The United Soybean Board (USB) launches a major checkoff-funded initiative to encourage U.S. farmers to request and use soy biodiesel.
Nine states and one region of states will conduct activities such as meetings with farmers and fuel suppliers and communications campaigns.
“This is a combined state and national commitment to see that the demand for soy biodiesel increases,” says David Durham, the newly elected USB chairman and soybean farmer from Hardin, MO.
The biodiesel promotion efforts are a part of a larger checkoff-funded Biobased Products Initiative (BPI). USB created the BPI to promote the use of soy-based products and soy biodiesel.
USDA figures show farm use of diesel fuel is 3.2 billion gallons per year. If every soybean farmer used a B2 blend of soy biodiesel (2% soy biodiesel and 98% petroleum diesel), roughly 63.4 million gallons of pure biodiesel or the equivalent of 42 million bushels of soybeans, would be used annually.