Premium ContentMouse over Home then click on Premium Content for information.WASHINGTON — The federal government announced a renewed push Tuesday to purchase more bio-based products, a move that could boost ethanol plants and other bio-based companies that fuel rural economic development.
The 2002 farm bill established requirements that federal agencies give preference to bio-based products when they shop for certain products.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture maintains a list of products certified as bio-based, such as cleaning supplies, inks, sealants, paints, lubricants, hydraulic fluids, grease, even personal care items.
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced Tuesday that President Barack Obama had directed him to expand the categories of bio-based products from 64 to 89 this year and to increase it by 20 more in coming years.
Vilsack said that will result in doubling the 9,000 products now in the portfolio of products.
He cited an Iowa State University report that more than 3,000 companies, many in rural America, are now producing about 20,000 bio-based products and employing nearly 100,000 people.
Expanding government purchases of the products will mean more market share for those companies, which will translate into more opportunities for farmers to sell what they grow, he said.
"We need to do a better job of accelerating the number of products as they come on line, and we need to do a better job of encouraging the federal agencies to use their purchasing power to help this industry," Vilsack said.
An increase in federal purchases of bio-based products could be particularly helpful to ethanol plants, which are seeking ways to diversify their businesses. Byproducts from ethanol production can be used in various products, including plastics.
"We're seeing a number of examples of the ethanol producers realizing that they can do more with the raw material, and they're seeing opportunities for that, so I think this provides an important backstop ... that could help with that process," said Todd Sneller, administrator of the Nebraska Ethanol Board.
Having a signed contract in hand to provide the federal government with a number of units over a certain period of time can help a plant obtain financial backing for expansions, Sneller said.
Tuesday's announcement sounded good to Marybeth Gardam, owner of EarthStuf Inc. in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, which produces packing material made from recycled cardboard.
She said her company tried for years to get its products into the bio-based designation but abandoned the effort because it was too expensive. She said her products would gain widespread acceptance if the military or major federal agencies began buying them.
"I'm hopeful that this will open more doors for companies like mine," she said.
Sneller said the government needs to follow through on its big talk, however, saying that compliance with past requirements has been a problem.
Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, who wrote the bio-preferred requirement into the 2002 law, praised Tuesday's announcement but echoed the concern that it must be enforced.
"Frankly, the federal government has lagged in buying and using bio-based products when it ought to be the leader setting a strong example for the nation," Harkin said.
Contact the writer:
202-630-4823, joe.morton@owh.com
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