ICRISTAT Collaborative Program Realizes Ethanol Production from Sweet Sorghum while Benefiting Farmers without Compromising Food Security

A joint public-private partnership between ICRISAT (International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics) and Rusni Distilleries in India has successfully produced ethanol from sweet sorghum with the benefit of providing additional income to “resource-poor farmers from the drylands”.  “Sweet sorghum ethanol” is now being produced at a distillery in Mohammed Shapur village in Andhra Pradesh, India.  Dr. William Dar, ICRISAT Director General, says that the project successfully blends (1) ICRISAT's scientific capability in developing sweet sorghum varieties with higher juice availability, (2) the entrepreneurial capability of Rusni Distilleries, and (3) the effective linkage with the dryland farmers through the grass-roots networking strength” of partners like the Aakrithi Agricultural Associates of India (AAI).  Under the program, the farmers (previously identified in village clusters) are given the sweet sorghum varieties for planting.  Mechanisms are also in place to allow farmers to take their sweet sorghum stalk harvest to cluster centers where the stalks are crushed to extract the juice, converted into syrup, and then transported to Rusni Distilleries for ethanol production. According to ICRISAT, an additional source of income is provided to the farmers, while “they do not lose out on food security”. The stalks are processed into ethanol, while the grains can be used for food.

More information:
ICRISAT Brochure, “Sweet Sorghum: Food, Feed, Fodder and Fuel Crop” (in pdf)
http://www.icrisat.org/Biopower/BVSReddyetalSweetSorghumBrochureJan2007.pdf
Related article, “ICRISAT sorghum for ethanol now a sweet reality”
http://www.icrisat.org/Media/2006/media20.htm