The Food and Drug Administration has relaxed its regulations which will allow ethanol to be used for hand sanitizer which is needed during the COVID 19 crisis. Iowa Renewable Fuels Association Executive Director Monte Shaw says he’s pleased the FDA has gone forward with that so ethanol plants can help fill that need.

He says there are still FDA rules ethanol producers will need to follow should they choose to put out that hand sanitizer made from ethanol.

Shaw says earlier his group worked with state officials and received permission to start a program where ethanol was used to create some hand sanitizer and fill some of the needs.

As soon as FDA announced their rule change, there were 20 ethanol plants across the country that were able to move ahead with providing hand sanitizer.