Hawaii Pure Plant Oil to supply jatropha oil to Pacific Biodiesel

In Hawaii, jatropha harvesting began last week at the Hawaii Pure Plant Oil (HIPPO) farm founded in 2008 by father and son partners Christian and James Twigg-Smith. HIPPO has planted a total of 200 acres of jatropha in the Puna district of Hawaii Island with the intent of harvesting its seeds and extracting the oil for biodiesel production. Now, five years after the farm’s inception, the Twigg-Smiths have formed a direct collaboration with Pacific Biodiesel Technologies under its federally funded Hawaii Military Biofuel Crop project. The project involves developing production models for jatropha and other crops to share with potential biofuel crop growers throughout the state.