Switchgrass (pictured) for biofuels. Ceres's Blade is positioned as a premium seed brand for biofuel and biopower feedstocks Photo: US Govt/Wikipedia

The US-based energy crop company, Ceres, is to market its agricultural seeds and traits business, named Blade Energy Crops, in the US. Company president and chief executive officer Richard Hamilton unveiled the new brand at the BIO World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology in Chicago.

"Blade will be the first multi-crop seed brand supplying the new market for non-food, low-carbon biofuel feedstocks," Hamilton said. The strength of these crops lies in the fact they thrive on agricultural lands that are ill-suited to food production. They are grown specifically as raw materials for next-generation biofuels and biopower. Due to their ability to produce more fuel per acre than first-generation biofuel crops, they mitigate greenhouse gas emissions as they require fewer inputs and actually build new topsoil.

"Supported by the latest technology in genomics-based breeding, trait development and compositional analysis, we are positioning Blade as a premium seed brand for biofuel and biopower feedstocks," states Hamilton.

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Seed supplies for the first products, including, switchgrass cultivated specifically for biofuels, EG 1101 and EG 1102, as well as high-biomass types of sorghum, are in progress for spring 2009 sowing. Anna Rath, Ceres vice president of commercial development, says that feedstock supply is a primary concern for many biofuel producers as the industry moves from pilot-scale to demonstration and commercial-scale projects.

Further improvements are likely as breeders introduce new seed varieties and innovations in refining technology are commercialised. Presently, ethanol made from switchgrass produces 90% less greenhouse gas emissions than petroleum, and nearly five times more net energy than starch-based ethanol.

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