This summer's drought has "stirred the pot" in the fuel vs. food
debate, but researchers at the University of Missouri Center for
Agroforestry are collaborating with the U.S. Dept. of Energy to
study how second generation biofuels—those from non-fuel crops
grown on marginal land—could become profitable and sustainable.
Despite finite supplies of fossil fuels, Shibu Jose, director of
the Center for Agroforestry at the University of Missouri and
H.E. Garrett Endowed Professor at the MU College of Agriculture,
Food and Natural Resources says creating a vibrant biofuel
industry is a "chicken-or-the-egg" problem. Farmers don't want
to invest in these biofuel crops until they know there will be
buyers willing to pay a good price for them, he says. "And
industrial players like refineries and producers of advanced
liquid fuels would like to see sustainable production of biomass
crops before they set up shop, which would take millions of
dollars of investment." To find solutions to both cropping and
processing issues,