San Diego, California
June 8, 2009
SG
Biofuels today announced it has identified several strains
of cold tolerant Jatropha capable of thriving in climates
previously thought to be outside of the crop's preferred
subtropical habitat. Utilizing the strains, the company has
initiated a breeding program to develop Jatropha as an
oil-producing crop in colder climates of the United States.
The strains are included among thousands of variations of
Jatropha curcas the firm has collected from a range of climates
and geographies around the world as part of its Genetic Resource
Center, the world's largest, most diverse collection of Jatropha
genetic material.
"While Jatropha is known to thrive in warm, tropical climates,
its efficacy and yield in colder regions has been considerably
lower," said Kirk Haney, President and CEO for SG Biofuels. "We
believe that we have located several strains that can make
Jatropha a viable oil-producing crop in a much broader range of
climates here in the United States."
The strains were collected from various sites in Central America
at elevations ranging from 1,600 meters (5,200 feet) to over
1,800 meters (about 6,000 feet), where the average daily low
temperature between December and February are typically around
45 degrees Fahrenheit, and nightly temperatures can fall well
below freezing.
"We typically see Jatropha thriving in climates where the
average minimum temperature is about 60 degrees or more during
those coldest months of the year," said Dr. Robert Schmidt,
chief scientist for SG Biofuels. "To find a collection of
strains that thrive at higher elevations with considerably lower
temperatures provides us with a tremendous opportunity to
utilize these naturally cold adapted ecotypes to breed new
varieties that will perform well in colder climates."
Jatropha curcas is a non-edible shrub that is native to Central
America. Its seeds contain high amounts of oil that can be used
for a variety of bio-based materials including biodiesel and
feedstock substitutes for the petrochemical and jet fuel
industries. It can be effectively grown on abandoned lands that
are unsuitable for other crops, but its effective growing range
has been limited by its lack of tolerance for freezing
temperatures.
With proper site selection and agronomic practices, oil yields
of 200-300 gallons of extractable oil per acre are realistic
today. In addition, Jatropha has very-low input costs relative
to other biofuel feedstocks, which makes Jatropha profitable
with current yields. |
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