Eric Woodford Woodf W o oodf rd r Cu sto t m, Inc. 1

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1 Eric Woodford Woodford Custom, Inc. 1

2 Woodford Custom, Inc. Twelve years professional baling Located in Southwest Minnesota Hay & grain production Focused on the future biomass collection industry 2

3 Residue Crops What s leftover in a field after removing a crop, such as: Crop Million Acres Grown in 2007 Source: National Agriculture Statistics Service Corn 93 Soybean 64 Wheat 60.5 Cotton 10.8 Barley 4 Peanuts 2.8 Rice 2.7 Sugarcane 0.9 3

4 Of these residue crops, corn stover has the greatest potential for fuel production because of the large amount of residue it produces and because of the large number of acres grown. But, other residue crops, such as wheat straw and soybean straw, may play important roles. 4

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6 Pros of Harvesting Residue Crops Abundant. The 8 leading US crops produce more than 500 million tons of crop residue each year. Renewable. Grown new again every year. Residue is existing, no need to change current crop rotations. New economic opportunities for rural America. Farmers, ethanol plants, coops, communities, etc. 6

7 Cons of Harvesting Residue Crops Loss of protection from erosion. Loss of available soil nutrients & organic matter. The above cons can be somewhat resolved through conservation practices such as no till and seeding in a cover crop. Most residue crops have a short harvest window (the time between when the grain is harvested and unfavorable weather condition such as snow, ice, rain) 7

8 Methods of Harvest Current technology Bale (round & square) Forage harvester Chop 8

9 Future Technology??? One pass harvester that can separate grain from stover Ideally: Separate components of stover into fraction streams: such as cobs, husks, stalks, etc. Be done wet or dry Produce various particle sizes Densify in the same pass Reduce number of passes across field One pass dry collection may be difficult to achieve Corn stalks need to be chopped and allowed to dry in the field before collection 9

10 CURRENT HARVEST RATES Tons harvested per hour with round balers CROP HIGH LOW MEAN CORN STOVER SOYBEAN STRAW WHEAT STRAW NATIVE GRASSES Assuming 90% field efficiency and average field conditions. 10

11 CORN STOVER PROS Abundant acreage High yields per acre CONS Difficult for less experienced operators to bale Causes a higher rate of wear on equipment Harvest window is shortest Requires crop shredding and raking 11

12 SMALL GRAIN STRAW PROS Easy to bale Easy to get a dry product Good harvest window No need to crop shred or rake CONS Yields can vary greatly depends on crops variety Acres low in some regions of Minnesota 12

13 SOYBEAN STRAW PROS Good harvest window Easy to get a dry product No need to crop shred or rake CONS Current varieties have lower yields per acre Causes a higher rate of wear on equipment 13

14 GRASSES PROS Widest harvest window Harvest operations may be during slow time Most practical for sustainable harvest CONS Usually rougher terrain causes more damage to equipment Requires mowing and raking Typically found on marginal and rocky soils Coordinating harvest with wildlife issues may be difficult 14

15 Economics of Baling Corn Stover Stalk chopping = $8.65/acre* Raking = $5.30/acre* Baling (round bales, net wrap, 1250 lbs) = $11.55/bale* Moving bales to field edge = $2.75/bale* Based on 5300 lbs of corn stover harvested per acre**, TOTAL = $29.52/ton harvest expense *Based on 2007 Iowa Farm Custom Rate Survey, average rate used **Minimum yield expected based on 12 years of Woodford Custom, Inc experience. 15

16 Corn Stover Nutrient Value Fall 2007 projected $/lb of actual nutrient Lbs of nutrient/ton of residue removed (based on local coop prices) (based on ISU formulas) Nutrient cost per ton of residue removed Nitrogen $ lbs $5.25 Phosphorus $ lbs $3.30 Potassium $ lbs $6.25 Total nutrient removal cost $14.80/ton 16

17 Farmer Compensation Nutrient value $14.80/ton Profit margin??? Normal harvest schedule interrupted Conservation concerns: water & wind erosion Soil Compaction 17

18 KEYS TO COLLECTING ENOUGH BIOMASS ANNUALLY Utilize multiple feedstocks Corn stover, soybean straw, wheat straw, grasses, ddi dedicated td energy crops, etc. Harvest over wide geographical area Dedicated staff and equipment Stagger planting dates and maturities to expand harvest window Select varieties with more biomass yield Select fields that are high yielding and larger in size 18

19 Summary Of all the residue crops, corn stover holds the most potential for being used as a fuel source, but wheat and soybean straw may also be valuable. Corn stover should be considered a stepping stone to move toward more sustainable crops, such as native grasses and dedicated energy crops. Although thereareexisting methods to collect residue crops, new technology needs to be explored to reduce expenses of harvesting biomass. 19

20 CONTACT INFORMATION Eric Woodford Woodford Custom, Inc Noble Avenue, Redwood dfalls, MN