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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 might grow on abject lands throughout Latin America, Africa and Asia.
A jatropha rush took place, with more than 900,000 hectares (2.2 million acres) planted by 2008. But the bubble burst. Low yields resulted in plantation failures nearly all over. The consequences of the jatropha crash was tainted by accusations of land grabbing, mismanagement, and overblown carbon decrease claims.
Today, some scientists continue pursuing the incredibly elusive pledge of high-yielding jatropha. A return, they say, is dependent on splitting the yield issue and attending to the hazardous land-use issues intertwined with its initial failure.
The sole staying large jatropha plantation is in Ghana. The plantation owner declares high-yield domesticated ranges have been achieved and a new boom is at hand. But even if this resurgence fails, the world’s experience of jatropha holds crucial lessons for any appealing up-and-coming biofuel.
At the start of the 21st century, Jatropha curcas, a simple shrub-like tree native to Central America, was planted throughout the world. The rush to jatropha was driven by its pledge as a sustainable source of biofuel that might be grown on broken down, unfertile lands so as not to displace food crops. But inflated claims of high yields failed.

Now, after years of research and advancement, the sole remaining big 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, embraced a plug-and-play design of searching for the wild varieties of jatropha. But to advertise it, you need to domesticate it. This belongs of the process that was missed [throughout the boom],” jOil CEO Vasanth Subramanian informed Mongabay in an interview.

Having discovered from the errors of past failures, he says the oily plant might yet play a crucial role as a liquid biofuel feedstock, lowering transport carbon emissions at the worldwide level. A brand-new boom could bring extra benefits, with jatropha also a potential source of fertilizers and even bioplastics.

But some scientists are skeptical, keeping in mind that jatropha has actually already gone through one hype-and-fizzle cycle. They warn that if the plant is to reach complete capacity, then it is necessary to gain from past errors. During the first boom, jatropha plantations were hindered not just by poor yields, however by land grabbing, logging, and social problems in nations where it was planted, including Ghana, where jOil operates.

Experts also recommend that jatropha’s tale provides lessons for researchers and business owners exploring promising brand-new sources for liquid biofuels - which exist aplenty.

Miracle shrub, major bust

Jatropha’s early 21st-century appeal stemmed from its guarantee as a “second-generation” biofuel, which are sourced from turfs, trees and other plants not derived from edible crops such as maize, soy or oil palm. Among its numerous purported virtues was an ability to prosper on degraded or “minimal” lands