European renewable ethanol biorefineries produced 6.61 million tonnes of food and animal feed co-products in 2025, exceeding their renewable ethanol output of 5.32 million tonnes, according to audited data released by the European renewable ethanol association ePURE, biofuels international reported.
The data covers ePURE members, which represent 85% of the European Union’s installed ethanol production capacity, as well as other renewable ethanol producers in Europe.
The biorefineries also captured 1.15 million tonnes of biogenic CO2 during the year. The captured CO2 is used as a substitute for fossil-based CO2 in industrial applications such as beverages and greenhouses. ePURE said domestically produced biogenic CO2 is expected to gain importance as a key feedstock for e-fuel production.
Laurent Donceel, secretary general of ePURE, said domestic renewable ethanol production was increasingly important for Europe as food security, energy independence and industrial autonomy gained strategic and economic importance.
“Forget the ‘food versus fuel’ nonsense. With European ethanol biorefineries, fuel is a byproduct of food and feed production,” he said.
Nearly all the crops processed by the audited biorefineries were grown by European farmers. The audit found that 82.5% of the renewable ethanol produced was used as fuel, while 10.4% went into industrial applications, including hand sanitiser, and 7.1% was used for food and beverage purposes.
The audit also recorded a record-high greenhouse gas saving performance for ethanol produced by European producers. On average, the renewable ethanol achieved an 82% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared with fossil petrol.
According to ePURE, the continued improvement in the carbon intensity of European renewable ethanol underlines its role as a domestic solution for reducing emissions from petrol and hybrid vehicles.
ePURE represents 40 member companies and associations operating around 50 plants across the European Union and the UK. The statistics were compiled from ePURE members and other European renewable ethanol producers and certified by auditing firm Copartner.
