Non-food crops target biofuel demand

At a time when soybeans and corn are struggling to feed the world, scientists are exploring non-food crops as a way to make biologicaldiesel fuelsource of the oil needed for renewable fuels such as

CoverCress has developed an oilseed rape that contains more oil than soybeans, according to the Wall Street Journal. The company suggests using the plant as a cover crop during the off-harvest season, not only to capture oil for alternative fuels, but also to combat erosion and bring in cash.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has funded CoverCress and two other cover crops: Nuseed Carinata and flaxseed capers, marketed by Global Clean Energy Holdings.

The newspaper reported that some oil companies have made agreements to buy oil from these plants for use in thebiofuelThe