Hemp Has Untapped Market as Biofuel, Pikeville Businessman Says

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February 27, 2013

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by Janet Patton (Kentucky.com) Kentucky’s debate on hemp so far has centered on the marijuana question and the market question. But Roger Ford has one of his own: What about the energy question?

Ford, CEO of Patriot BioEnergy in Pikeville, said hemp could be a huge boon to the one thing Eastern Kentucky has relied on for decades for economic prosperity: coal.

“We’re looking at this as an energy crop,” Ford said. His company, which is planning to build energy plants to process biofuels, has looked at sweet sorghum but doesn’t think the yield would be profitable enough. Instead, he has turned to hybrid sugar beets, which will give him sugars that can be turned into ethanol, plastics and flavorings.

But the advantages from hemp would be exponentially greater, Ford said, because hemp oil from seeds could be used for aviation fuel and biodiesel. Other parts of the plant — such as the “hurds” from the woody middle of the stalk — could be used for cellulosic ethanol.

Ford said the biomass also could be blended with Kentucky’s high-sulfur coal to “green” it up.

“We’re working with coal companies right now on a strategy for post-mining land use to add value to the land and create jobs,” Ford said.

…Tom Kimmerer, a renewable-energy consultant in Kentucky, said he is skeptical that existing strains of hemp can produce the yields necessary for biofuel production on the poor soil of reclaimed mine land.

“There is no question that hemp has high yields per acre when grown on excellent soil with adequate fertilization and moisture,” Kimmerer said. “However, prices of corn, soybeans, livestock and other agricultural commodities are high and will remain so. It will be difficult for a farmer to justify growing hemp on high-quality land when traditional commodities are much more profitable.”

To be cost-effective, biofuels need the highest yields possible from the poorest land with the lowest inputs, Kimmerer said. Hemp oil yields in Canada are about 15 gallons per acre, he said, compared with 75 to 240 gallons for canola.

Kentucky, he said, will need a variety of biofuels, and hemp might be a right fit for some producers if the right strains can be identified or developed. READ MORE

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