D1 Oils faces criticism over 'miracle' jatropha

Peter Stiff

One of Britain’s leading biofuels companies is facing criticism for
encouraging the growth of jatropha â€" a toxic weed that produces seeds
that can be refined into biodiesel â€" in developing countries.

The oil major BP has a joint venture with D1 Oils to plant up to a
million hectares of the crop over the next four years. But critics say
that planting targets are unrealistic and that yields are not good
enough for commercial use.

“They are very optimistic about yields that they are not realising,”
Raymond Jongschaap, of the plant sciences group at Wageningen
University, in the Netherlands, said. “They still believe jatropha is
a miracle plant, but it is much more of a local crop used to boost
rural developments rather than for large commercial plantations around
the world.”

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