ADM is temporarily idling ethanol production at the company’s corn dry mill facilities in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Columbus, Nebraska. ADM notified approximately 90 employees in each facility today that they will be furloughed in the coming weeks. During the furlough, employees will continue to receive medical benefits and will be eligible to apply for state and federal unemployment benefits. They will also have the option to apply for other open positions at ADM. The anticipated length of the furlough is currently four months, but the timeframe is dependent on market conditions and could change.

ADM has also reduced the ethanol grind at its corn wet mill plants and rebalanced grind to produce more industrial alcohol for the sanitizer market and industrial starches for the containerboard market to better align production with current demand.

“These are very difficult decisions in a very challenging time, and unfortunately, the current market conditions and the low consumer demand for gasoline at this time have greatly impacted the entire ethanol industry,” said Chris Cuddy, president, Carbohydrate Solutions. “Our primary focus is the respect and care of our employees during this time, and we are doing everything we can to support them until market conditions improve and we can look at ways to restart production.”

Related:Global oil storage shortages weigh on ethanol prospects

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