Contract signed to increase corn productivity at US ethanol plant

Plant and crop improvement business Syngenta has signed a contract with Arkalon Ethanol in Kansas for the plant to start using corn which features its Enogen trait technology.

Syngenta claims Enogen, a field-to-fuel system, will help deliver alpha amylase enzyme directly in corn grain thus saving the costs of adding liquid enzymes and improving process efficiency.

The way Syngenta explains the enzyme works is by helping an ethanol plant to reduce the viscosity of corn mash, resulting in ‘unprecedented levels of solids loading, thereby increasing ethanol yields and throughput, as well as saving critical costs from reduced natural gas, energy, water and chemical usage’.

‘In our research, we've seen no yield drag between our hybrids with the Enogen trait and commercial hybrids of the same isoline without the trait, so the premium paid to the grower is a true premium and can really make a difference in their bottom line,’ says head of Syngenta renewable fuels David Witherspoon.

It is believed Arkalon is contracting local corn farmers to produce and supply Enogen grain to its ethanol plant for 2014 at an average premium of $0.40 (€0.36) per bushel.