Not a lot of carinata is grown in the Southeast right now, but that all could change as demand for producing energy from renewable feedstocks continues to grow.

Brassica carinata, also known as Ethiopian mustard, is a winter oilseed crop that is a leading renewable feedstock and is seen as a good fit for farmers across the Southeast.

Carinata is already being commercially produced in Florida, with efforts under way to expand production from Mississippi to Florida to North Carolina.

In fact, the Southeast Partnership for Advanced Renewables from Carinata (SPARC), a USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture funded public-private consortium, was established to conduct research on carinata across the Southeast.

The initiative brings together plant breeders, agronomists, plant physiologists and other crop scientists from the University of Florida, the University of Georgia, Auburn University, North Carolina State University, University of South Florida, Florida A&M University, Purdue University, Colorado State University and USDA-ARS.

At the Piedmont Small Grains Field Day, Dr. Carl Crozier, North Carolina State University Extension soil science specialist who is spearheading carinata research work in the state, explained that carinata is a second-generation biofuel crop that can be grown as an alternative winter crop across the Southeast.

He said the potential for carinata is good as demand for biofuels continues to grow.

“There is some concern that we are making fuel out of a food or feed crop like corn or soybeans, that it’s going to change the supply and demand for food. There is a new effort to try to have fuels produced from things that don’t displace food or feed crops,” Crozier said.

Crozier emphasized that carinata is not designed to replace winter wheat in  North Carolina. He said there is enough winter fallow land to produce both crops. Carinata is seen as a winter annual, with the idea it will fit well in a double-crop rotation

Crozier said estimates show the Southeast could produce at least 21 billion gallons of renewable fuels from carinata by 2022. Researchers  on the SPARC team across the area are looking at how much carinata can be produced for renewable fuel with other SPARC researchers looking at how easily carinata can be refined into renewable fuel, at a supply chain and overall industrial logistics for carinata. Still others are looking at agronomic practices for producing carinata across the Southeast.

Carinata is a non-food winter oilseed crop that can be grown on under-utilized winter land. It has high oil content with greater than 45 percent oil in the seed. Crozier noted the oil can be readily converted to specification-quality jet and diesel fuels.

In addition to being used for fuel, carinata can also be used as meal for cattle feed and for other products, such as bio-organic plastics. “If you have an oilseed crop you have meal, and there is value for that,” Crozier said.

A benefit of carinata as a winter crop is it can provide ground cover and work as a cover crop, compared to leaving the land fallow in the winter. “With carinata, we have erosion control. We’re actually fixing and storing carbon in the soil. Those things together are important components for being able to market carinata in certain parts of the world,” Crozier said.

At the Piedmont Research Station, Crozier and his team have both carinata variety tests and plant nutrition study plots planted. “We’re looking at quite a few aspects of the production environment,” Crozier said.

During the Piedmont field day, Crozier spoke in front of a variety test plot that was planted on Nov. 23, the Friday after Thanksgiving, which is considered late. An earlier November planting date is preferred. “We would like to plant carinata three to four week before the first frost. We weren’t able to do that last year with the logistics and weather,” Crozier said.

Carinata has a harvest date of late-May to early-June. Crozier said carinata will fit as a double-crop with soybeans. He also said carinata should work best in well-drained soils, such as in the Piedmont. However, he added, it isn’t as well suited for poorly drained lands, such as the Blacklands in northeastern North Carolina.

As for yields, Dr. Angela Post, North Carolina State University Extension small grains specialist who is also on the carinata research team, says farmers can expect yields in carinata on par with yields they receive with industrial rapeseed. She expects the Piedmont research plot to yield about 17 to 22 bushels per acre due to weather and planting challenges. She expects yields to be 35 to 40 bushels per acre in a decent weather year.

Crozier added that locations in Florida and Alabama have produced yields of 45 to 50 bushels per acre. He pointed out that there are spots in North Carolina which can hit that yield level, but those yields won’t be consistent all the time.

“This is an integrated project with all different type of faculty working on this crop and trying to find alternatives for you in the state This is one of those examples where we have a big team, not only researchers at North Carolina State, but across the whole Southeast, looking toward a new biofuel option across the Southeast,” Crozier told the field day crowd.