

Why Cooperatives Are the Missing Link

Most decarbonization stories focus on the biggest players in the room. This one is different.

WinField United manages the retail distribution channel that moves low-carbon fertilizer from CF Industries' network to the farms. NuWay-K&H, NEW Cooperative, and Farmers Cooperative work directly with growers to apply, track, and certify the carbon intensity of every ton of ammonia that touches their fields.

That chain of custody is exactly what clean fuel credit programs like the 45Z require. Without verifiable, trackable supply chains, low-carbon claims are just claims. Cooperatives turn them into certifiable data points.

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A Growing Market for Lower-Carbon Ethanol

The timing of this pilot isn't accidental. Demand for ethanol with lower carbon intensity is rising fast, driven by California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard, Oregon's Clean Fuels Program, and the federal 45Z Clean Fuel Production Credit. All of them reward producers who can document lower lifecycle emissions.

For ethanol producers, reducing carbon intensity at the fertilizer stage is one of the most practical levers available. Carbon capture at the plant addresses production emissions. Low-carbon fertilizer addresses the input side. Combine both, and the reduction compounds.

POET already connects to the Tallgrass Trailblazer CO2 pipeline for production-side capture. Adding low-carbon fertilizer on the input side creates a stacked approach that few competitors can match.

Decarbonization Strategy	Where It Reduces CI	Example
Low-carbon ammonia fertilizer	Agricultural inputs (upstream)	CF Industries + POET pilot
CCS at ethanol plants	Production emissions (midstream)	Green Plains via Trailblazer pipeline
Renewable energy certificates	Electricity use at facility	EAC procurement under 45Z
Stacked approach (all of the above)	Full lifecycle	Compounded CI reduction

A Blueprint That Could Scale

Five to six million gallons is a starting point, not a ceiling. CF Industries can supply low-carbon ammonia for up to 22 million acres of corn. POET operates 35 bioprocessing facilities across 14 states. The cooperative network spans hundreds of Midwest communities.

If this pilot delivers the certifiable reductions it's designed to prove, the model could expand rapidly: more co-ops, more POET plants, more acreage, and a growing premium for low-carbon ethanol in domestic and export markets.

The Midwest already leads the country in carbon capture deployment. What this pilot adds is proof that decarbonization doesn't have to skip over rural America. Farmer-owned cooperatives aren't just along for the ride. They're the ones making the last mile work.