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Perennial Potential: Wheatgrass Shows Promise As Biofuel, Food
Posted: 12:57 pm Fri, October 18, 2013 By Todd Nelson University of Minnesota researchers are working to domesticate a perennial grain crop known as intermediate wheatgrass that one day could appear in your car’s fuel tank, your pantry or even distinctive new craft brews. Intermediate wheatgrass, which is related to wheat, rye and barley, has the potential to be the first perennial crop to produce both biomass for energy and grain for food, according to Donald Wyse, a professor of agronomy and plant genetics in the University of Minnesota’s College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences. “It’s a species that has a wide range of possibilities,” Wyse said of intermediate wheatgrass, which also has value as forage for cattle. “To get this material out there it has to have that level of flexibility, it has to create some profit for somebody for that to happen.” As a biofuel, intermediate wheatgrass straw is a promising northern-climate alternative to switchgrass, a warm season perennial, according to a report from the U of M’s Center for Integrated Natural Resources and Agricultural Management, which Wyse co-directs. Perennial grain biofuel crops such as intermediate wheatgrass also offer significant environmental benefits, including reducing soil erosion and the release of soil carbon, Wyse said. Further, they require less energy, pesticide and fossil-fuel based fertilizer to produce than annual grain crops. Intermediate wheatgrass, however, faces the same market challenge as many other biofuel sources, Wyse said, in the form of cheap natural gas. “This plant produces a lot of biomass,” Wyse said. “As renewable fuels develop, we’re there, we’re ready to go. This plant would fit directly into that supply, but that’s not going to carry it. You know how much they want to pay for biomass — they’re not going to pay very much.” To overcome that, Wyse and other researchers are working to improve intermediate wheatgrass as a food source, concentrating on increasing both yield and seed size. A primary aim is to produce a perennial grain that will compete with annual crops such as corn, soybeans and wheat. “The grain’s going to carry the system,” Wyse said. “Because it’s competing for land you’re planting corn, soybeans and wheat on, so it has to have close to that same yield and return on investment.” Intermediate wheatgrass already has drawn interest from three food companies, including a major one based in the Twin Cities, and from five breweries, based both in Minnesota and in California, Wyse said. Food companies see potential in building product lines that incorporate intermediate wheatgrass and tout its environmental benefits, Wyse said. Specialty food marketers, meanwhile, believe they can charge a premium for intermediate wheatgrass-based products, citing the environmental positives and the potential to produce the grain organically. One hundred acres of intermediate wheatgrass have been planted at the U of M’s Rosemount Research and Outreach Center, and researchers are giving away the seed to food companies to evaluate, Wyse said. “We’re working with a company that’s interested in making a food product out of this grain that’s currently being grown at Rosemount,” Wyse said. “They’re looking at developing a product over the next year. They’re hoping to have enough grain produced from that 100 acres to do a small release of a product on a really limited basis next year.” Craft brewers already have tested intermediate wheatgrass in new brews, Wyse said. “These small breweries that are developing around the country, they’re looking for uniqueness,” Wyse said. “We’re hearing back from brewers that it produces a nice flavor in the beer that their customers really like. They’re really excited about it.” The intermediate wheatgrass development project received a $695,000 grant in 2011 from the U of M’s Initiative for Renewable Energy and the Environment. Food companies are handling product development costs, Wyse said, adding that he expected at least one to invest in the work. He estimated that the effort would need $250,000 a year over the next five years to continue genetic and environmental research on the plant, although he emphasized that today’s lines are ready for commercial use. “We need another five to six years to put the best product out there in the landscape and into the marketplace but the materials now are adequate for consideration in the food system and they’re more than ideal for producing the (environmental benefits) we would expect,” Wyse said. “And obviously, the biomass could also be used as the technology develops.” Collaborating in the research is the plant breeder Lee DeHaan of the Land Institute, a Kansas-based nonprofit, who has been studying intermediate wheatgrass for a decade and was a graduate student of Wyse. DeHaan said he is focusing on developing intermediate wheatgrass plants that produce larger seeds and higher seed yield, which would improve its harvestability and boost potential biofuel use. “If we can get the system to yield a maximal amount of grain, then the biomass will become relatively affordable, because then it’s just a byproduct of the grain production system and only has to cover the cost of harvesting it to make a profit,” Wyse said. “We need to get the grain part working, then the biomass part can follow, whether it’s converted to a liquid fuel, burned or put into a cow.” Read more: http://finance-comme…/#ixzz2iLqGcGkh Continue reading
Inter-American Development Bank Study Points At Latin America As The Future Of Renewable Energy
By Patricia Rey Mallén on October 17 2013 Renewable energy has been the subject of never-ending debate: Is it profitable? Is it better? Where is it headed. There may be no answers yet for those questions, but a report by the Inter-American Development Bank points out where the future of the energy may be: in Latin America. The region concentrated 6 percent in 2012 of the world’s investment in green energy, or $16 billion out of a total of $268 billion. Analysts from the IADB point at Latin America and the Caribbean as the “new frontier” for investment. “The lowering of prices and the better climate for investment makes Latin America an interesting and affordable market,” said Greg Watson, project specialist at the Inter-American Development Bank. According to the report, the political climate is also improving, as 110 green energy policies are identified, including tax incentives, feed-in tariffs, and other policies. “Policy frameworks are expanding and strengthening in Latin America and the Caribbean,” said Nancy Lee, general manager of the bank’s Multilateral Investment Fund. “The rapidly falling costs of clean technologies such as solar and wind power combined with an improved investment climate means that clean energy generation in the region is now truly affordable.” The favorable political climate has helped production capacity grow enormously. In 2007, the region had 1.5 gigawatts of renewable capacity, which has grown 296 percent since, reaching 26.6GW in 2012. Most of the investment went to Brazil, which received around $9.2 billion, although the percentage is lower than in previous years: It used to get close to 80 percent of the investment, and in 2012 that rate dropped to 55 percent. The reasons, as pointed out by the study, are that Brazil reduced its budget for clean energy 36 percent. Chile, on the other hand, multiplied its green energy budget by four, from $500 million in 2011 to $2.1 billion in 2012, making it the most-invested country in the region. Other countries that increased their investment in green energy are the Dominican Republic, which raised the investment from $47 million in 2011 to $248 million in 2012, and Uruguay, which raised it from $28 million to $118 million in the same time. The study singles out a geopolitical factor that explains the region’s interest in developing renewable energies. “Many Latin American countries want to stop importing oil, coal and natural gas, so they do not depend as much on other countries,” said Ethan Zindler, head of policy analysis at Bloomberg New Energy Finance, a provider of data, research and news on the clean and low-carbon energy sector. “That makes them want to invest more in energies they can produce themselves.” Continue reading
Is Farmland A Sound Investment?
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2f160f5e-ce9f-11e2-8e16-00144feab7de.html#ixzz2hyPlkVqB By Lucy Warwick-Ching Cow©Robert Thompson I inherited a substantial amount of money recently and have always dreamed of owning some land in the country. Everything I read seems to tell me that farmland is a sound investment, but are there any additional tax benefits to be gained by investing in it? Andrew Arnott, partner in the landed estates and rural business group at wealth management group Saffrey Champness says farmland indeed continues to be a steady investment. The latest Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) survey revealed that UK farmland now costs an average of £7,440 an acre, compared with £2,400 an acre in 2004. Rising values aside, the tax benefits available are another incentive. However, it is not as easy to claim these benefits as it once was – HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) wants to ensure that such benefits are only available to those actively farming the land, rather than to those aspiring to a farming lifestyle or seeking the benefits of a large house in a rural location. Such tax benefits include exemptions from inheritance tax (IHT) and capital gains tax (CGT) under certain circumstances, the ability to offset any losses from the farm against profits made elsewhere, and benefits by way of value added tax (VAT). IHT relief is available where the land has been farmed in person for at least two years, or where the land has been let to a tenant who has farmed it for seven years. Depending on the type of tenancy, IHT relief can be available at either 50 per cent or 100 per cent of the value of the land concerned. Where you qualify for 100 per cent relief, then assets such as land and buildings can be passed on to heirs free of any IHT liability, either during lifetime or upon death. There are specific stipulations covering cottages, their use and occupation, for them to qualify for exemption. There have been a number of prominent cases with regard to farmhouses and IHT, but a general rule is that the house must be “of a character appropriate”, and “proportionate” in size in relation to the area of the land. If it does not pass these tests then it is highly likely to fail should it be tested by the courts. HMRC has shown its enthusiasm to contest on a number of occasions – with varying degrees of success. Equestrian interests are not usually regarded as farming, and land or buildings to keep horses do not qualify for the same exemptions. With woodland, generally the trees will be exempt from IHT but the land not, although there may be the opportunity to claim business property relief (BPR) for it. While farmland is generally liable for CGT on disposal, there are reliefs available if disposed of as a business asset. For example, “hold-over relief” may be relevant where the farm is being passed on to the next generation, or “entrepreneur’s relief” if it is being sold to a third party. Rollover relief should also be available where farmland assets are disposed of and the proceeds invested in further farmland or buildings. Send your questions to: money@ft.com Forum Farmers are generally able to recover all the VAT they incur on business purchases and expenses, and farmland often offers useful security against bank lending. Add all that together and it certainly has a lot in its favour – although equally, it is definitely not an option for everyone. Continue reading
