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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) … Photosynthetic microalgae have been metabolizing CO2 for billions of years in the oceans and lakes of planet Earth and are suitable to tackle planetary-scale CO2 emissions. The resulting biomass has a multitude of uses ranging from (renewable) fuel to fertilizer to feed. … CBC
Farming/Growing
October 15, 2021
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(Nori) In our first science-focused episode of Carbon Removal Newsroom, hosts Radhika Moolgavkar of Nori and Holly Jean Buck of the University at Buffalo are joined by our new science co-host, Dr. Jane Zelikova, executive director of the Soil Carbon Solutions Center and joint faculty in crop and soil science at Colorado State University. First this week, we’re looking
October 13, 2021
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(CGIAR) The Government of India’s concerted efforts to replace 20% fossil fuels with ethanol blends by 2025 is attracting agricultural entrepreneurs to invest in renewable energy. This week, Mr Lalit Jhawar and Mr Mayank Gupta, two young IIT graduates running a profitable farming venture in Maharashtra, accompanied by biofuel experts Mr YB
October 13, 2021
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(Bio Market Insights) … Forestry: Mostex Global Solutions: Integrated whole tree extraction and on site pre-processing of under-yielding forest resources Mostex was set up with the aim of reducing the corrosive nature of agri-feedstock, establishing effective methods of handling this material and improving yields. The group’s mobile, modular steam explosion processing system
October 13, 2021
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by Ron Kotrba (Biobased Diesel Daily) Global Clean Energy Holdings Inc. is relocating headquarters for its camelina feedstock subsidiary Sustainable Oils Inc. to a new facility in Great Falls, Montana, where its crop-innovation programs, commercial-grower support, and executive and administrative activities will be consolidated. Migration to the new site is expected
October 12, 2021
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by Helena Tavares Kennedy (Biofuels Digest) Pluton is a large body of intrusive igneous rock according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, and “breaking ground” and being “ground breaking” is just what Pluton Biosciences is doing with their novel microbes. They are making discovery of novel microbes not only possible, but commercially viable.
October 11, 2021
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by Steven Hermans (Phyconomy) Former CEO of Catalina Sea Ranch Phil Cruver is developing a submersible cage system to take tropical seaweed farming offshore and into a new era. In addition to providing higher yields, the cages should also protect from predators, storms and ice-ice disease. In 2010, KZO Sea Farms developed
October 10, 2021
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by Desmond Butler (Washington Post) … Global Witness’s two-year investigation is a rare behind-the-scenes look at the corruption, labor abuses and destructive environmental practices in an industry that is clearing carbon-rich rainforests and emitting greenhouse gases at a rate that has become a growing concern for climate scientists. The world’s
October 10, 2021
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(U.S. Department of Agriculture) U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today an investment of more than $146 million in sustainable agricultural research projects aimed at improving a robust, resilient, climate-smart food and agricultural system. This investment is made under the National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s (NIFA) Sustainable
October 7, 2021
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(Eni) In the occasion of the meeting held yesterday between the President of the Republic of Angola João Gonçalves Lourenço and the CEO of Eni Claudio Descalzi, Eni Angola, ANPG and Sonangol signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the joint development of the agro-biofuel sector in the country. Under the
October 6, 2021
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by Christopher M. Matthews (Wall Street Journal) The oil giant, under pressure to address climate change, says it is getting closer to making the biofuel viable — Some scientists regard Exxon Mobil Corp.’s long-running quest to turn algae into a transportation fuel as little more than a PR stunt. The oil
October 6, 2021
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(Climate Now) Planting trees has become a bit of a cliché in the fight against climate change, with ubiquitous photos of presidents and CEOs planting trees to show they are serious about climate. But, how much impact on atmospheric carbon dioxide can tree planting really have, and how do we
October 6, 2021
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(Eni) Eni, Republic of Congo sign MoU on joint development of bio-refining agro-feedstock sector; Eni delegation led by CEO Descalzi met President Sassou Nguesso to discuss agricultural programs and gas valorization also with reference to access to energy for domestic market At the presence of the Prime Minister of the
October 6, 2021
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(Solutions from the Land) … Those who advocate for no- and low-carbon fuels and other energy solutions come from across political parties – Democrats and Republicans – and from all along the spectrum of partisan views – from liberals to conservatives. The spread of support across the aisle comes at a
October 2, 2021
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by Todd Neeley (DTN Progressive Farmer) … The agency announced on Wednesday plans to tap funds from the Commodity Credit Corp. as part of what USDA calls a “comprehensive investment package.” The $3 billion package is aimed at supporting drought resilience and response, animal disease prevention, market disruption relief and purchase
September 30, 2021
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AUGA Group, AB Presents the First Technology for the “Green” Food Chain – a Climate-Friendly Tractor
(AUGA Group/Globe Newsire) AUGA group, AB (hereinafter the Company) Europe’s largest vertically integrated organic food producer, has developed and presented the world’s first hybrid biomethane and electric tractor for professional farm use – AUGA M1. This is the company’s first step in offering technological solutions that will eliminate climate pollution throughout the food supply chain, from field to table, and allow food to
September 30, 2021
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(Oxfam) First-generation biofuels have a somewhat paradoxical status. On the one hand, they have become key ingredients in the EU’s ‘Green Deal’ priorities. On the other hand, they have fuelled all kinds of environmental, social and political disruptions, and unleashed massive transformations – particularly in the Global South – because of
September 29, 2021
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by Emily Smith (Trust in Food) During Farm Journal’s 2021 Sustainable Produce Summit that took place earlier this month, a key theme of effectively communicating sustainable food and agriculture stories to consumers came through again and again. As specialty crop growers and food retailers make changes to meet both environmental needs
September 28, 2021
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(U.S. Department of Agriculture) The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will invest nearly $75 million for 15 partner-led projects to address natural resource concerns on private lands. This year, projects funded by the Regional Conservation Partnership Program’s (RCPP) Alternative Funding Arrangements (AFA) focus on climate-smart agriculture and forestry and other conservation
September 27, 2021
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(NFU Online) World leader in sustainable bioenergy Drax Group has teamed up with the National Farmers Union of England and Wales (NFU), to identify opportunities to scale up perennial energy crop production and help the UK meet its ambitious climate goals. The Climate Change Committee (CCC) has previously stated that if
September 21, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Wildfires around the globe have been increasing but what about controlled fires? The U.S. Department of Energy and Pacific Northwest National Lab is looking at prioritizing how and where to target forest restoration (timber harvest and thinning) to have the greatest benefit for bioenergy, reduce
September 20, 2021
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by Leanne de Bassompierre, Saijel Kishan and Anthony Sguazzin (Bloomberg Green) In the impoverished West African country of Liberia, a unit of the world’s second-largest palm oil company has admitted to destroying forests and violating the rights of indigenous people. Yet its parent is among the industry’s leaders in investor ratings
September 16, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Keeping pests apart – mating disruption is what it’s all about for Provivi which uses a patented production method, enabling a step-change in the cost of manufacturing of pheromones, allowing the use of this technology in high-acreage food crops like corn and rice. READ MORE
September 16, 2021
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by Christine Billau (University of Toledo) The U.S. Department of Energy awarded The University of Toledo a $3.2 million grant to continue advancing technology that speeds up the capture of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to grow algae, a critical part of the process of turning algae into biofuel. It’s part
September 14, 2021
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(Terravesta) Terravesta grower and one of the UK’s leading resource and waste management companies, FCC Environment is using its landbank to grow energy crops for biomass fuel. The company has been planting Miscanthus at several of its old landfill and quarry sites across the country that it has restored following their
September 10, 2021
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(South Africa Today) • A startup in western Kenya has developed a process of making bioethanol from water hyacinths, addressing both the need for a clean fuel alternative to charcoal and fuelwood, and the spread of the invasive hyacinths. Proponents say a key advantage of this “second-generation” bioethanol over traditional
September 9, 2021
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(Biofuels International) Waste from milk factories and breweries could be put to good use in fighting climate change, according to scientists at Green Fuels Research. The Gloucestershire-based company in the UK has won funding under the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s Biomass Feedstocks Innovation Programme for its Microalgae
September 9, 2021
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(The Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC)/EurActiv) The decision to target palm oil was based on uncertain science and outdated knowledge which was used in counterintuitive policymaking. Despite continuous criticism from the palm oil industry, the EU appears to be indifferent when it comes to the politics of trade, affirming
September 7, 2021
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by Rebecca Bauer (Farm Together/AgFunder Network) For many investors, farmland was not on the radar as an investable asset class until earlier this year, when it was revealed that the largest owners of US farmland were none other than Bill and Melinda Gates. Many were speculating about Gates’ motivation for the acquisitions
September 4, 2021
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(Colorado State University) Colorado State University scientists are partners in a three-year grant of up to $3.5 million from the Department of Energy, aimed at improving how algae-based biofuels and bioproducts are made. The Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office has announced its support for the project, titled “Rewiring Algal Carbon Energetics for
September 2, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Bunge, REG and Bayer helped CoverCress raise a total of $22 million including $8 million in Series B in 2021. What does that mean for this low carbon cash cover crop and for growers? What is their commercial track? How are the harvest and oil
September 2, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The U.S. Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office’s Nichole Fitzgerald, Program Manager, shared this short but sweet slide guide on BETO’s goals for 2021-2030 with large volumes of biomass being critical to achieving those goals, why they are looking at CO2 removal, feedstock technologies program
September 1, 2021
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(International Finance Corporation (Google Translation)) The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is supporting a new project in Brazil to strengthen the diversification of the country’s energy matrix. The US$ 70 million (about R$ 350 million) financing for the Cocal Group will expand the company’s ethanol and biogas production and will contribute to
August 31, 2021
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by Jenny Shaffstall (AgWeb) The carbon market will grow over the next three years — Farm Journal’s August 2021 Carbon Survey found that 3.32% of respondents were participating in an non-governmental carbon market, up from an Ag Barometer last spring where only 1% of farmers had entered into a contract.
August 27, 2021
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by Kamalakanta Sahoo, Richard Bergman, Sevda Alanya-Rosenbaum, Hongmei Gu and Shaobo Liang (Sustainability) Climate change, environmental degradation, and limited resources are motivations for sustainable forest management. Forests, the most abundant renewable resource on earth, used to make a wide variety of forest-based products for human consumption. To provide a scientifc
August 26, 2021
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(United Sorghum Checkoff Program) The United Sorghum Checkoff Program (USCP), the University of California, Merced, and the University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources today announced a five year partnership to promote drought resilience in sorghum and increase demand for the cereal crop in biofuel and bioproduct markets. Efforts
August 20, 2021
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by Greg Avery (Denver Business Journal) Its first corn-to-fuel production is three years away, and customers want more — a lot more, the CEO says. READ MORE Biofuel maker Gevo’s shares soar Tuesday (Denver Business Journal) Gevo publishes IMPACT sustainability report (Biofuels International) Excerpt from Denver Business Journal: Perhaps
August 20, 2021
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by Scarlett Evans (Bio Market Insights) … Now, a team from Colorado State University (CSU) is working to boost algae crop growth to reach industrial levels, with the team being awarded $3.2m from the US Department of Energy (DOE) in support of this goal earlier this month. We took a closer
August 18, 2021
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(K-Petro (Google translation)) Initiated the second phase of development of biodiesel production technology using insect lipids; Contribute to the expansion of biodiesel supply for the realization of 2050 carbon neutrality — Korea Petroleum Management Service (Chairman Joo-Seok Son) has secured biodiesel production technology using insect resources (Dongae, etc.). With the support of the
August 13, 2021
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(North America Climate Smart Agriculture Alliance) Thirty lawmakers from both houses of Congress have written a letter urging House and Senate leadership to support an historic, long-term investment in farmers, ranchers and rural communities as a part of upcoming infrastructure and climate change legislation. Reps. Chellie Pingree (D-ME) and Abigail Spanberger
August 6, 2021
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(Ohio State News) Computer models estimate fewer environmental impacts than other crops — A common farm weed could make a “greener” jet fuel with fewer production-related environmental impacts than other biofuels, a new study indicates. Growing the weed, pennycress – often called stinkweed – as a crop requires less fertilizer and
August 4, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Algae biofuel AND high value co-products from residuals across algae strains? Are there co‐products that lead to increased LEA value, while maintaining biofuel production, to drive down the overall cost of biofuel? That is what the Consortium is tackling via marine algae strain selection, production
August 4, 2021
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by Joanne Ivancic* (Advanced Biofuels USA) For the US agricultural community, having a field day gives farmers and others in the agricultural products value chain the opportunity not only for hands-on learning about new crops and new technologies or about old problems and improving solutions, but also for networking and
August 4, 2021
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by Ron Kotrba (Biobased Diesel Daily) Global Clean Energy Holdings Inc., the project developer retrofitting a petroleum refinery in Bakersfield, California, into a renewable diesel plant scaled at 230 million gallons a year, provided preliminary financials for the second quarter as well as an update on camelina development by its
August 3, 2021
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by Oliver Peoples (Yield10 Bioscience/Biofuels Digest) During President Biden’s April 22nd climate plan speech at the Virtual Leaders’ Summit on Climate, he announced his goal of cutting 50 percent of U.S. carbon-emissions levels by 2030. This is no simple task, and consumers, investors and businesses alike are aware of the difficult but
August 3, 2021
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(Solutions from the Land) The talk among policy makers in Washington to promote a market in which farmers, ranchers and forestland owners can be fiscally rewarded for their efforts to retain carbon in their soil has excited many. The prospect for additional revenue sources is alluring for a high-risk sector whose
August 2, 2021
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by Adele Peters (Fast Company) In a series of floating seaweed farms off the coast of Bali, Indonesia, a catamaran travels back and forth through lines of dangling red algae. Custom technology on board automatically harvests and replants the seaweed, which quickly grows several feet long. The system is designed
August 2, 2021
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(Biotechnology Innovation Organization) Agriculture has changed a lot lately, and farmers like Steve know the potential of the land they cultivate goes far beyond conventional use. For example, the humble corn crop is being used for sustainable and more affordable biofuels, created through a minimal-waste process. Meet the people tapping
August 2, 2021
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by Helena Bottemiller Evich (Politico) Green groups are calling for USDA to set standards so there’s more clarity in the rapidly changing market. — Agricultural carbon credit programs are cropping up left and right, but the standards they adhere to are all over the map, according to a major new report
July 27, 2021
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(Association of Warm Season Grass Producers) I grow switchgrass and miscanthus on mined lands for biofuel and biomass production. The idea of using marginal lands for these crops has been around for a while and I started doing it about 20 years ago. I will give a summary of the
July 27, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) News arrives from Berkeley and Pivot Bio that the company has raised $430 million in its Series D venture round, led by DCVC and Temasek, bringing the total equity raised to more than $600 million. Last we saw, the company was valued at $1.6 billion
July 21, 2021
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by Jerry Perkins (Successful Farming) … After years of research into the data about farming’s contribution to carbon emissions, that’s the conclusion reached by Ron Alverson, a South Dakota corn farmer and ethanol plant director, who spoke Wednesday at the Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo (FEW), which wraps up today at
July 16, 2021
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(Field to Market) Field to Market: The Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture today introduced Fieldprint® Platform 4.0, the next generation of the industry’s most widely recognized sustainability assessment tool for commodity crop production in the United States. The Fieldprint Platform’s new features and functionality provide farmers and the value chain with improved
July 15, 2021
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by Adele Peters (Fast Company) Seaweed farming could be a potent weapon in the fight against climate change. But can it scale? — In a series of floating seaweed farms off the coast of Bali, Indonesia, a catamaran travels back and forth through lines of dangling red algae. Custom technology
July 14, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Evaluating sustainable scale up of algae production systems, algal biofuels, and algal bioproducts is no easy task, but scientists at Argonne National Lab are looking into this by looking at the life cycle analysis of advanced algal systems to see just how feasible it really
July 13, 2021
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(AgWeb) The rapid pace of U.S. carbon market activity has left many farmers dazed and confused. To help answer your questions, we’re sharing the first-ever carbon market comparison tool to assess how several of the most prominent frameworks stack up. We will continue investing in enterprise reporting as carbon markets
July 12, 2021
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(AgWeek) Coming up on AgweekTV, we will discuss the ethanol industry hitting another devastating court decision. We will tour an award winning regenerative farming operation in east central South Dakota. We will visit two ag businesses that are dedicated to staying in rural North Dakota. We will discuss the number
July 12, 2021
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(Biofuels International) The Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC) has again urged the European Union to revise its approach on vegetable oils in biofuels. This comes under the framework of RED II in light of the upcoming revision of the directive on 14 July. Additionally there is the Commission’s
July 8, 2021
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by Sandy Ferguson and Rob van Adrichem (SF Consulting and City of Prince George respectively/Biofuels Digest) Bathroom sinks made of wood fibre, energy derived from garbage, skyscrapers built of cross-laminated timber, and carbon fibre that is used in Formula 1 cars are all examples of bioproducts that are helping us
July 8, 2021
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by Carly Nairn (Mongabay) – Algae biofuel initially looked promising, but a few key problems have thwarted major research efforts, including development of a strain of algae able to produce plentiful cheap fuel, and scaling up to meet global energy demand. – Other alternative energy solutions, including wind and solar
July 7, 2021
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(Bio Market Insights) … recently, bamboo has caught their eye, as evidenced in a study made in Indonesia which we discuss, as it presents a future in sustainable energy. Bamboo is one of the most productive and fastest growing plants on the planet. … Its fuel characteristics, high productivity, short rotation
July 7, 2021
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(Maryland Energy Innovation Accelerator) MEIA ‘s 2021 Pitch Competition was a smashing success. Congratulations to Grand Prize winner Manta Biofuel, and Audience Choice co-winners InventWood and Manta Biofuel. Did you miss the event? Watch the video and pitches here. Owings Mills-based Manta Biofuel was named the Grand Prize winner of the
July 7, 2021
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(TotalEnergies and Veolia/Business Wire) TotalEnergies and Veolia (Paris:VIE) have joined forces to accelerate the development of microalgae cultivation using CO2. The two partners will pool their know-how to develop a four-year research project at the La Mède biorefinery, operated by TotalEnergies, with the long-term goal of producing biofuel. Through photosynthesis, microalgae
July 7, 2021
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by Matthew Choi (Politico’s Morning Energy) The agriculture industry is anxiously waiting to see how the Biden administration intends to enlist more producers to adopt climate-friendly farm practices. But even as corporations are eager to buy offsets from farmers who pull carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere — and Washington
June 29, 2021
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(U.S. Department of Energy) Today (June 23, 2021), the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM) announced $8 million in federal funding for four projects to develop and test technologies that capture and utilize carbon dioxide (CO2) from power systems or other industrial sources to create
June 28, 2021
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(Science Daily/University of Montreal) Millions of liters of primary municipal wastewater can be treated sustainably using fast-growing willow trees while also producing renewable bioenergy and ‘green’ chemicals, researchers find. — Every year in Canada, six trillion litres of municipal wastewater are partially treated and released into the environment, while another 150
June 24, 2021
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by Lana Bandoim (Forbes) … In his (President Joe Biden’s) speech, he revealed paying farmers for planting cover crops that will help remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Cover crops include Camelina, rye, buckwheat and several others. Yield10 Bioscience, an agtech company using gene discovery tools, has been doing field trial
June 22, 2021
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by Lauren Quinn (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign) … For corn ethanol, most greenhouse gas emissions can be mapped to the fuel’s production, transportation, and combustion, but a large portion of the greenhouse gas calculation can be traced right back to the farm. Because of privacy concerns, however, scientists can’t access individual
June 18, 2021
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(Investancia) Blockchain will track 50 million trees through Investancia and EcoMatcher Partnership — Groundbreaking new partnership will use blockchain technology to record, view and measure the growth of 50 million pongamia trees to be planted in the Paraguayan Chaco forest over the next decade. Leading agro-research company Investancia has teamed
June 15, 2021
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(Telengana Today) In the midst of soaring fuel prices and growing concerns over the environment, India has given a big push for the ethanol blended petrol programme (EBP), designed to reduce the country’s fossil fuel dependence and also lessen the burden of crude oil import bill. Ethanol is a biofuel made
June 10, 2021
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by Rod Nickel and Karl Plume (Reuters) … Botanists, businessmen, farmers and federal lawmakers, they all gathered to peer at the waist-high plant usually considered a pest and uprooted on sight because of its foul odor, toxicity and the grim taste it leaves in the milk of grazing cattle. This was
June 2, 2021
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(Maryland Energy Innovation Accelerator) Ryan Powell is the founder and CEO of Manta Biofuel, an MEIA Startup that produces crude oil from algae at a cost that could be competitive with traditional petroleum. Manta’s team has developed their proprietary magnetic algae harvesting technology and low-cost continuous flow hydrothermal liquefaction system. “We are
June 2, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association) A pair of recent studies examining purported cropland expansion in the Midwest are based on a flawed methodology that “suffers from accuracy and certainty issues,” according to a new review of the studies by researchers at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. In reviewing studies by Zhang et al. and Lark et al., the SIUE
June 2, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) MicroBio Engineering, Heliae, Sandia National Labs and Cal Poly shared how they developed the capability for over 3,700 gal/ac-yrof biofuel intermediates through microalgal strain improvement, mixotrophic approaches and novel conversion technology, demonstrated annual productivity of improved strains, and more. READ MORE
June 2, 2021
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(U.S. Grains Council/Ethanol Producer Magazine) The U.S. Grains Council recently participated in the biannual Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) Maize Summit, at which both Amit Sachdev, USGC representative in India, and Kansas Corn Commission Executive Director Greg Krissek spoke about the potential for corn in India. While
June 1, 2021
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by Diana Kenney (University of Chicago Marine Biological Laboratory) A team of researchers led by Loretta Roberson, associate scientist at the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, has installed the first seaweed farm in Puerto Rico and U.S. tropical waters. The research array furthers the design and development of a system for
June 1, 2021
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by Cindy Zimmerman (Energy.AgWired.com) A new report commissioned by Farm Journal Foundation finds U.S. farmers have the potential to significantly reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and become part of the global solution to climate change. U.S. agriculture contributes about 10% of the total greenhouse gas emissions of the entire national economy,
May 25, 2021
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by Tim Newbold (The Guardian) The global approach to energy is changing rapidly. The urgency of the challenge that climate change presents has focused significant attention and resources on renewable energy solutions, as countries and companies seek to reduce emissions. One of the ways that an increasing number of countries have
May 24, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Perennial grass miscanthus as an energy crop has advanced into high biomass yielding varieties and NC State University is working with Novozymes, Iogen and Oak Ridge National Lab on evaluating new miscanthus varieties and improving sustainability within the overall miscanthus biomass supply chain. READ MORE
May 24, 2021
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(University of York/Phys.Org) A grass commonly used to fight soil erosion has been genetically modified to successfully remove toxic chemicals left in the ground from munitions that are dangerous to human health, new research shows. The study—led by the University of York- demonstrates that genetically modified switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) can detoxify
May 21, 2021
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(Nuseed/Biobased Diesel Daily) A recent update by the International Civil Aviation Organization now includes carinata as a renewable fuel feedstock with a similar greenhouse gas (GHG) footprint as waste and residuals, like used cooking oil. “For sustainability being categorized with waste is a very good thing,” said Glenn Johnston, Nuseed carinata
May 21, 2021
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(Algae Planet) A team of researchers led by Loretta Roberson of the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, Mass, has installed the first seaweed farm in Puerto Rico and U.S. tropical waters. The research array furthers the design and development of a system for offshore cultivation of tropical seaweeds to support large-scale production of
May 21, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Everyone wants to reduce the price of biofuels – and a team from Texas A&M, USDA, AgriLife Research, Mississippi State University and others are working on improving the economics and environmental sustainability of biomass sorghum and energycane production in the southeast U.S. Find out how,
May 21, 2021
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(U.S. Department of Energy/EurekAlert!) High-yield miscanthus and switchgrass are promising alternatives to traditional annual crops for biofuels. — … To understand the effects of this trend, scientists must accurately represent biofuel crops in land surface models. Using observations from biofuel plants in the Midwestern United States, researchers simulated two biofuel
May 20, 2021
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by Dayo Adenubi (The Punch) Unicane Industries Limited has announced the completion of the second phase of its plant extension, making it the largest ethanol producer on the continent. Unicane, a manufacturer of ethanol in Lokoja, Kogi State, made the announcement in a statement made available to our correspondent on Tuesday.
May 20, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Why algae? With biofuel yield 8-13 times larger than corn, well, why not! We took key slides from the 100+ slide deck from this year’s U.S. DOE BETO presentation on the latest goings ons with algae, program goals, portfolio and projects, progress, future plans, and
May 20, 2021
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(U.S. Department of Agriculture) The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today published the 90-Day Progress Report on Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry (PDF, 561 KB). The report represents an important step toward in President Biden’s Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad and shift towards a whole-of-department approach to climate solutions. The
May 20, 2021
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(U.S. Department of Energy) The Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) hosted its 2021 Project Peer Review virtually on March 8‒12, 2021; March 15‒16, 2021; and March 22‒26, 2021. Presentations for all sessions can be found in the searchable database below. For more information, including a complete schedule, view the 2021 Project Peer Review Agenda.
May 19, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Bioenergy switchgrass feedstock – can it be the next-generation feedstock we’ve been looking for in the Midwest? University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is looking at perennial bioenergy feedstock production on marginal croplands across geographic locations in the Midwest. What did they find? What had the highest-yield?
May 19, 2021
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by Lloyd Ritter (Green Capitol LLC/Biofuels Digest) The aviation industry is currently responsible for less than 3% of total global carbon emissions, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). But with air travel expected to increase by more than 60 percent (compared to pre-pandemic 2019 levels) by mid-century,[1] emissions will continue rising
May 19, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) This U.S. Department of Energy BETO project’s biomass blend concept will allow biorefineries to utilize a much larger proportion of the land within their procurement radius, thereby enabling larger scale, more economically feasible facilities to be constructed and operated. Find out their approach, impact, progress
May 17, 2021
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by Margy Eckelkamp (AgWeb) With farmers already registered in Iowa, Nebraska and Washington, Yara officially announces its carbon marketplace, Agoro Carbon Alliance. The goal of the program is to create an opportunity for farmers to earn additional revenue by adopting climate-positive practices. Its first farm-based carbon credits will be delivered in 2021
May 14, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Florida, the online sessions of ABLC have drawn to a close. This week, delegates around the world will be joining in the ABLC Lounges for person to person networking. The final day of on-stage presentations was the best — including Aspirations for a Fragile Plant,
May 10, 2021
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(American Coalition for Ethanol/GrainNet) American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) welcomed more scientifically credible evidence provided by Department of Energy Argonne National Lab scientists that explicitly states, “Corn ethanol plays an important role in enhancing energy security and the rural economy while contributing to decarbonizing the transportation sector in the USA.” The new study
May 10, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association) The carbon footprint of corn ethanol shrunk by 23% between 2005 and 2019 as farmers and ethanol producers adopted new technologies and improved efficiency, according to a new analysis published in the academic journal Biofuels Bioproducts and Biorefining by scientists at the Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory. By 2019,
May 6, 2021
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edited by Puneet Dwivedi (GCB-Bioenergy) A Virtual Special Issue — The aviation sector emits 2.4% of the global anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions. The use of jet fuel derived from bioenergy feedstocks is vital for reducing the aviation sector’s carbon footprint. This is especially true in the United States, as the
May 6, 2021
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by Helena Tavares Kennedy (Biofuels Digest) In the United Kingdom, the first dedicated, independent study into Miscanthus life cycles shows that the above ground biomass grows annually and recycles all the carbon that’s been produced through planting, harvesting and burning the crop for renewable electricity, and at the same time, the
May 3, 2021
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(American Coalition for Ethanol/Grainnet) The American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) encouraged the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to help establish a protocol for biofuel producers and farmers to easily document the carbon intensity benefits of changes in agricultural practices in comments submitted April 29 regarding USDA’s climate strategy for President Biden’s Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and
May 1, 2021
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by Jack Ellis (Ag Funder News) The European Commission – the executive branch of the EU administration which is responsible for proposing bloc-wide legislation – has published the findings of its two-year study into creating a “carbon farming” framework for the EU. The Commission said it is aiming to launch an EU carbon
April 30, 2021
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by Mindy Ward (Farm Progress) Pluton Biosciences partners with Bayer for a carbon sequestration project. — Barry Goldman has one goal — to find the next Bt-like row crop breakthrough but for carbon sequestration. “There are a trillion species of microbes, and the industry has been looking at the same 100 for
April 28, 2021
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by Kinsie Rayburn (Trust in Food) During Day 1 of our 2021 Trust In Food Symposium: Regenerative Reset event held in February, Trust In Food posed the question, “How much can farming address climate change?” In this 90-minute session, moderated by Trust In Food’s Executive Vice President Amy Skoczlas Cole, we heard from Dr. Jonathan
April 27, 2021
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by Jay Vroom (Trust In Food/America’s Conservation Ag Movement) … Today’s farm and food sustainability is different—and it is real and lasting this time. It might be hard to see because almost every agribusiness and food company–along with a massive cross-section of our government—all have sustainability mantras. And almost none of
April 20, 2021
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by Rhonda Brooks (Farm Journal AgWeb) Agriculture has the potential to play a big role in carbon sequestration. — As U.S. farmers evaluate carbon market opportunities available today, most have more questions than answers. “Farmers aren’t ready to jump in, because it’s the wild, wild west out there,” says Iowa farmer
April 20, 2021
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by Joanne Ivancic* (Advanced Biofuels USA) They say that Sustainability is a three-legged stool: Environmental Sustainability, Economic Sustainability and Social Sustainability. If any of these legs is missing, the stool falls over. Climate Smart Agriculture The North America Climate Smart Agriculture Alliance is one group that has been thinking deeply about
April 14, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The U.S. Department of Energy’s EnergyEfficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)’s Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) just released the workshop summary report from the virtual event they hosted last summer that discussed how to collect and valorize underused bioenergy datasets and associated knowledge, with the goal of
April 13, 2021
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(University of Hohenheim (Google translation)) European project with the participation of the University of Hohenheim researches how unprofitable fields with renewable raw materials can be used sustainably and with added value — Unused potential: Around 65 million hectares of agricultural land in Europe are hardly or not at all usable for
April 12, 2021
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by Ron Kotrba (Bio-Based Diesel Daily) Canada’s largest agribusiness, Richardson International Ltd., is doubling canola crush capacity at its processing facility in Yorkton, Saskatchewan. In addition to doubling capacity to 2.2 million metric tons, the company said it will optimize operational efficiencies and modernize the plant to meet growing demand. Construction
April 8, 2021
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by Chris Mallory (The Counter) Agrivoltaics—putting solar panels on farmland—lead to astonishing productivity gains and improved energy efficiency. Except when they don’t. — … Mounted on 9-foot-tall beams, so lofty a tractor could pass below them, the solar panels slant against the blue sky of the high desert, throwing shade on
April 6, 2021
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by Rebecca Bartels (Trust in Food) … 1) They’re Meeting Producers Where They Are … 2) They Speak Each Prospect’s Language … For example, Trust In Food’s proprietary data show that farmers with a high affinity for carbon markets gravitate toward informational content on succession planning and leaving a legacy
April 6, 2021
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(GreenAir Online) Analysis by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) shows there are sufficient sources of sustainable feedstock to support the production of 3.4 million tonnes (Mt) of advanced sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) annually in the EU by 2030, around 5.5% of projected EU jet fuel demand. Waste oils is
April 1, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) From switchgrass, sorghum or sugarcane, feedstock development, genomics, and crops improvement abound with USDA’s help at the Biomass Research Center. Rob Mitchell, Research Leader and Research Agronomist at USDA ARS, shares all about the latest ethanol and biofuel feedstock innovations in Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, South
March 26, 2021
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(CoverCress Inc./PR Web) CoverCress Inc. announces $8 million in partner funding for new low carbon oilseed. — Midwestern farmers are one step closer to the prospect of growing a new cover crop that will generate a cash margin while supporting regenerative agriculture. CoverCress Inc. announced it has raised another $8 million to fund
March 25, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) How to evaluate the economic and biological effects of bioenergy production and potential impacts on wildlife and wildlife habitat? Certified Wildlife Biologist Dr. Susan Rupp shares how to look at the environmental impact of projects, how to succeed at Permitting Your Project ensuring environmental sustainability,
March 19, 2021
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by Nicole Heslip (Brownfield Ag News) … Jim Zook with the Corn Marketing Program of Michigan tells Brownfield he believes the discussion will change as more emphasis is put on the importance of green, growing plants in carbon sequestration. “We have science behind us that does prove that corn-based ethanol—corn—is the
March 19, 2021
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(NewsWise) Microbiome and soil chemistry at long-term bioenergy research sites challenge the idea that switchgrass increases carbon accrual in surface soils on marginal lands. — In this study, researchers characterized the influence of crop and site on fungal and bacterial community structure, potential enzyme activity, soil carbon chemistry, and total
March 16, 2021
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(CJME News) A company is eyeing the Regina area to build a refinery that would produce billions of litres of renewable fuel each year. The proposal is from True North Renewable Fuels (TNRF). The company would also construct what is referred to in a report from Economic Development Regina (EDR) as an
March 13, 2021
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(Resource Magazine/American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers) … Three reports by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) in 2015, 2018, and 2019 highlighted the importance of FAS to the U.S. economy and national security, discussed FAS vulnerabilities, and emphasized the importance of including all components of
March 12, 2021
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by Janet Kubat Willette (Farm Progress) Madhu Khanna, distinguished professor of environmental economics at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, says that CRP acres have the potential to produce harvestable bioenergy crops. Speaking at a Council on Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics webinar earlier this year, Khanna addressed the food v. fuel debate and
March 11, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) What’s the life cycle system for corn starch ethanol? What is the current best estimate for carbon intensity of corn ethanol? What about ethanol biorefinery energy use intensity and land use change carbon intensity? What is the potential for further reductions in carbon intensity? READ
March 11, 2021
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by Shane McGlaun (Slash Gear) … Researchers from the University of Nevada have been researching drought-tolerant crops that could be used for biofuel, sustainable foods, and forage crops. The team specifically looked at cactus called Opuntia ficus-indica because the plant has high heat tolerance and requires little water. Of all the crops the
March 10, 2021
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by Geoff Cooper (Renewable Fuels Association/Ethanol Producer Magazine) Mother Nature has already given us an extraordinary solar panel that covers several hundred million acres of cropland in America’s breadbasket, where energy absorbed from the sun is stored for later use in a perfect battery: an ear of corn. — As
March 10, 2021
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by Rod Nickel, Stephanie Kelly and Karl Plume (Reuters) … Refiners can produce renewable diesel from animal fats and plant oils, in addition to used cooking oil. Production capacity is expected to nearly quintuple to about 2.65 billion gallons (63 million barrels) over the next three years, investment bank Goldman Sachs said
March 3, 2021
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by Gary Polakovic (USC News) Using a “kelp elevator,” researchers at the USC Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies were able to grow the biofuel crop in large quantities in the open ocean. … Scientists at the USC Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies on Santa Catalina Island, working with private industry, report that a
March 3, 2021
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by Julio Bravo (Farm Futures) Brazil already has the largest fleet of cars driven by ethanol, mainly from sugarcane; now corn-based ethanol plants are on the rise. The ethanol produced by sugarcane and corn has have the potential to reduce up to 90% of the greenhouse gases. And, as mentioned in our
February 24, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Remember your grandma’s tale of talking to plants to help make them grow better? Well, that’s actually true – CO2 helps plants grow up to 30% more and now a company called CO2 GRO is using aqueous CO2 misting that uses 90% less CO2 and
February 23, 2021
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(Investancia/EIN Newswire) Pongamia Trees will produce 300,000 tonnes of sustainable second generation feedstock every year by 2030 in boost for global green transport initiatives — – Leading agroforestry and research company Investancia today signed a 30-year offtake deal with ECB Group that will see 300,000 tonnes of ‘reforestation oil’ from pongamia
February 23, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Increase agricultural production while decreasing environmental footprint – that’s the goal in a nuthsell, but check out this slide guide on 5 key USDA themes, USDA’s latest innovation contributions like a new sustainable diesel fuel additive modified from Tung Oil, a guayule plant concept tire,
February 19, 2021
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(Solutions from the Land) “There has never been a greater need for an Agricultural Renaissance. The many voices of farmers, echoing across centuries of scarcity and abundance, challenge us to find new ways forward, paths that produce abundance for expanding populations while rejecting wasteful destruction of resources. We must seek these
February 18, 2021
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by Rhiannon Branch (Brownfield Ag News) Interest and growth in carbon market programs is booming. A recent ecosystem markets webinar hosted by the Illinois Sustainable Ag Partnership had more than 1600 participants registered with more than 600 questions submitted ahead of time. Speaker Kari Hernandez, Global Head of Carbon Operations and Offer Marketing with Indigo
February 15, 2021
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(International Energy Agency) There are concurrent media campaigns and publications questioning the use of woody biomass for renewable energy production. Several of them misrepresent on-the-ground forestry practise and bioenergy systems, and associate the use of woody biomass for energy with overexploitation of forests, even permanent deforestation, and “the burning of trees”.
February 11, 2021
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(Truterra/PR Newswire) TruCarbon Promises Streamlined Experience for Farmers; Novel Approach for Buyers to Incentivize Change at Scale; TruCarbon Launching With Microsoft as First Secured Buyer — Truterra, LLC, the sustainability business and subsidiary of Land O’Lakes, Inc., one of America’s largest farmer-owned cooperatives, today announced the launch of TruCarbon, a transformational new carbon program that will help farmers generate
February 4, 2021
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by Hiroko Tabuchi and Nadja Popovich (New York Times) The administration has pledged to make agriculture a cornerstone of its plan to fight warming, but also to tackle a legacy of discrimination that has pushed Black farmers off the land. — … The administration has promised to make agriculture a cornerstone
February 1, 2021
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(Solutions from the Land) Solutions from the Land (SfL) has been selected by organizers of a global food security summit next week to hold a side event which will spotlight systems and practices farmers are using to deliver high value solutions to improve food and nutrition security. The side event, which,
February 1, 2021
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(Canola Council of Canada) Research and innovation are two key factors that continue to drive the success of Canada’s canola industry. Knowledge transfer is required to extend research findings to growers, agronomists, the scientific community and other industry stakeholders, to initiate the adoption of new practices and stimulate further research and
February 1, 2021
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(Department of Energy/Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory/EurekAlert) … Identifying and breeding varieties that have high productivity across a range of environments is becoming increasingly important for food, fuel and other applications, and breeders aren’t interested in waiting decades to develop new crops. One example is an ongoing collaborative effort to improve
January 29, 2021
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(European Commission Science Hub) A new JRC report on the use of woody biomass for energy production in the EU shows the need to recognise that sustainability of bioenergy remains a complex issue with no one-size-fits-all answers, but that win-win and lose-lose forest management pathways for climate and biodiversity exist. Bioenergy
January 29, 2021
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by Art Cullen (Storm Lake Times/New York Times) … Few took carbon sequestration seriously during his previous tenure, a time when “resilient agriculture” had not yet entered the vernacular. But the fundamental conversation in the corridors of power and along gravel roads has changed. Extreme weather, a pandemic jolt to
January 28, 2021
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(Department of Energy) U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy (FE) announced plans to make $8 million in Federal funding available for cost-shared research, development, and testing of technologies that can utilize carbon dioxide (CO2) from power systems or other industrial sources for bio-mediated uptake by algal systems to
January 28, 2021
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by Jeffrey T. Manuel and Thomas D. Rogers (The Hill) President Biden has placed the Department of Agriculture (USDA) at the center of his administration’s focus on climate change. “We see farmers making American agriculture first in the world to achieve net-zero emissions and gaining new sources of income in the
January 28, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Tying in with today’s top story, this is one slide guide you don’t want to miss from Dr. Patrick Gruber, CEO who recently shared this with investors. From the latest in market traction and demand for Gevo fuels, their first world scale project in South
January 27, 2021
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by Steinar Brandslet (Norwegian University of Science and Technology/Phys.Org) Growing perennial grasses on abandoned cropland has the potential to counteract some of the negative impacts of climate change by switching to more biofuels, according to an NTNU research group. Researchers consider increased use of biofuels to be an important part
January 23, 2021
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by Gabriel Popkin (Washington Post) President Biden says farmers can adopt agricultural methods that help fight climate change. Maryland farmer Trey Hill has been trying. … As the winter cover crops grow, they will feed microbes and improve the soil’s health, which Hill believes will eventually translate into higher yields of
January 22, 2021
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(Neste) In November 2020, the Dutch environmental organization Milieudefensie published a report “The Dark Side of Neste’s biofuel production”. At that time, we published a statement on the report on our website. Since the publication of our statement, we have continued to investigate the allegations in cooperation with our suppliers. Gathering enough
January 21, 2021
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NCGA Releases U.S. Corn Sustainability Goals and Report
(National Corn Growers Association) Today, the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) solidified U.S. corn farmers’ commitment to environmental, economic and social sustainability with the release of U.S. Corn Sustainability Goals and the first U.S. Corn Sustainability Report. The report documents a long history of continuous improvement by U.S. corn farmers and the goals