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Soybean Growers Seek New Use for their Crop

Posted on: Thursday, 27 November 2003, 06:00 CST

By BETSY TAYLOR

MARYLAND HEIGHTS, Mo. (AP) -- Warren Stemme's family has grown soybeans and other crops in the river bottoms outside St. Louis since 1869, when his great-grandfather emigrated from Germany.

Stemme planted about 1,200 acres this year, striking deals to rent from some 20 owners, in an area feeling increasing pressure from housing and business development. And sprawl isn't his only concern - he's also worried about foreign competitors.

For the first time, South America muscled past the United States in soybean production, harvesting 3.3 billion bushels last year.

"It's a huge concern," Stemme said. "There's a whole bunch of issues relating to that. How do we compete with them?"

One way, Stemme said, is finding new markets for soybeans and experimenting to find new uses.

Soy foods, like tofu and soymilk, are already a staple on supermarket shelves, but a Missouri brewer introduced a beer made with soy this year; a California company has been using soy in hair products; many farmers and some other consumers use biodiesel with soy in it to power vehicles or equipment; and an Iowa farmer's wife has created a business, one of dozens like it, selling soy candles in scents such as Chocolate Covered Cherries and Grandma's Baking.

Not every effort has made it to the marketplace. Attempts to make parts of sneakers out of soybean-derived materials haven't paid off yet - though a researcher says it's not out of the question.

Eric Niemann, chairman for the United Soybean Board's New Uses Committee, said work on new products falls into five categories: lubricants, plastics, coatings and inks, adhesives and other products.

The Nortonville, Kan., farmer said consumers may be using goods with soybeans in them and not even be aware of it. For instance, certain spray foam insulations, furniture padding and carpet backings contain soybeans, he said. Roughly 90 percent of American daily newspapers use some soy ink in their production, according to the United Soybean Board.

"Each niche market doesn't use a lot of soy, but it adds up," said Niemann.

Most soybeans are turned into soy meal, a feed source for livestock, and soy oil, sold in vegetable oils or used in industrial products, the national board noted.

Farmers like Stemme help support research into new uses with their crop sales. He uses biodiesel, a type of fuel that includes soy, on his farm. And, he explained, one half of 1 percent of every bushel sold is directed into research and promotion of soybeans through a national initiative known as the checkoff program.

Eighty percent soy biodiesel fuel in seen offered for sale at a Conoco gas station in Jefferson City, Mo., Nov. 11, 2003. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson, File)

And there are other products being created.

Pony Express Brewing Company, based in the western Missouri community of Garden City, is making beer with soybeans, promoting it as having a high protein level.

Soy also shows up in Sexy Hair Concepts, based in Chatsworth, Calif., which has been selling hair care products with soy since 1999. The company now distributes to more than 60,000 salons nationwide.

Melanie Throne, 35, of Scarville, Iowa, makes SoyLights, candles made with soy wax on her family's farm. The mother of five said she started the business with the goal of paying the grocery bill, but has surpassed her own expectation.

"It burns cleanly," she said of soy wax, "and there's not a lot of soot." Throne said more and more farmers are looking into similar businesses. "It's happening in Iowa. I'm talking to people on the East and West coasts who have never heard of soy candles."

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On the Net:

United Soybean Board

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