A strong majority of American consumers are more inclined to throw their economic clout behind a cleaner, greener renewable fuel when it comes to issues of energy independence, American jobs and the environment. A national U.S. survey released today found that 57 percent of respondents believe that it is important that adding ethanol to gasoline lessens U.S. dependence on oil from foreign countries. "These findings demonstrate that more and more Americans are becoming aware of the reasons why they should choose ethanol-enriched gasoline," says Reece Nanfito, senior director of marketing for the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC). "A solution to our dependence on foreign oil rests right here at home through the hard work and ingenuity of the American workforce. "Ethanol's positive impacts upon the American economy and the environment struck a chord with survey participants. Sixty-one percent of respondents indicated that they believe the American economy benefits from ethanol production. Fifty-eight percent believe that ethanol-enriched gasoline is better for the environment than standard gasoline. Respondents indicated that the most important benefit of ethanol is that it is "better for the environment."

The full results of the study are available at http://www.drivingethanol.org/survey