Allison Barker
March 2, 2017
Monks, Kieron. "Africa's New Biofuel Literally Grows on Trees." CNN. Cable News Network, 4 Jan. 2017. Web. 28 Feb. 2017. <http://www.cnn.com/2016/12/28/africa/croton-nuts-biofuel-aes/index.html>.
Biofuel production in Africa has long been a difficult and controversial issue. The jatropha crop, one popular solution, caused the waste of immense amounts of both money and land, and another solution, palm oil, is associated with both human rights violations and danger to the environment. However, an alternative solution now seems almost perfect. The Croton megalocarpus tree is common throughout East and Central Africa, and the nuts of the tree, which had previously only been used for firewood, contain high concentrations of oil and protein, which scientists can use to make a fuel that is a clean alternative to diesel. Croton nuts are abundant and cheap, making them a great energy source. In 2012, Alan Paul established Eco Fuels Kenya to explore croton after early data showed promising uses for the nut. At first, the business operated on a low budget in order to avoid a high-profile failure like that of jatropha. EFK Managing Director Myles Katz describes, “(Paul) said we can grow organically by sourcing what is already there from one of the most common trees… We can buy nuts from farmers so they get an income and we have a business model that does not require $10 million of funding and a big plantation to get off the ground.” In order to attract local farmers and entrepreneurs, EFK put out radio ads. Suppliers, who had previously thought their croton trees were useless, were eager to sell the nuts. For this reason, EFK has been able to double production each year, making 1,000 tons of nuts this year after producing 500 in 2015. The company has not planted a single tree, but is instead only using the nuts it is provided with. Croton oil production is low-tech and low-energy when compared with traditional oil products, and Katz describes the process as “comparable to any other nut or oil pressing facility.” The business provides fuel primarily to local businesses that run generators and also sells by-products of the nuts, including seedcake to use as poultry feed and organic fertilizer from the shells. Because many do not trust biofuels, the fact that the company sells other things provides insurance to potential investors. Although the company stays local, it is planning on expanding into Tanzania and on planting its own trees in an “orchard model,” which will allow the company to test how many croton nuts they can get the trees to produce. Dr. Gerald Kafuku, research officer at the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology, believes that the only thing keeping croton back from the mainstream is a lack of funding for research and development. He argues that “croton is one of the most promising sources of biofuel,” which many agree with.
The development of croton as a possible biofuel alternative to the current options available is incredibly important to the world as a whole, and especially to areas such as Africa, whcre much environmental degradation has occurred as a result of the search for biofuel. Croton is already grown en masse, and it is usually wasted, so the use of croton oil would provide the world with an energy alternative that is efficient, effective, and abundant. This would help both the environment and economy, as oil and other fuels would become less popular.
Overall, I very much appreciated this article, as I had never heard about croton nuts or their possible use as biofuel. I liked that the author included many quotes and spoke a lot about the main company’s business model. I would have liked the author to write a little bit more about the downfalls of the biofuel alternatives and even to include statistics. Despite these lacking areas, this article was both comprehensive and comprehensible, and I learned a lot from it.
I read the review of and the article “Africa's New Biofuel Literally Grows on Trees.” by CNN and I found it very interesting and educating. I like how the authors of both the review and article explain how complicated and difficult the biofuel production in Africa has been in the past, it really lays a history before talking about the main focus, giving the reader background information. Also, I like how the author mentioned the solution used in Africa to produce biofuel and then introduced the new solution, comparing them and explaining how much better and efficient the newer one is. Lastly, I liked how the author gave statistics on the amount of funding it takes for the new system and the different amounts of production before and after the new system. As you can see, there are many positive aspects in this article, which only make it that more interesting to read.
ReplyDeleteAlthough there are many good aspects, there are also negative aspects. First, I did not like how the author did not talk a lot about the downfalls or cons of this new system, she only talked about the pros. Also, I did not like how the author did not include statistics concerning the new system, it would have convinced the reader more towards the better choice. Even though there are negative aspects, this article was both comprehensive and compelling.
I learned a lot from reading this article. First, I learned about the biofuel production in Africa, that the “jatropha crop” caused the waste of immense amounts of both money and land, and another solution, palm oil, is associated with both human rights violations and danger to the environment. Also, I learned about the use of croton nuts for biofuel, which I did not even know was possible. This article changed my view on society because the development of croton as a possible biofuel alternative to the current options available is incredibly important to the world as a whole, and especially to areas such as Africa, where much environmental degradation has occurred as a result of the search for biofuel. Overall, I really enjoyed reading this article and I look forward to learning more about this subject in the future.