Jatropha R&D Being Intensified

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TheBioenergySite Latest News

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

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Jatropha R&D Being Intensified

THE PHILIPPINES - What with the need to hasten biofuel development because of the skyrocketing of prices, scientists from UP Los Baños are conducting rigorous gene conservation and regeneration of jatropha species for future use as part of their R&D efforts.

According to the Manila Bulletin, Dr. Olivia Damasco of the Institute of Plant Breeding at the University of the Philippines Los Baños (IPB - UPLB) said among the accomplishments under the R&D project on jatropha included the collection of jatropha germplasm or genetic resources in the 14 regions of the country, 39 provinces, 223 towns and 417 barangays.

She said jatropha curcas germplasm had been collected in eight regions, 28 provinces, 206 towns and 391 barangays.

The collection of Jatropha germplasm is an activity under jatropha R&D Project Component 1, which also includes characterization, conservation and documentation of local germplasm.

Component 1 of the Jatropha R&D project is entitled "Germplasm Management Varietal Improvement and Seed Technology R&D for Physic Nut or Jatropha curcas L."

Other components of the jatropha R&D include the development of geographic information system (GIS) – aided suitability assessment for commercial production of J. curcas; development of component technologies for jatropha in various production systems; development of farming systems models integrating J. curcas in various production systems; development of post-production machinery for J. curcas; process and equipment development for the production of esterified J. curcas oil; and developing mechanism for community-based production, processing, marketing and utilization of J. curcas.

The country’s R&D program on jatropha is being spearheaded by the Department of Science and Technology’s Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCARRD–DoST).

Implementation of the project, meanwhile, is being spearheaded by UPLB, in cooperation with other academic and government institutions.

View the Manila Bulletin story by clicking here.

TheBioenergySite News Desk