Potato biofuel

Ah, the noble potato. Famous for feeding the Irish, as the perfect complement to hamburgers, and a word Vice President Dan Quayle couldn’t spell. 

Now, it may assume another aspect of fame – as fuel. You’ve heard of PEI’s Cavendish Farms – it’s one of the continent’s largest French fry producers. Recently, Cavendish officially opened a new biogas plant at its main potato processing plant. There’s nothing revolutionary here. The process is relatively simple. The plant will take waste from the production of fries – water and solid – and compost it. That’s it. The composting process creates energy, which will be used at the plant. 

That may not sound like a big deal, but it adds up in a hurry – and we’re talking about quite a lot of potatoes. When fully operational, the biofuel plant will reduce overall greenhouse gas emissions by up to 35 per cent. 

Potatoes are potentially a lucrative source of biofuel. Corn has been the biofuel crop of choice, for two reasons. First, it’s energy-rich; and second, corn is abundant. However, as biofuel gained in popularity, it created a problem: a lack of corn to actually eat. 

Two years ago, a study at North Carolina State University found an alternative: potatoes. Specifically, the researchers thought sweet potatoes most promising, but “regular” potatoes – like the ones they turn into French fries – are no less viable.

The natural place to start, of course, is a potato processing plant.