Test Trials for Bio-Ethanol a Success, Policy Issues Remain | February 2007
The Huangbaiyu Village Demonstration project is evaluating opportunities to support local initiatives to create sustaining enterprises that restore and nurture the village eco system.
With more than 90% of the current village agricultural system dedicated to corn production, a test project was recently completed to evaluate the feasibility of sweet sorghum as a value-added food and energy crop. The project is considered a transition strategy to cradle to cradle enterprise with near term goals of creating local opportunities to attract investment capital, generating more income for villagers, providing food and supplying biofuel for China’s growing energy needs.
The project was funded by US Board Members Brad Zenger of the Ecoworks Foundation and John Miller of Wildwood Mahonia.
As a first step, in the Spring of 2006 five Huangbaiyu farmers dedicated 1 MU (.16 acre) of land each to produce four improved varieties of sweet sorghum on each plot. Professor Sun Qing, a sweet sorghum to bioethanol conversion expert from Shenyang Agricultural University managed the project on the ground in Huangbaiyu. She was supported by the Center’s representative in the village, Zhong Ping.
Through this project, farmers in Huangbaiyu demonstrated they are eager to learn new skills and techniques to add value to their agricultural production systems – one farmer even tested sweet sorghum grain in baked goods that he and his family sold in the local market.
It is also clear that sweet sorghum is a viable crop in Huangbaiyu and farmers were successful in achieving yields that are on par with existing data for this crop throughout China.
Based on findings from Shenyang Agricultural University researchers, sweet sorghum can serve as a multi-purpose crop in Huangbaiyu. Because of the unique nature of this crop, sweet sorghum grain and leaves can provide food, fiber and forage for the community while the stalks, which are high in sugar, can be used as feedstock for a bioethanol enterprise.
The policy and market outlook, however, is still to be determined. China’s national policy is that prime farmland shall be used only for food and not energy crop production. Sweet sorghum, while able to provide both food and energy needs, is currently considered a non food crop.
While this project will not immediately lead to a sustainable bioethanol industry in Huangbaiyu, the outcomes have been educational and motivational. It is clear that farmers in Huangbaiyu are open to and can benefit from continued involvement from agricultural outreach specialists. To this end, all partners in this project agreed to continue to explore ways to develop greater access to information and support systems that serve the local agricultural community to create sustaining value added agriculture based enterprises.