>Hello; > >Good point about third world... > >I can see the time when bio diesel will be marketed as >a 'super' fuel and will priced accordingly--simple >marketing dynamics. The only ones who will be able to >afford it will be the very poor through aid programs >or the well-to-do. > >I base this on my belief that raw fuel stocks such as >WVO will become commodities-especially by the bigger >chains McDonald'scDonalds-that can improve the >profitability of restaurants. > >Oil is big business and when its demise comes bio >diesel will be big business. My advise to the small >producers is enjoy the present and be prepared to be >eaten by the sharks( via buy outs or other less >pleasant means). > >Best Regards > >Alex Landels
Lots been written here about the potential of local-niche production and much besides. There are many local-type scenarios where the big guys won't be able to compete, not just on a price basis, there are often other factors at work. Growth in at least some of these areas is already quite rapid. On-farm production, especially from integrated farms rather than monocroppers, is another such case, also growing rapidly. Costs can be essentially zero, and direct costs aside, on-farm economics will tend to keep outside stuff outside, no benefit. It doesn't just depend on WVO availability, though that's a few billion gallons a year in the US. In most industrialized countries collection levels are about 10%. It's unlikely to be optimized, no matter how valuable it gets or how much the Big Guys might be after it, unless collection starts at the local level, at point of production. This applies to virtually all waste recycling. And it leaves plenty of scope for small-scale operators and DIYers who're also working at that level. Take a closer look at some of the things in Mark's post about local-level initiatives. Much also been written about Big Biodiesel, and people expecting to be brushed aside when the time comes. There could already be too much local stuff going on for that to happen quite so easily. If the sharks come too close they could get torn to pieces by piranhas. For a comparison, local farmers' markets and CSAs are growing apace, and there's absolutely nothing that big agribiz interests can do about it, much as I'm sure they'd like to. The USDA organic standards a few posts have mentioned were such an attempt, but very many real organic farms have simply opted out and continue dealing with their local markets without any problems. This is also capitalism at work, you know - more so than big, centralized corporatism is, and it's more American anyway. Best Keith Biofuels at Journey to Forever http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Biofuel at WebConX http://webconx.green-trust.org/2000/biofuel/biofuel.htm List messages are archived at the Info-Archive at NNYTech: http://archive.nnytech.net/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
