Ceres Inc. Endeavors to Create Bioenergy Crops

As the food versus fuel conversation continues, forward-looking companies and individuals are finding ways to supply both food and energy.

According to the Tri-State Neighbor, the Thousand Oaks, Calif., firm is using the latest genetics information and technology to develop switchgrass as a second-generation ethanol feedstock.

The company is also researching sorghum and miscanthus, which are both grasses, as well as energy cane (a type of sugarcane) and woody crops (willow and poplar) as energy crops.

Ceres is using numbers from the USDA indicating 60 million U.S. acres are available for energy crop production.

A University of Nebraska study found that switchgrass for ethanol produces about five times more energy than needed to grow, harvest and process it.

Ceres intends to reduce that production cost even more, while improving agronomic practices for bioenergy crops.

Using advanced plant breeding and biotechnology, Ceres is “developing dedicated energy crops as raw materials for a new generation of biofuels made from plant stems, stalks and leaves - often called cellulosic biofuels.”

In February 2008, Ceres announced its intent to provide energy crops to support a cellulosic biorefinery near St. Joseph, Mo.

Ceres intends to supply seed for thousands of acres of switchgrass, high-biomass sorghum and other energy crops near St. Joseph over the next three years.

In the near future, Flavell hopes farmers will plant Ceres switchgrass seed too. Early products will include high-yielding switchgrass varieties scheduled for release in 2009. Other plant variety releases are in the pipeline.

These seed products could help make large-scale production of biofuels possible by increasing yields, lowering production costs, facilitating processing and refining, and reducing greenhouse gases.

“Ceres is not only committed, but is making a lot of progress in switchgrass development,” Flavell said.

View the Tri-State Neighbor story by clicking here.

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