Ag leaders are looking for every possible way to boost the bottom line for farmers, including some that aren’t obvious. This is where your checkoff dollars are being put to work.
Much coverage has been given to year-round E15 sales, sustainable aviation fuel, and animal feed from biofuels. But at a time when more crop demand is sorely needed, novel ideas are being added to the mix.
“Firefighting foams are one of the most common, continuous PFAS polluters in the country. And soy foam offers a biodegradable, homegrown American alternative.”
That’s American Soybean Association President Scott Metzger at a Senate Ag hearing last week.
PFAS are synthetic chemicals known as “forever chemicals” for their extreme persistence in the environment and human body.
Metzger urged Congress to speed federal approvals of firefighting soy foam—and not just to help farmers.
“Widespread use of soy foam will ensure firefighters, like my son Dalton, will no longer have to worry about regular PFAS exposure while on the job.”
And firefighting soy foam isn’t the only soy innovation.
“From tires to infrastructure products to golf balls and artificial turf, the scalable potential of these products is limitless.”
And more products are being discovered every year with the help of your Indiana Soybean Alliance and their partnership with Purdue University for the annual Student Soybean Innovation Competition. Some recent inventions from Purdue students include soy-based coffee filters, marker ink, and a lab grade and food grade self-adhesive film called SoyShield, which was last year’s winner of the competition.
We’ll find out what new innovations are in store when this year’s competition takes place next Wednesday at Purdue. HAT will be there and will bring you all the latest.
Source: NAFB News Service
