FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Washington, DC (August 6, 2026) – Today, as the Senate Agriculture Committee marks up their Farm Bill 2.0, which includes a measure authorizing year-round, nationwide sale of E15 ethanol-gasoline blends, the 25x’25 renewable energy campaign releases its final assessment report.

The report invites the nation’s leaders to come together once again with a renewed sense of vision, innovation, and persistence in shaping America’s energy future and revitalizing rural communities.

About the 25x’25 Campaign

25x’25 was a diverse alliance of agricultural, forestry, environmental, conservation, and other organizations and businesses, led by a national steering committee of volunteer leaders that worked collaboratively for more than two decades to advance the goal of securing 25% of the nation’s energy needs from renewable sources by the year 2025.The 25x’25 goal was endorsed by over 1,000 partners, 37 governors, 15 state legislatures, and the U.S. Congress through The Energy Independence and Security Act which was signed into law by President Bush on December 19, 2007.

Statements from Campaign Leaders

“When I introduced the 25x’25 resolution alongside then-Senator Ken Salazar, we were setting a bold goal that demanded big ideas and workable solutions,” said U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley. “In the last 20 years, America’s innovators and policymakers have worked to grow the share of our energy that comes from renewable sources, including through the use of reasonable incentives. Wind energy today produces more than 60% of my home state’s electricity. Harnessing the power of American ingenuity and natural resources will boost sustainable energy, job creation, and economic development for generations to come.”

“Two decades ago, along with Iowa Republican Senator Chuck Grassley, I sponsored a U.S. Senate resolution setting a goal of 25% of our nation’s energy coming from our agricultural, forestry, and working lands by 2025,” said Ken Salazar, former Colorado U.S. senator, Secretary of the Interior and U.S. Ambassador to Mexico. “This report outlines the tremendous progress that has been made and the promise of energy sources and technologies that can still be deployed. I commend the 25x’25 initiative and Solutions from the Land teams for their continued commitment and leadership on this important issue.”

“Vision matters,” said Bart Ruth, who led the 25x’25 Steering Committee after it was absorbed into Solutions from the Land (SfL) in 2014. SfL is a farmer-and-scientist-led not-for-profit that advances agricultural solutions to global challenges. “The 25x’25 campaign challenged the country to think bigger about what was possible. The goal seemed like a far-fetched dream at the time, but we needed that push. And we have made progress toward it.”

“This report is a reminder that vision and leadership are the first steps toward making the impossible become the inevitable,” said Reid Detchon, report co-author and Senior Advisor at the United Nations Foundation. “Clean renewable energy today is being adopted globally with increasing speed – because of economics, not politics – and 25x’25 helped move us forward on that path.”

Background and Final Report Findings

When the 25x’25 initiative emerged in the early 2000s, the desire was to reduce the U.S.’s energy dependence on oil from the Middle East. Leaders looked out on the nation and saw great potential for home-grown energy from wind, solar, and farm-raised renewable sources.

In 2004, the U.S. generated less than 1% of its electricity from renewable resources. By 2025, that number reached 25% largely due to the rise in wind and solar power—industries that are expected to continue to grow.

Fossil fuel combustion is no longer the cheaper option for electricity generation, and those operations face longer permitting and construction timelines. Renewables plus batteries have become the low-cost, quick-to-market responses to increased electricity demand – demand that grows every day with the rise in data centers, artificial intelligence, and advanced technology.

The U.S. consumes 50% more energy in 2025 than it did in 2004. So, while the U.S. does generate more of its own energy from renewable sources (8.6% in 2024 vs. 6% in 2004), demand outpaces developments while the U.S. once again faces uncertainty on the global stage. 

Opportunity for the Future

There is still work to do, especially in the transportation sector, where solutions like E30 – gasoline blended with 30 percent ethanol – remain ready to deploy.

In addition to producing crops that become renewable fuels, the agriculture sector is working on other ways to contribute to national energy security. For example, biodigesters turn farm waste into energy as part of a circular bioeconomy which aims to use, reuse, and regenerate resources, cycling them within and beyond the farm to minimize waste.

“We are still at the pioneering stage of what is possible,” said Fred Yoder, SfL co-chair who grows corn, soybeans, and wheat in Ohio. “We need all forms of energy, but we should proceed with intentionality on how and where it makes most sense to harness and harvest renewable energy. It makes a lot of sense to prioritize agriculture-based bioenergy like ethanol, biodiesel, and biodigesters in places like Ohio where we have productive soils and established farming operations.”

While the time of the 25x’25 Alliance has officially closed, great opportunity is still present. The final assessment report calls for a reinvigorated alliance that continues to work toward the vision of a cleaner, more secure future fueled in significant part by home-grown energy.

“Today, an urgent need exists for agriculture, forestry, renewable energy, and energy efficiency leaders, along with technology and service providers, to collaborate more closely in defending and advancing foundational renewable energy policies,” said Ernie Shea, SfL President.

Find the final assessment at SfL-25x’25 Renewable Energy Campaign Report.

About the 25x’25 Alliance

25x’25 was launched as a special project of the Energy Future Coalition, a broad-based non-partisan public policy initiative that sought to bring about change in U.S. energy policy to address overarching challenges related to the production and use of energy.

In 2014, 25x’25 was absorbed into Solutions from the Land, a farmer/scientist not-for-profit that advances agricultural solutions to global challenges.

Learn more about 25x’25 at www.solutionsfromtheland.org/25×25

About Solutions from the Land

Solutions from the Land (SfL) is a not-for-profit led by farmers and scientists that builds and facilitates state, national, and global initiatives and alliances through which farmers, ranchers, foresters and collaborating partners showcase examples of innovation and proactively advocate for policies, partnerships, investments, and research that will enable agricultural landscapes to deliver near-term, cost-effective, integrated solutions to global mega-challenges: food and energy security, sustainable economic development, and environmental improvement.

Learn more about SfL at www.solutionsfromtheland.org

For more information, please contact:

• Bart Ruth, Past Chair, 25x’25 Alliance, 402-641-6692, bartruth01@gmail.com
• Reid Detchon, Senior Advisor, United Nations Foundation, 202-446-7589
• Ernie Shea, President, Solutions from the Land, 410-252-7079 (office); 410-952-0123 (cell), eshea@solutionsfromtheland.org