USB finds that US soybean data nine years out of date...

BiofuelsDigest.com
February 09, 2010 Jim Lane

...study provides updates with material changes in lifecycle analysis

In Missouri, the United Soybean Board (released a new peer-reviewed life cycle profile conducted by Omni Tech International. Currently, data included in the Department of Energy’s U.S. Life Cycle Inventory is based on three years, 1998 to 2001. The project aimed to incorporate date from 2001-2007.

Key findings: The average soybean yield for 2004-2007 was 42.3 bushels per acre. This represents a 12 percent increase over the data (1998-2000 average) used in the current U.S. LCI database. The release of nitrous oxide (N2O), a greenhouse gas, is 85% less than the data contained in the current U.S. LCI Database. The updated data also show approximately 20% less direct energy used in soybean farming due to reduced diesel and gasoline usage, a 45% energy reduction by soybean processing centers and a 27 percent energy use reduction by biodiesel processing centers.

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