Congratulations to our President, Phil Madson, for receiving the 2009 FEW Award of Excellence! Phil was honored at the 2009 Fuel Ethanol Workshop by a panel of his peers for his many significant contributions to the Fuel Ethanol Industry.

Among the many contributions cited were being the longest serving teacher at the Alltech/Lallemand Alcohol School, authoring chapters in every Alcohol Textbook since the second edition, teaching at the NABC schools, being a prolific speaker in the ethanol conference circuit, and implementing several significant industry firsts. As a process engineer, Phil implemented the first commercial Simultaneous Saccharification and Fermentation (SSF) process, the first commercially appropriate/modern molecular sieve, and the first cattle feedlot integrated ethanol design.

Upon receiving the award, Phil was humbled and declared, "There is one person that I must simply acknowledge for his inspiration to me, and that is Dr. Katzen, the founder of our firm and the one who really inspired me and helped me to understand that excellence is its own reward. Ray, I salute you."