New Energy Farms (NEF) has established an agreement with Performance Plants Inc. to commercialize new high yielding elite clones of Miscanthus energy crop. NEF have been evaluating new clones of Performance Plants’ Miscanthus to identify those with specific yield and quality characteristics that have commercial applications in the near term to meet the requirements of end users of the next 2-3 years. Already, interesting clones have been identified with improved yield and growth characteristics. Clones of interest are being bulked up and taken to market volumes with NEF’s proprietary propagation technology, with market expansion delivered via the IT system developed jointly between NEF and Muddy Boots. The clones developed are vegetative and sterile, to allow easy establishment and utilization.

NEF are using this model to bring a pipeline of new cultivars of energy crops to market from a range of genetics providers, delivering this rapidly with a secure means of generating onward royalty payments for plant breeders.

NEF supplies products and services to customers developing or operating biomass conversion facilities. These customers are typically utility or development companies who generate renewable electricity, heat, road fuels or industrial materials, using plant biomass as raw material. The crops supplied by NEF are energy crops; these have been specifically developed to produce fuel and industrial products not food. They are high yielding perennials; growing for over 10 years without replanting, that produce large volumes of clean biomass feedstock with a low energy and environmental footprint. The production of this feedstock can occur on lower quality or surplus land and consequently does not impact on food production. Studies in the EU and US have identified over 30 m Ha of land (75m Acres) is available for production of these crops without influencing food production.

Performance Plants Inc. is a global leader in discovery and development of second-generation agricultural biotechnologies. The company’s patented technologies enhance plant productivity (including seed yield and plant biomass) and weatherproof food and non-food biofuel crops through periods of drought and heat stresses resulting in a more abundant, consistent and cost-effective harvests for farmers. The company has a robust gene discovery and technology evaluation pipeline, and has licensed multiple breakthrough technologies to many worlds’ leading seed companies. The privately-held Canadian company is headquartered with R&D facilities in Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

Download PDF