Cargill has awarded $2.5 million to the Forever Green Initiative at the University of Minnesota to support research into two novel oilseed crops—winter camelina and domesticated winter pennycress—that can produce seed-based oil for low-carbon transportation fuels while also protecting soil, improving water quality, and providing new revenue streams for farmers.
“Winter camelina and pennycress could be truly transformative for farmers, the environment, rural communities, and the economy of Minnesota and the Upper Midwest,” said Mitch Hunter, associate director of the Forever Green Initiative, a research platform in the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences. “We are extremely excited to have this support from Cargill, which will greatly advance our research and help make these crops a reality for farmers.”
Winter camelina and pennycress could be a major climate solution for hard-to-electrify parts of the transportation sector because their seed oil can be refined into drop-in replacements for jet fuel and diesel. Grown in the off-season and with few inputs, the crops produce seed-based oil with a small greenhouse gas footprint.
Fuel made from these crops could reduce emissions by more than 60 percent compared to petroleum jet fuel or diesel. Demand for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) is increasing rapidly—spurred by state and federal tax credits and the newly launched Minnesota SAF Hub—and the shipping industry is looking for low-carbon replacements for conventional diesel fuel. The oil can also be used for food, biopolymers, and other industrial applications, and the high-protein meal can be used for animal feed.
The five-year grant will accelerate research into crop biology and management. All research results will be shared publicly.
U of M news release
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