December 14, 2007

Oilseed crops in Nebraska just plain make sense.

The oil-producing seeds of crops like sunflower, canola and camelina not only produce oil for human consumption, but can be used for producing biofuels and byproducts for livestock. In the Panhandle, the crops provide an alternative crop in wheat rotations, helping diversify production, said Bill Booker, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension educator in Box Butte County.

"That's what got us through these tough times," Booker said. "These crops can help us continue to do that."Remaining diversified improves sustainability for the farming economy.

In addition, a crusher plant to process the seeds would bring economic development in rural communities, said Loren Isom, technical coordinator for UNL's Industrial Agricultural Products Center.

"If enough producers collaborate, they could develop a local crushing market for several communities across Nebraska," he said.

Booker and Isom hope to educate producers about the benefits of planting these oilseed crops.

Sunflowers are a common alternative crop in Nebraska, Booker said. Canola and camelina are not as common and are being researched now at the Panhandle Research and Extension Center at Scottsbluff for adoption to Nebraska's climate. Sunflower and canola produce two to two-and-a-half times more oil per acre than soybeans. Regular soybean oil is 85% of the vegetable oil market. However, to make soybean oil a stable cooking oil, it must go through a process called hydrogenation. This creates transfats which raise bad cholesterol, or LDL, and lower the good, or HDL.

NuSun, or mid-oleic sunflower oil, and low linolenic soybean oil are naturally stable and can be used extensively without being hydrogenated. In addition, NuSun sunflower oil has a longer shelf life. Frito Lay eliminated its transfats and drastically lowered saturated fats using NuSun sunflower oil.

"That is why there is such a huge demand right now for sunflower oil," Booker said. "Its difficult to find sunflower oil as a cooking oil in the stores right now."

This demand also has raised sunflower prices, making it an even more viable alternative crop option.

"Sunflowers have been grown for a long time in Kansas and South Dakota, so there is no reason why we shouldn't be able to grow these crops in Nebraska," Booker said.

Booker said with better production knowledge sunflowers are now easier to raise.

"Hybrids are so advanced," he said. "The hybrid selections withstand rust and diseases so much better now." When it comes to production costs, most producers already have the equipment to plant these crops. They can be grown with traditional planting and harvest equipment. However, Booker and Isom agreed that the state does face some limiting factors when it comes to oilseed production, mainly processing and transportation. Also, producers typically do not understand the revenue potential of oilseed crops and stick with traditional corn/soybean rotations.

Potential yields of irrigated sunflowers could reach 3,000 to even 4,000 pounds per acre. At current and new crop prices of 20 plus cents per pound, the return is high, Booker said.

"This may not have the revenue potential of corn, but production costs are less with sunflowers," he said. They also use less water than corn.

A local crusher plant could offer producers a premium for oil content above 40%, and it could also recognize savings in transportation costs. There are two new crushing plants being built in Nebraska — one in Arapahoe and one in Scribner — that are both interested in sunflowers. Additional markets for these types of vegetable oils are biodiesel plants in Gering, Scribner, Beatrice and under development in Araphaoe.

Other crusher plants in Nebraska have been dedicated to soybeans. The existing soybean processing facilities are located in Hastings, Lincoln, Fremont, West Point and Bruning.

For more information about growing oilseed crops or for upcoming extension meetings about oilseed crops, contact Isom at (402) 472-8187 or Booker at (308) 762-5616.

For more information about growing oilseed crops, consult Extension Circular EC838, Alternative Crop Budgets and Decision Making, the High Plains Sunflower Production Handbook (PDF 1.MB), or the Great Plains Canola Production Handbook (PDF 1.9 MB). These publications are also available by contacting a local UNL Extension office.

Sandi Alswager Karstens
IANR News Service