MOCCASIN — Camelina is a new crop being introduced in Montana with over 20,000 acres having been planted across the state.
“Camelina is a winter a winter annual crop that grows well, obviously here in Montana, but we're finding it widely adaptable across much of the United States,” noted Sustainable Oils President Mike Karst.
“It is an oil seed crop in the Brassicaceae family. So similar to canola, similar to, a mustard crop. And what we use it for is we press the oil out of this, and we convert that oil into renewable diesel fuel,” Karst continued.
Sustainable Oils has been awarded a $30 million grant by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to capture carbon and do research on camelina
“Well, that's one of the beauties of camelina is, is farmers are using all the same equipment they already have,” Karst told MTN. “They've got an air seeder that's doing, you know, eight, ten, 11-inch rows...whether it's a hoe, drill or disc doesn't matter. They are going to use a regular combine. We'll help them set those combines to get the maximum yield in the bin.”
The crop is being processed into renewable fuels and bringing much-needed financial gain to farmers and rural areas.
“I mean, as we stand right here -- we've got Windham right over here and we've got Stanford, Montana right down the road here. We're in the middle of Judith Basin,” Karts said. “If we think about Judith Basin County -- and if you think this area could conceivably grow 100,000 acres, that's $30 million revenue additional coming into this county every year.”
Camelina is growing and producing well in this Montana environment, and the project is bringing life back to fallow ground and rural communities.
