WASHINGTON, Oct. 10 (UPI) -- A feud between rival ethanol industry lobbying groups is threatening support for the fuel on Capitol Hill, U.S. corn growers say.
An internal memo written by Darrin Ihnen, president of the National Corn Growers Association, called for binding arbitration in a dispute between the two ethanol groups -- the Renewable Fuels Association and Growth Energy -- saying their disagreement is costing the industry much-needed congressional support, the Washington publication The Hill reported Saturday.
Ihnen's Oct. 2 memo said he believes the rivalry is ill-timed because it has come as ethanol makers again turn again to Washington to help rebound from a serious downturn. He urges the two associations to agree to binding arbitration, The Hill said.
"The ethanol family feud is blunting the positives and exacerbating the negatives, especially on policy," Ihnen wrote in the memo.
But in its response, the Renewable Fuels Association said there were "practical, procedural and potentially legal constraints" that would prevent arbitration. Growth Energy said it would not agree to arbitration because its lawyers said doing so may violate anti-trust laws, The Hill reported.
