USDA announces $10m grants for research in bioenergy production

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) will offer a $10m grant towards bioenergy research initiatives through the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA).

The grands will be awarded under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) and will promote the production of bioenergy and other biobased products.

The Michigan State University is among the institutions awarded a research grant, through which AFRI intends to expand regional systems for the production of sustainable bioenergy compatible with existing agricultural systems.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack spoke remarked that the use bio-based products in automobile manufacturing had increased, however, a large number of automobiles were outside the scope of bioproducts use.

"USDA and President Obama are committed to producing clean energy right here at home, to not only break our dependence on foreign oil, but also boost rural economies," Vilsack remarked.

Vilsack further added that the selected projects will provide scientific information to support biofuel production and create co-products to improve the overall value of a biobased economy.

"Today, with a strong and diversified U.S. agricultural sector, the American automobile industry has a greater incentive for expanding use of biobased products while supporting good-paying jobs here in the United States," Vilsack said.

The research projects aim to execute sustainable regional systems over the long-term to supply transportation biofuels and advance the goal achieving 36 billion gallons of biofuels a year by 2022.