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Earlier this century, jatropha was hailed as a “wonder” biofuel. A simple shrubby tree belonging to Central America, it was extremely promoted as a high-yielding, drought-tolerant biofuel feedstock that could grow on degraded lands across Latin America, Africa and Asia.
A jatropha curcas rush ensued, with more than 900,000 hectares (2.2 million acres) planted by 2008. But the bubble burst. Low yields led to plantation failures almost all over. The after-effects of the jatropha crash was tainted by accusations of land grabbing, mismanagement, and overblown carbon reduction claims.
Today, some researchers continue pursuing the incredibly elusive guarantee of high-yielding jatropha. A return, they say, is dependent on splitting the yield issue and dealing with the damaging land-use issues intertwined with its original failure.
The sole staying big jatropha plantation is in Ghana. The plantation owner claims high-yield domesticated ranges have actually been accomplished and a brand-new boom is at hand. But even if this comeback fails, the world’s experience of jatropha holds essential lessons for any promising up-and-coming biofuel.
At the beginning of the 21st century, Jatropha curcas, an unassuming shrub-like tree native to Central America, was planted throughout the world. The rush to jatropha was driven by its guarantee as a sustainable source of biofuel that could be grown on deteriorated, unfertile lands so as not to displace food crops. But inflated claims of high yields failed.

Now, after years of research and development, the sole staying large plantation focused on growing jatropha remains in Ghana. And Singapore-based jOil, which owns that plantation, claims the jatropha resurgence is on.

“All those companies that stopped working, adopted a plug-and-play design of scouting for the wild ranges of jatropha. But to commercialize it, you need to domesticate it. This belongs of the process that was missed out on [during the boom],” jOil CEO Vasanth Subramanian told Mongabay in an interview.

Having learned from the mistakes of jatropha’s previous failures, he says the oily plant could yet play a key role as a liquid biofuel feedstock, lowering transport carbon emissions at the global level. A new boom could bring additional advantages, with jatropha likewise a potential source of fertilizers and even bioplastics.

But some researchers are hesitant, keeping in mind that jatropha has already gone through one hype-and-fizzle cycle. They caution that if the plant is to reach complete capacity, then it is necessary to gain from previous errors. During the very first boom, jatropha plantations were obstructed not only by bad yields, but by land grabbing, deforestation, and social issues in nations where it was planted, consisting of Ghana, where jOil runs.

Experts also recommend that jatropha’s tale uses lessons for scientists and entrepreneurs exploring appealing brand-new sources for liquid biofuels - which exist aplenty.

Miracle shrub, major bust

Jatropha’s early 21st-century appeal came from its pledge as a “second-generation” biofuel, which are sourced from lawns, trees and other plants not derived from edible crops such as maize, soy or oil palm. Among its multiple purported virtues was a capability to thrive on abject or “limited” lands