Heitkamp, North Dakota Entrepreneurs Discuss Importance of Innovative Biobased Products

Press Release

At a Senate Agriculture hearing today, U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp touted the success of North Dakota's bio-based manufacturers and highlighted provisions in the 2014 Farm Bill that will advance the state of technologies to increase the use of agricultural products to manufacture every-day goods, such as soap, plastic and fabric.

At an event right after the hearing, Bismarck-based Earth-Kind, Inc. CEO Kari Warberg-Block and other biobased innovators from around the country provided firsthand perspectives on the economic and environmental opportunities that biobased manufacturing provides. Heitkamp invited Earth-Kind, which produces the organic rodent repellent and air fresheners, to participate. Ultra Green, a disposable food package company which has a production plant in Devils Lake, also participated.

"North Dakotans are leading the way in using natural agriculture products to manufacture high-quality items Americans use every day. Today was an opportunity to highlight our success, and help other manufactures see the tremendous benefits biobased manufacturing provides," said Heitkamp. "It is projected that more than 100,000 American jobs can be created through this industry. Building off the policies we were successful in including in the Farm Bill, we can make sure that this industry lives up to its potential."

Bio-based processes substitute agriculture crops like soybeans, corn and wheat for use in manufactured goods as alternatives to petroleum. These bio-based processes can be used to make cleaning products, soaps, insulation, plastics, and fabrics-products Americans buy every day. As of 2012, bio-based products represented 4 percent of the market for the plastic and chemical industries. Recent U.S. Department of Agriculture analysis puts the potential market share of bio-based plastic and chemical products in excess of 20 percent by 2025 with adequate federal policy support. Studies show that if the 20 percent threshold is realized, it would create over 100,000 American jobs.

Heitkamp supported several provisions in the 2014 Farm Bill that help spur bio-based manufacturing innovation. These include: grants and loans to manufacturers, preference for bio-based products when the government makes purchases, and U.S. Department of Agriculture certification and labeling for qualifying products to increase consumer recognition of bio-based products.

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