CENTER CROSS, Virginia \u2014 Rather than looking to faraway oil fields, American motorists soon may find themselves turning to American farmers’ crops as a new source of energy.<\/p>\n
Virginia farmers grow about 500,000 acres of soybeans annually, and now, there’s a new market.<\/p>\n
Soy biodiesel is good for diesel engines. Fuel made from soybeans is kinder to the environment than petroleum, and, with each year’s crop, it’s 100 percent renewable.<\/p>\n
Soy biodiesel could some day help move the petroleum monopoly away from the Middle East and into the hands of American farmers. It was unavailable in Virginia until a few weeks ago, when Noblett Oil and Propane in Kilmarnock began selling it to owners of diesel-powered vehicles.<\/p>\n
Montague Farms, a large farming operation in Center Cross, about 15 miles south of Tappahannock, is a customer. For about three weeks, the farm’s four trucks that travel the East Coast have been using a 2 percent blend of biodiesel soy fuel.<\/p>\n
“The engine is running cooler,\u201d said Floyd Brooks, who drives a 1995 Western Star with a 435-horsepower Caterpillar engine. “The truck has a little more power. It runs better now than it did when we first bought it, and the fuel mileage has really improved.\u201d<\/p>\n
The oil temperature in each truck also has dropped by up to 25 degrees, said Bill Taliaferro, president of Montague Farms and a member of the Virginia Soybean Board. That means less friction and longer-lasting engines.<\/p>\n
Soy biodiesel costs a few cents more per gallon than regular diesel, said Douglas E. Faulkner, vice president of Noblett Oil, whose company has sold more than 50,000 gallons in Virginia.<\/p>\n
The cost soon could be competitive with petroleum-based diesel, Faulkner said, if an energy bill passes that’s being considered in Washington. Soy biodiesel distributors could get a 1 cent per gallon rebate to hand back to customers for every percentage point of soy blend, from 1 percent to 20 percent.<\/p>\n
The energy portion of the new Farm Bill also looks out for renewable American fuel sources. It includes $5 million for education and grants, and another $6 million for testing, said Susan Haller, spokeswoman for the Virginia Soybean Association.<\/p>\n
In all, the Farm Bill provides $405 million to encourage the development and use of fuels from crops.<\/p>\n
It’s an indication that the federal government is dedicated to cultivating domestic fuel sources, Haller said.<\/p>\n
“America is good at growing,\u201d Taliaferro said, grinning. “We’d be able to grow enough to supply our own fuel.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fuel can be made from any vegetable with oil as a byproduct. Already, fuel is made from corn and hemp. Potential exists for fuel from barley, peanuts, cotton seeds, even sweet potatoes.<\/p>\n
“Soy oil is the most plentiful and least expensive,\u201d Haller said.<\/p>\n
One bushel of soybeans produces a gallon of soy biodiesel. That same bushel also provides soy meal to feed animals and creates other useable byproducts.<\/p>\n
Biodiesel soy can be used in any diesel engine with no engine modifications. Haller drives a Ford diesel pickup fueled by a soy blend. Until the fuel became available in Virginia, she said, she was “splash blending\u201d at the diesel pump. She poured a 2 1\/2 -gallon bottle of biodiesel into her tank with each fill-up.<\/p>\n
A 20 percent blend provides optimal mileage and emissions performance, Haller said. Diesel engines also can run — and run well — on pure soy biodiesel.<\/p>\n
“I know, because I’ve been out in the middle of nowhere, when I couldn’t get diesel, and I’ve poured straight soy biodiesel into the tank,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The Montague Farms’ fleet includes two Kenworths, a Western Star and an International — all manufactured between 1987 and 1995 — with Cummins, Caterpillar, Detroit and Mack engines, all running smoothly.<\/p>\n
John Deere has recommended soy biodiesel for its tractor engines, Haller said, and Cummins, one of the country’s biggest makers of large diesel engines, has approved the product.<\/p>\n
“Using soy biodiesel causes no warranty problems for any engine manufacturer,\u201d Haller said.<\/p>\n
And the emissions are much cleaner, Haller said, especially in the area of heavy metals, thought to cause asthma and some cancers.<\/p>\n
Faulkner’s oil company buys soy biodiesel from a distributor in Maryland that gets its supply from a manufacturing plant in Ohio. The nation has about 20 soy biodiesel plants, Haller said. The Virginia Soybean Association wants one in Virginia.<\/p>\n
A soy biodiesel plant could cost from $300,000 to $5 million, depending on its size. Southern States Cooperative, a major farm supply company, is conducting a feasibility study on soy biodiesel, Haller said, and may consider a partnership with the Soybean Association to finance a plant somewhere in the central part of the state.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the association is looking for other potential investors.<\/p>\n
What’s the best thing about biodiesel soy? The smell, say those who use it.<\/p>\n
“It smells like french fries,\u201d said James Rainier, fleet manager at Montague Farms. “You can actually stand to be behind a truck or a bus burning soy diesel.\u201d<\/p>\n
For more information, contact:<\/p>\n
Virginia Soybean Association
Tel: 757-564-0153.<\/p>\n