The Crop

For centuries, Jatropha curcas, a non-edible, subtropical tree, has been recognized by indigenous cultures as a source for cooking and heating oil, and for its various medicinal properties. More recently, because of its numerous economic and sustainable attributes, it has been identified as one of the most viable feedstocks for the large-scale production of sustainable crude plant oil.

Jatropha currently grows best in a region known as 'The Jatropha Belt', located between 30°N and 35°S. This includes both tropical and subtropical areas of Central and South America, India, Africa and Southeast Asia. Within these regions, millions of acres of marginalized land exist with suitable amounts of rainfall and desirable soil conditions for the cultivation of Jatropha.

Once harvested, Jatropha's seeds are crushed and the resulting oil can be processed to produce high-quality biodiesel for a standard diesel engine (U.S. ASTM 6751 and E.U. EN14214 standards) or it can be used for other energy needs such as heating oil. Jatropha oil produced by SG Biofuels has been independently evaluated for its biodiesel qualities and verified to be a clean, stable source of fuel for biodiesel that meets or exceeds strict European specifications. It has also been validated as the preferred feedstock for bio jet fuel due to its oxidative stability and performance at cold temperatures.