Austin Wayne Self Speaks at Texas Grain Sorghum Producers Board Meeting

STATESVILLE, N.C. (Jan. 31, 2018) – Austin Wayne Self made a trip back home to Texas earlier this week to speak at the Texas Grain Sorghum Producers Board Meeting."I was very honored to be able to get to speak at the sorghum meeting Monday in Texas,” said Self.“I was really excited sharing with everyone my goals for the upcoming year and how sorghum has such an impact on the NASCAR community.  I was very proud to have sorghum on the truck at Texas this past November and am hoping to do more with them in the future."In the ethanol industry, the United Sorghum Checkoff Program is focusing on developing direct awareness of the benefits of using sorghum as a fuel and feedstock.Renewable fuel, which includes ethanol, serves as the foundation of demand for the sorghum industry.  Ethanol producers typically use about one-third (approximately 120 million bushels) of the sorghum crop to produce clean-burning, high octane fuel.The Sorghum Checkoff’s renewables program is focused on expanding and developing opportunities for sorghum growers within the renewables space through a combination of research and market development.Last year, sorghum was planted across about 1.9 million acres in Texas with millions of bushels harvested.  Texas was second in the top-five sorghum-producing states in 2016.Self, a native of Austin, Tex. partnered with the Texas Grain Sorghum Board and the United Sorghum Checkoff Program last fall at his home track of Texas Motor Speedway."Being able to have the Sorghum guys at Texas this past November was great,” added Self.“Everyone got to see and touch the truck as well as sit on the pit box on pit road during the race. I look forward to having Sorghum back at the race track here soon."Self will kick off the 2018 NCWTS season at Daytona International Speedway on Fri. February 16 with the NextEra Energy Resources 250 at 7:30 p.m. ET live on FOX Sports 1 (FS1).