We examined the promotion effect of loading small amounts of Fe onto various Co catalysts for steam reforming of ethanol. Among these catalysts, catalysts supported on SrTiO3 and alpha-Al2O3 showed remarkable effects of iron loading onto cobalt catalyst. The Fe-loaded Co/alpha-Al2O3 showed higher yield of hydrogen, low coke deposition on the catalysts, and high activity for steam reforming of acetaldehyde, which was an intermediate of the steam reforming of ethanol. Characterization of the catalyst revealed that Fe and Co metal coexisted on the catalyst support. Synergetic effects of these two metals were observed. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.