- Business
- Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy, LLC (SIRE) operates a dry-mill ethanol production facility in Council Bluffs, Iowa, producing fuel-grade ethanol and co-products from corn feedstock. Founded in 2005 and commencing operations in 2009, the company processes approximately 44 million bushels of corn annually to manufacture up to 147 million gallons of denatured ethanol per year, along with dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS), wet distillers grains (WDG), condensed distillers solubles or corn syrup, distillers corn oil, and carbon dioxide. SIRE sells these products primarily in the continental United States, Mexico, and the Pacific Rim, serving markets for renewable fuels, animal feed, and industrial uses, with a focus on low-carbon intensity production enhanced by recent plant upgrades that rank its energy efficiency in the top 15% of similar facilities.
The farmer-owned company maintains co-location agreements for carbon dioxide processing and corn oil refining, emphasizing sustainable agricultural innovation and local economic value through ownership by southwest Iowa and southeast Nebraska producers.
In recent developments, SIRE reached a milestone of 2 billion gallons of cumulative ethanol production, as recognized by the Renewable Fuels Association. The company announced in September 2025 that CEO Mike Jerke will retire at the end of 2025 after seven years of leadership, remaining through 2026 to ensure a smooth executive transition. Earlier efforts include a 2023 joint development agreement with Gevo, Inc. to track and verify carbon intensity reductions across the value chain using climate-smart agriculture and energy efficiency improvements.