Crop Use In Biofuel Production Near Peak

New technologies for producing ethanol and biodiesel should put an end to the food-versus-fuel debate, the Renewable Fuels Summit has heard. But farmers won’t lose their connection to the alternate fuel industry because crop residues and other farm wastes will be in demand as feedstock for the new production processes, says Sam Kanes, an analyst

Friction Boffins See Future In Plant-Based Oils

There’s one simple reason why Linnaeus Plant Sciences founder Jack Grushcow would rather talk about camelina as a lubricant than as camelina in your tank. Fuel sells for around $1 per litre, but hydraulic fluid sells for $5 per litre. The Vancouver-based entrepreneur told the recent Canadian Weed Science Society’s annual meeting there are a


German Biodiesel Refiners Face Shortage

Germany’s biodiesel refineries face a shortage of rapeseed oil because of new European Union rules requiring biofuels to be sustainable. The measure, designed to prevent the destruction of tropical rainforests to produce biofuel feedstock such as palm oil and soy oil, requires exporters to have a sustainable farming certificate. Germany’s major rapeseed suppliers, France, Britain

Ethanol Plants Accepting More Wheat

Western Canadian wheat producers have seen an increase in demand from ethanol plants, thanks to more feed wheat in the commercial system. Jake Davidson, executive manager of Winter Cereals Canada in Minnedosa, said ethanol plants have been much more willing to take wheat this year. “I’m seeing an increase in usage in Manitoba,” Davidson said.


EU Biofuels Growth On Hold As Green Benefits Queried

The European Union’s biofuels industry is unlikely to expand until the debate about their impact on climate change is resolved and clear policies emerge, the head of a major U.K. biofuels firm said on Nov. 10. “The (biofuels) industry is being held back by a lack of robust discrimination between what is good and what

How High Will Corn Prices Go Before Usage Is Rationed?

The national average corn yield was the main focus of cash and futures market traders in the Oct. 8, 2010, World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report. Many market analysts consider this report a “game changer.” The resulting price rally in crop markets has people beginning to ask if this could be a repeat


Food Groups Sue U.S. For Ethanol Boost In Gasoline

Livestock producers and food industry groups filed a suit on Nov. 9 seeking to overturn a U.S. decision to allow higher levels of ethanol in gasoline, saying it could push up food prices. The Grocery Manufacturers Association, the National Meat Association and other groups sued the Environmental Protection Agency, saying regulators overstepped their authority when

S – for Nov. 18, 2010

everal years ago the federal government agreed it would pass a law requiring petroleum diesel fuel contain two per cent biodiesel. But so far, it hasn’t done it. Canadian canola grower associations want that renewable fuel standard in place April 1, 2011 and are urging farmers to lobby their MPs to make it happen. “If


U.S. Election Means A Pinch On Farm Funds

U.S. lawmakers will face increasing pressure to constrain spending on farm subsidy programs, possibly as part of government-wide austerity, in the wake of large Republican gains in the midterm elections. At its most extreme, the budget cutting could push millions of acres back into production by slashing long-term reserves that idle 10 per cent of

Biofuel Worse For Climate Than Fossil Fuel: Study

European plans to promote biofuels will drive farmers to convert 69,000 square km of wild land into fields and plantations, depriving the poor of food and accelerating climate change, a report by green groups warned. That estimated area equals the size of the Republic of Ireland. As a result, the extra biofuels that Europe will