The Future of Sustainable Aviation Fuel in the Midwestern United States: Finding Alternatives to Crop-Based Biofuels

The research evaluates the feasibility and economic benefits of transitioning from food-crop biofuels to residue-based SAFs and e-fuels in the Midwestern United States. It finds that producing three billion gallons of SAF annually from corn stover could contribute between $9 billion and $32 billion to regional GDP and support up to 214,000 jobs, provided there is sufficient policy support.

• The production of three billion gallons of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) annually using corn residues is feasible within sustainable supply limits, requiring between 18 and 89 million tons of stover out of an estimated 90 million tons available.
• A residue-based or e-fuel SAF and CDR industry producing three billion gallons of fuel per year in the Midwest could generate significant economic benefits, including $9 billion to $32 billion in regional GDP value, $7 billion to $15 billion in labor income, $4 billion to $10 billion in annual tax revenue, and between 99,000 and 214,000 jobs.
• Several specific technologies can leverage the abundant resources of the US Midwest, such as corn stover, to produce SAF or achieve carbon dioxide removal (CDR). These include alcohol-to-jet (AtJ), Fischer-Tropsch (FT), power- and biomass-to-liquid (PBtL), power-to-liquid (PtL), and pyrolysis for CDR.
• While residue-based fuels are more climate-friendly than conventional biofuels made from food and feed crops like soy and corn—which impact food prices and deforestation—current U.S. policies continue to incentivize food crop-based SAFs to support the domestic agricultural economy.

APA

World Resources Institute (2026). The Future of Sustainable Aviation Fuel in the Midwestern United States: Finding Alternatives to Crop-Based Biofuels. https://www.wri.org/research/future-sustainable-aviation-fuel-midwestern-united-states-alternatives-crop-based-biofuels

Chicago

World Resources Institute. The Future of Sustainable Aviation Fuel in the Midwestern United States: Finding Alternatives to Crop-Based Biofuels. 2026. https://www.wri.org/research/future-sustainable-aviation-fuel-midwestern-united-states-alternatives-crop-based-biofuels.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=The Future of Sustainable Aviation Fuel in the Midwestern United States: Finding Alternatives to Crop-Based Biofuels |date=8 June 2026 |url=https://www.wri.org/research/future-sustainable-aviation-fuel-midwestern-united-states-alternatives-crop-based-biofuels |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitute2026future, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{The Future of Sustainable Aviation Fuel in the Midwestern United States: Finding Alternatives to Crop-Based Biofuels}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2026}, month = jun, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/future-sustainable-aviation-fuel-midwestern-united-states-alternatives-crop-based-biofuels}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }