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Jettin' around with my friend Camelina
February 6, 2009 - by Dallas Kachan, Cleantech Group
NOT camelina.
No, camelina isn't my pretty little baby pet camel from Spain (my, but there's an image.)
Camelina is, in fact, a crop alternatively known as wild flax, German sesame or Siberian oilseed, and she was approved, today, by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration for use as feed for broiler chickens, i.e. chickens intended to be cooked and eaten. Seriously.
What's the connection with clean technology? Renewable fuels company Great Plains Renewable Energy is commercializing biofuel produced from camelina, and has been working with the FDA to gain approval for the crop to be used as livestock feed for several years. It celebrated today's approval.
Why? Good question. With the food vs. fuel debate as forefront as it now is, finding brand new food chain applications for a biofuel feedstock seems counterintuitive.
Great Plains claims to be the world's largest supplier of camelina for biofuel and livestock feed. The company says it's developing further uses for camelina as the feedstock for road vehicles, jet aircraft... and, now that it's landed the broilers, egg-laying chickens. Seriously.
Coming soon to a henhouse near you?
Copyright © 2009 Cleantech Group LLC. All rights reserved, including right of redistribution.
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Comments
Diesel Platform, Bio ect.
Submitted on March 7th, 2009 by Billy Hebert (not verified)The current woes of GM (General Motors) is a great opportunity to change the motor vehicle platform here in the USA to diesel namely Bio-Diesel. These new machines should be all-wheel-drive and maintain a new standard of 'the green economy'. What a great way out of a tough situation. We can make it happen.
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