Michigan's largest soybean producer, Zeeland Farm Services, will use a $1.1 million award from the 21st Century Jobs Fund to build a pilot plant used to make new products from soybean oil.
Zeeland Farm Services is using a process developed by scientists from Michigan State University and BioPlastic Polymers and Composites to make soybean oil into better forms of motor oil, biodiesel and lubricants than currently exist.
The award came out this week as a second-wave of companies and researchers were granted money from the state's $2 billion high-tech commercialization fund. The state announced the first group of 61 awardees on Sept. 6. It announced 24 more on Monday.
The hope is that the soybean oil can be turned into viable alternatives to petroleum-based products. If the products produced at the pilot plant are viable, Zeeland is planning a full-scale production facility.
Source: Robb Meeuwsen, Zeeland Farm Services; Michigan Economic Development Corp.
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