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Earlier this century, jatropha was hailed as a “miracle” biofuel. An unassuming shrubby tree native to Central America, it was hugely promoted as a high-yielding, drought-tolerant biofuel feedstock that might grow on degraded lands across Latin America, Africa and Asia.
A jatropha rush occurred, 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 after-effects of the jatropha crash was tainted by allegations of land grabbing, mismanagement, and overblown carbon reduction claims.
Today, some scientists continue pursuing the evasive guarantee of high-yielding jatropha. A comeback, they state, is reliant on breaking the yield problem and attending to the damaging land-use concerns linked with its original failure.
The sole staying big jatropha plantation remains in Ghana. The plantation owner claims high-yield domesticated ranges have been achieved and a new boom is at hand. But even if this return falters, the world’s experience of jatropha holds important lessons for any appealing up-and-coming biofuel.
At the start of the 21st century, Jatropha curcas, a simple shrub-like tree belonging to Central America, was planted across the world. The rush to jatropha was driven by its pledge as a sustainable source of biofuel that might be grown on deteriorated, unfertile lands so as not to displace food crops. But inflated claims of high yields fell flat.

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

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

Having gained from the mistakes of jatropha’s previous failures, he says the oily plant could yet play an essential role as a liquid biofuel feedstock, minimizing transportation carbon emissions at the worldwide level. A brand-new boom could bring extra benefits, with jatropha likewise a possible source of fertilizers and even bioplastics.

But some researchers are hesitant, noting that jatropha has actually already gone through one hype-and-fizzle cycle. They warn that if the plant is to reach full capacity, then it is vital to gain from previous mistakes. During the very first boom, jatropha plantations were hindered not only by bad yields, however by land grabbing, logging, and social problems in nations where it was planted, including Ghana, where jOil runs.

Experts also recommend that jatropha’s tale uses lessons for researchers and business owners checking out appealing new sources for liquid biofuels - which exist aplenty.

Miracle shrub, significant bust

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