Ethanol from sorghum - breakthrough biofuel

Sorghum is poised to become the first official advanced biofuel when the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) prepares for the final approval of the grain for ethanol production.

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According to the information network Oil price on 12/6, sorghum currently has many advantages, but most importantly, sorghum provides flour, sugar, fiber, time of cultivation only 4 months and can thrive in the the area is less fertile. Unlike corn, sorghum does not compete with other food crops and is less harmful to the environment.

EPA has concluded that increasing cultivation of sorghum for ethanol production will not have a major impact on agriculture or the world market. EPA also studied the greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) cycle of sorghum ethanol production and concluded that lower GHG emissions than gasoline emissions were 32% and 53% lower. with the use of bio-gas along with electrical and thermal technology.

Sorghum fields

According to EPA research, if the United States begins to shift a portion of export sorghum to ethanol production, this has little effect on global supplies. As the demand for sorghum for ethanol and corn production increased, the area of ​​cultivation in the US could increase by 92,000 acres by 2022.

However, sorghum cultivation area is expected to increase by only 4,000 acres due to the majority of sorghum used for ethanol production is from the feed market.

US companies are promoting the use of sorghum for ethanol production including Epec Biofuels Holdings, InterCore Energy, Ceres and Chromatin."We believe that sorghum in the United States has the potential to become Brazilian sugarcane in encouraging the biofuels industry to grow," said Steve Vanechanos, Executive Chairman of Epec .

As for the American farmers, of course, they are delighted, the need for sorghum for ethanol production can become a lifeline for small farmers and the National Farmers' Union has welcomed the EPA report. . For farmers, increasing renewable energy production is increasing domestic demand for surplus agricultural products and opening up greater opportunities for rural communities.