[Bioconversion] Corn or Waste Wood?

[Roger Samson]

Jeff

In much of the US Corn is available locally this fall at about $100/USD
tonne in bags at a local feedmill. There is a corn glut. Wood pellets in
bags are about $USD200/tonne and there is a predicted shortage. Wood pellets
have 20/gj/tonne and corn about $17.50/GJ. Its just cheaper heat.

The corn farmer subsidizes the corn through a poor return on their labour
and investment and the taxpayer also subsidizes the corn farmer. Thus it has
2 subsidies the wood pellets have none. 

If we can farm fuel pellets in a way that's better than producing corn both
the farmer, consumer, taxpayer and the environment can win. I think we can
do that. We can produce about 600 million tonnes of grass pellets in north
America. We can only produce about 5 million tonnes of wood residues pellets
if the industry was fully developed in NA.     

The future is in multifuel burning stoves for residential applications. The
commercial fuel pellet market is the way to start off the grass pellet
industry. It can prevent a massive transition to corn heating if natural gas
prices continue to climb.  

Roger 



-----Original Message-----
From: bioconversion-bounces at listserv.repp.org
[mailto:bioconversion-bounces at listserv.repp.org] On Behalf Of Jeff Davis
Sent: Saturday, September 23, 2006 9:35 PM
To: bioconversion at listserv.repp.org
Subject: [Bioconversion] Corn or Waste Wood?

Dear List,

In the area that I live in people are purchasing corn (food) stoves over
wood pellet (waste) stove because the corn is cheaper than the wood
pellets!

What's up with that?


Jeff


-- 
Jeff Davis

Some where 20 miles south of Lake Erie, USA

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