Seed To Fuel
Project Title: "Seed To Fuel" Enhancing the value of rotational break crops to produce oil and Bio-fuel in the central region
Group Name: Mackay Fibre Producers.
Project Aim :
- Increase cash flow and add value to a rotational crop to increase farm sustainability and profitability within the Australian sugar Industry.
- Providing an alternative market option for seed production from a legume rotational crop by producing Bio-Diesel on farm.
- Develop an operating model to produce Bio-Diesel from rotational crops by Mackay Fibre Producers that can be replicated by other grower groups.
- Producing an environmentally acceptable re-newable fuel alternative
- Develop information to increase skills & knowledge for growers ( Fact sheets )
Investigating an alternative fuel supply ,that will address one of the main inputs for producing sugarcane
The objectives are:
- Demonstrate the process required to produce bio-diesel from seed oil extraction from rotational crops
- Develop a working model that will operate on farm sites that can be replicated by other groups of cane growers
- Create alternative market for locally produced seed of e.g. Soy bean, Peanuts and Industrial hemp.
- Create a renewable environmentally friendly fuel source.
- Provide information , knowledge and skills to add more value to rotation crops by producing bio - diesel
- To encourage growers to introduce legume seed crops as a rotation crop option.
- Build capacity of cane growers to create a more sustainable and profitable farming enterprise by creating new income streams
- Evaluate recovery rates from oil seed.
- Investigate the economic viability of producing Bio-diesel from oil seed.
Project Activities:
- Develop work plan to implement Project
- MFP to work with Mark Henry (The Future Fuels Company) supply of Equipment installation & start-up training of Bio-fuel production.
- MFP to partner with Pro-zone Bio-diesel Pty Ltd to develop a working model that will extract oil to produce bio-diesel from oil seeds ( soybean , peanuts & industrial hemp ) on farm.
- Investigate / build a mobile unit that will extrude oil to produce bio-diesel on farm
- Investigate seed storage facilities on farm.
- Investigate seed drying facilities that will allow safe storage of seed
- Develop markets from the by-products of the bio-diesel process.
- Investigate / purchase processing equipment.
- Produce bio-diesel to an Australian standard.
- Develop the skills and knowledge to process the seed to produce bio-diesel by group members (training , travel & learning)
- Investigate the economics of producing bio-diesel from oil seed.
- Utilise the latest technology to produce bio-diesel.
- Produce fact sheets on the process of producing soy bean to bio-diesel
Contact Person: Joe Muscat 49 597270