Yakima Valley farm to supply canola to biofuel plants

By NICHOLAS K. GERANIOS, Associated Press Writer
Monday, February 5, 2007 5:30 PM CST

SPOKANE, Wash. — Efforts to start biodiesel production in Washington got a big boost Thursday with the announcement that a Yakima Valley farmer will grow enough canola to make 1 million gallons of the environmentally friendly motor fuel.

The deal shows the potential for Washington’s farms to find new markets by growing crops that can replace imported oil, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell said at a news conference in Washington, D.C.

“The energy sources of the future can be grown at home,” Cantwell said. “I hope more growers in Washington state will consider getting into the alternative fuels business.”

The deal, whose financial details were not disclosed, was between Imperium Renewables of Seattle and Natural Selection Farms of Sunnyside. It called for Natural Selection to sell 1 million gallons of canola oil to Imperium for use in its biodiesel plants in Seattle and in Grays Harbor County. It is the largest such deal in the state’s history, Imperium said.

The farm has already delivered 6,000 gallons of canola oil to the biodiesel company, said John Plaza, founder and president of Imperium.

The deal was announced in Washington, D.C., where Plaza was testifying before a Senate committee on the future of biodiesel.

“We’ve always said that we’d be the state’s biggest customer for Washington state produced canola oil, and today we are,” Plaza said. “This is just the beginning of what we hope will further establish a new market for Washington state farmers.”

Many Washington farmers have been reluctant to convert a large percentage of their fields to canola because they are unsure if they can find a buyer for the crop, are unable to get crop insurance, and are making good money selling wheat.

But the owner of Natural Selection Farms said the deal with Imperium was a winner.

“Diversifying our crop base to include canola makes both great agricultural and business sense,” Ted Durfey said. “I hope others will realize the benefits of adding canola to their crop mix.”

Natural Selection Farms is focused on environmentally responsible agriculture, and since 2003 has been working with the federal and state governments to construct an oilseed pressing facility on its property that is the first in the state.

“It’s great to see Washington state leading the way in this area,” said U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers. The Republican represents the eastern third of Washington, where much of the state’s grain is grown.

Gov. Chris Gregoire added her praise.

“Our farmers can grow crops like canola, we can crush the seeds in places like Sunnyside, refine the oil in Hoquiam for uses across the state,” she said.

While Plaza is interested in buying all the canola he can from Washington farmers, at this point his company is focusing on working with Natural Selection Farms, he said. He said the two businesses have been working for 18 months to develop this relationship.

Imperium operates its Seattle Biodiesel facility, which has a capacity of 5 million gallons a year. It is building a factory in Grays Harbor County that will be the largest in the nation with a capacity of 100 million gallons. It is set to begin production later this year.

Most of the oil to operate the plants will be imported from other states and countries.

Biodiesel is a clean burning alternative fuel made from oils derived from farm crops, and can be used in any conventional diesel engine. A U.S. Department of Energy study found that biodiesel emits about 78 percent less carbon dioxide than petroleum diesel.

Imperium’s fuel is sold through a network of the Pacific Northwest’s largest fuel distributors.

On the Net:

www.imperiumrenewables.com

Comments »

Comment on this story

Comments will be approved within 48 hours

Name:

Email: (optional)

Comments:

Image Verification: (Case sensitive)