Is Pressing SVO from Seeds Viable?
I’ve heard of people trying to grow their own crops, press their own oil and make their own fuel at a level where they can sustain their own fuel needs. However, in most cases, the people I have communicated with have attempted this on too small a scale to be viable.
This morning, I read about a farmer in NW Kansas that bought a Chinese-made screw press to experiment with making his own diesel fuel from sunflower seeds. Daniel McAmoil began his experiment in April of 2006 and began first by purchasing sunflower seeds on the open market until he was able to harvest his own crop for processing. McAmoil’s experiment was successful! To date, he has produced and used over 8,500 gallons of sunflower oil!
I have always been skeptical about growing my own fuel but McAmoil has shown that for landowners with more than a couple of acres of land, growing and pressing your own fuel from sunflowers is viable. It is so viable that McAmoil upgraded to a larger 10-ton screwpress in August of 2006.
If you would like more information about McAmoil’s research and process of making fuel, you can visit his website by clicking here.
- Veggie Ranger
