GREEN & SUSTAINABLE

Food as Fuel

Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Next Page »

Corn husks

Four promising bio-fuels from everyday foods.

By Gretchen Roberts, EatingWell March/April 2008

Mention the topic of turning food into fuel (think: corn into ethanol, soybeans into biodiesel) and you’ll likely land in a heated debate. Yes, Americans burn through 388.6 million gallons of gasoline each day—but many say that biofuel production isn’t sustainable and it takes agricultural land away from growing food. So why not use leftovers? Meet four pioneers who are doing just that.

dotted line

Whey into Ethanol

How it works: Whey permeate, a by-product of cheesemaking, consists mostly of the sugar lactose, which is fermented into ethanol and blended with regular gasoline.
Who’s trying it: Joe Van Groll, owner of Grand Meadow Energy in Stratford, Wisconsin, and a few plants in Europe.
Comparative cost: 80¢-$1.00 to produce one gallon versus $1.50-$2.00 to produce ethanol from corn.
The numbers: Van Groll produces 26,000 gallons of ethanol per year now (from 260,000 gallons of cheese whey). That’s enough to power 52 Americans’ cars for a year.
Timeline: Ethanol made from whey is on the market now, and it is indistinguishable from other types of ethanol-based gasoline.

Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Next Page »

dotted line