Camelina Crop May Save the Day for Northwest Pa. Farmers, Landowners
by Andrea Zippay (Farm and Dairy) A rather low-budget, low-input crop may be a boon to northwest Pennsylvania farmers. Camelina sativa, an oilseed from the Brassica family, is a valuable crop for biofuel production. Already in production in Crawford County, with a demanding market in place nearby, camelina is poised to be a real moneymaker.
There’s room and opportunity for more farmers to get involved in growing camelina, according to Joel Hunter, a Penn State Extension agronomist. Hunter shared details of the crop’s coming to Crawford County during the recent Tri-State No-Till Conference.
It’s no secret the U.S. biofuels industry is still developing. Hunter cited statistics that pointed to 75 percent of the cost of that development is based on soy biodiesel, and 25 percent is absorbed in processing. “Camelina looks like it will have a much lower input cost [than soybeans],” Hunter said. “If it turns out to be the low input crop we think it is, it will reduce that 75 percent figure and get this stuff out there.”
The crop is said to be low input because there are currently no herbicides labeled to be used on it, making that cost obsolete; seed can be broadcast or no-tilled inexpensively; and seedlings are extremely tolerant to cold temperatures. “I’ve seen the stuff encased in ice, and it’s freezing out there, and it survived,” Hunter said.
In addition, at 3 pounds of seed per acre, the crop is described by Hunter as “a cheap date.” READ MORE
