Climate-Smart Sorghum as a Sustainable Aviation Fuel

National Sorghum Producers Executive Director, Greg Ruehle says that they are approaching the two-year anniversary of being awarded a USDA climate smart grant for their climate smart sorghum program.

“The premise behind that program is to recognize producers who are implementing those climate-smart practices like reduced tillage and improved nitrogen management, crop conservation, crop rotations, those key principles of regenerative agriculture to reward them for implementing those practices. But the other piece of that that's really important is to identify that grain that's produced as a result of those regenerative practices. And to bring that as a low-carbon feedstock into biofuels production.”

Ruehle says NSP is working hard to set the stage for opportunities for the sorghum industry to contribute to sustainable aviation fuels.

“We continue to push forward on the grant. We continue to work with growers. Our target is 200 growers added to that program in 2024. We had a really good pilot year and 2023 just to sort of work the bugs out if you will. It's kind of like running a planter across the field a couple of times early in the season just to make sure that you got everything fine-tuned. We took the same approach with the Climate Smart Grant 2023 so aggressively working through the Sorghum Belt to sign up farmers for our Climate Smart Grant and 2024.”

Greg Ruehle with National Sorghum Producers.