University News
IIRA to Sponsor Oilseed Biofuels Field Day July 30
July 21, 2010
MACOMB, IL -- Holst Farms of Augusta (IL), in conjunction with the Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs (IIRA) at Western Illinois University, will hold a farm-scale biofuels field day from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Friday, July 30 (at Holst Farms). Informational displays will be presented on sunflower and canola oilseed cropping systems, on-farm oil processing and on-farm use of straight vegetable oil as a fuel. Holsts' Flower Creek Farm hydroponic tomato-production business will also be featured. Tours of the oilseed-crushing facility, double-crop sunflower field and Flower Creek greenhouse are planned. Lunch will be served at no cost to attendees.
"The Holsts have been double cropping sunflowers after their winter wheat crop and crushing the seed into oil for four years," explained Fred Iutzi, program manager of the Illinois Value-Added Sustainable Development Center at IIRA. "They blend this 'straight vegetable oil' fuel into petroleum diesel in their late-model tractors and trucks. As a result, they have displaced around a third of their diesel usage. This is a great example of using resources and know-how available on the farm to decrease costs, increase profits and replace petroleum with a homegrown alternative."
The field day is sponsored by IIRA through a grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Lunch is sponsored by Mycogen Seeds.
This event is open free to the public. Preregistration is not required, but individuals are asked to contact Luke Holst at (217) 430-3945 or LH-Holst@wiu.edu if planning to bring a large group.
The Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs (IIRA) was created in 1989 to help community leaders find ways to improve the quality of life in rural areas based on research, education and technical assistance initiatives. It is funded with state, federal and private support. Information about IIRA and its programs is available at www.iira.org.
For more information, contact Iutzi at (800) 526-9943. More information about the llinois Value-Added Sustainable Development Center at IIRA is available at www.value-added.org.
Directions
From Macomb: Take IL 336 west 12 miles. Turn left on IL 61 South and travel 14 miles toward Augusta. Turn right onto IL 61 S (Main Street) and travel approximately 1.8 miles to Holst Farms on right (north) side of IL 61. Holst Farms is the second farm on the right side of the road. Look for three blue grain bins and a large grain-storage system.
From Quincy: Take IL 72 N toward Mt. Sterling/Keokuk (IL-336N) 25 miles. Turn right onto IL 94 S toward Bowen 4 miles. Turn left onto IL 61 North in Bowen. Travel approximately 4 miles on IL 61 N and arrive at Holst Farms on the left side of road. Look for three blue grain bins and a large grain-storage system.
Posted By: University Communications (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
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