In the U.S., barley isn’t just for beer brewing and livestock feed. Several companies, including Virginia-based Osage Bio Energy, have revealed barley-to-ethanol projects within the past year. Osage is currently constructing a 208 MMly facility, which will use regionally grown barley to produce ethanol and feed products. The company plans to have its first facility on line by the spring of 2010, and expects to build three additional plants.
In Montana, Montana Microbial Products LLC, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, has developed a process to make ethanol and barley protein concentrate, which could replace fishmeal in aquaculture diets. The company operates a pilot plant in Butte, Montana, and is in the process of commercializing that facility.
In some areas, making ethanol from corn just isn’t possible. So what is it about AC Andrew and barley that makes them attractive as ethanol feedstocks?
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Analyzing AC Andrew
AC Andrew is the highest-yielding SWS wheat variety presently registered in Western Canada and is the most commonly grown variety of Canadian Western SWS wheat, according to SeCan, the largest supplier of certified seed to Canadian farmers. The variety typically yields 15 per cent to 19 per cent higher than regular low-protein SWS wheat, which is perhaps its most attractive quality. It is also known for its high yields ranging from 60 to 75 bushels per acre.
AC Andrew’s high starch content, compared with other wheat varieties, also appeals to producers. The SWS wheat class in general is the lowest protein wheat class, at about 2 per cent to 3 per cent lower grain protein than the more popular Canada Western red spring wheat, which accounted for 70 per cent of all Western Canadian wheat production in 2007.
Lower protein content generally leads to higher yields and increased starch levels in wheat kernels. AC Andrew has higher starch levels and higher yields and an ideal protein content of about 12 per cent, making it a desirable variety for many ethanol producers.
Because AC Andrew is—like other SWS wheat varieties—bred for irrigated regions of southern Alberta and Saskatchewan there are some growing risks. For example, cooler than normal temperatures or an early fall frost can delay crop maturity, and drought stress can reduce yields and increase grain protein content. In addition, pre-harvest sprouting can occur under wet harvest conditions.
Last fall, Terra Grain Fuels, a Saskatchewan ethanol producer, completed construction of the largest wheat ethanol plant in North America—a 150 MMly ethanol plant last fall near Belle Plaine. In addition to ethanol, the plant produces 163,800 tonnes of distillers dried grains annually. TGF is an advocate of AC Andrew and says it is the variety of choice because of its ethanol friendly characteristics. The company will, however, contract for all Canadian Prairie spring red and white wheat varieties and certain winter wheat varieties.
Upon reaching its full capacity, TGF will purchase and consume approximately 15 million bushels of locally grown wheat annually.
Fishing for New Markets
As prices have dipped, many farmers have shied away from barley and focused on wheat. However, a unique market has emerged and Bob Kearns, a partner in Montana Microbial Products, is confident that it may rejuvenate enthusiasm in barley.
MMP, in a joint venture with the USDA Agricultural Research Service, has developed a process to make ethanol and barley protein concentrate, which can replace fishmeal in aquaculture diets. “Aquaculture is the fastest-growing part of the agricultural market,” Kearns says. On an annual basis the world uses 5 million tonnes of fish meal. “Over the past four or five years, we’ve been working to develop a plant-based protein that could be used,” he says. “We looked at soy and had some technical success, but the fish wouldn’t eat the soy meal, which led us to barley.”
The fractionation process that MMP and ARS developed creates two streams. “A sugar stream which we ferment to ethanol, and a protein stream that runs at about 60 per cent protein,” Kearns says. “In fish feeding studies, we found that it is a 100 per cent replacement for fish meal, and it tastes the same. If you substituted one-third barley protein concentrate for one-third of the fish meal, there is a big improvement in the feed conversion ratios. If you substitute two-thirds barley protein concentrate, it is even bigger.”
When comparing the barley protein concentrate with corn-based distillers grains, which sells for about $125 per tonne, the barley protein concentrate fish meal will sell for $700 to $1,200 per tonne, according to Kearns. “So in this situation, the value is really high for the protein. Regarding the food-versus-fuel debate, this is probably the most efficient way we can think of to get protein into the human diet,” he says. “We are taking dryland barley, normally used for feed barley, and turning it into a product that has a high conversion rate into human food, and at the same time making ethanol from it. The big markets for the barley protein is for salmon and shrimp feed. The U.S. produces about 24,000 tonnes of trout and about 10,000 tonnes of salmon per year. If you can get into that market, the numbers are huge,” Kearns says.
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