The ongoing expansion of US soybean processing capacity and a protracted downturn in crush margins could “threaten the viability of new high-cost crush plants” in the coming years, a recent report from CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange said.

In the last three years, soybean oil has been the most widely used feedstock in the production of renewable diesel. Demand for renewable diesel has surged due to state and federal tax credits and incentives. Soybean crush capacity has risen 7% in the last three years and is anticipated to increase 23% in the next three years to meet the growing demand for renewable diesel. Renewable diesel output is projected to increase 83% in the next five years. If all projects come online as planned, US renewable diesel production capacity could reach 5.96 billion gallons by the end of 2025.

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