Several agencies have responded and have outlined how they are implementing the BioPreferred program into their procurement policies.  They include:

• Department of Defense
• Department of Education
• Department of Energy
• Department of the Interior
• Treasury Department

Purchases of biobased products are also cited as a way for government agencies to comply with President Obama’s Executive Order 13514 Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy and Economic Performance.

The use of biobased products positively impact climate change, energy/environmental security and economic development by:

• Helping to reduce the introduction of new fossil carbon into the atmosphere
• Replacing petroleum products, helping to increase U.S. energy and environmental security and independence
• Creating jobs by increasing demand for agricultural materials and by increasing new product development, manufacturing, and sales.

There are a wide variety of biobased products that are commercially available now, including lubricants, carpet backing, solvents, spray foam insulation, cleaners, and much more.  To help you find biobased products, the United Soybean Board has built an online library of information on this web site for government users on soy biobased products.

Read about furniture manufacturers who are using soybean oil in their furniture foam.

Click here for a listing of furniture and bedding companies that use soy-based foam in their products.

Furniture made with soy foam cushions

Plywood cabinets, paneling and more made with a soy bonding agent

DOE’s Solar Decathlon Homes

Every two years, colleges and universities from around the world compete in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon contest of cutting-edge energy efficiency and renewable energy innovation.  Teams from The Ohio State University, University of Kentucky and Virginia Tech extensively utilized decorative hardwood plywood that uses soy as a bonding agent in kitchen cabinets, wall paneling and more. An advantage of the soy product is that it does not emit harmful fumes from urea formaldehyde.  Learn more about its uses.

Carpet Backing

A soy polyol is used to make high performance polyurethane carpet backing systems, replacing a portion of the petroleum based polymers used in the backing.  The artificial turf industry uses this same soy polyol in backing for synthetic landscape grass and sports turf systems.   

According to Universal Textile Technologies, the company that works with the carpet and turf manufacturers to supply the finished product, there are many environmental benefits.  They include:

• Made of rapidly renewable and recycled materials – over 50% green by weight
• Manufactured with a secondary backing of 100% post-consumer recycled PET plastic
• Replaces over 90% of the petroleum-based polymers with bio-based polymer derived from domestically-grown soybeans
• Improves environmental air quality
• Makes a smaller footprint – carpets last longer so less end up in landfills.

Contact Information:

Doug Giles, Universal Textile Technologies, (706) 279-3801 x6104, douggiles@universaltextile.net

Case Studies

Georgia Association of Counties

Biobased Carpet Available for Residential Use

Diversity of Biobased Products Available

A wide-range of biobased products made from soybeans are commercially available today. These products help to increase America’s energy security and protect the environment.

Click here to ask your questions about the biobased products that are available to help you. You can also click on the types of biobased products below that you’re interested in learning more about in the future.

• fleets
• building construction or renovation
• cleaning
• home
• other

The USDA has identified at least 150 categories of biobased products available in the marketplace today. These products include biodiesel fuel, lubricants, a range of cleaning supplies, carpet backing, insulation, two-cycle engine oil and others. They can help reduce air and water pollution, the generation of hazardous waste and the use of potentially toxic substances. The 2002 and 2008 Farm Bills require the federal government to purchase biobased products.

If you manage or maintain vehicles, there are a number of commercially available biobased products for use in your operations. Many government agencies are now using biodiesel and other biobased products, and have found that they perform comparably, or better, than their petroleum counterparts.

The following are examples of products that could be used in vehicle fleets:

• Penetrating Lubricants – Biobased penetrating lubricants can be used to provide lubrication in various applications including frozen nuts and bolts, power tools, gears, valves, chains, and cables.
• Hand Cleaners & Wipes – Waterless biobased hand cleaners can be used in the shop to remove a variety of substances, including lube grease, engine oils, adhesives, tar, lacquers, paint, and ink from hands.
• Parts Cleaners/Degreasers – Biobased parts cleaning and washing fluids can be used for hand wiping, in dip tanks or parts washers to remove oils, carbon, and grease from a variety of vehicle and shop parts.
• Adhesive and Graffiti Removers – Biobased adhesive and graffiti removers can remove glues; sticker, decal and tape residue; gum, ink and crayon marks; tar; and graffiti from a variety of surfaces on and in vehicles.
• Glass Cleaners and Metal Cleaners – Biobased glass cleaners can be used to clean vehicle windshields and windows and metal cleaners can be used to clean vehicle wheels.
• Spill Absorbent – Biobased absorbents can be used to cleanup oil spills on shop floors.

Carpet, Furniture, Insulation and More…

But, soy biobased products reach far beyond fleet-related products. For example, soy is increasingly being used in the foam for furniture cushions and mattresses, as well as in carpet backing. There are also a number of building weatherization products that contain soy, such as spray foam insulation and roof coatings. These products have proven to be not only energy efficient, but cost effective as well.

For more information on soy biobased products visit, www.soybiobased.org. The United Soybean Board (USB) maintains an ongoing catalog of soy-based products and manufacturers as they become aware of them. The catalog can be accessed at, http://www.soynewuses.org/ProductsGuide/Default.aspx.

Sign up below to receive USB’s quarterly newsletter.

Diversity of Biobased Products Available

A wide-range of biobased products made from soybeans are commercially available today. These products help to increase America’s energy security and protect the environment.

Click here to ask your questions about the biobased products that are available to help you. You can also click on the types of biobased products below that you’re interested in learning more about in the future.

• fleets
• building construction or renovation
• cleaning
• home
• other

The USDA has identified at least 150 categories of biobased products available in the marketplace today. These products include biodiesel fuel, lubricants, a range of cleaning supplies, carpet backing, insulation, two-cycle engine oil and others. They can help reduce air and water pollution, the generation of hazardous waste and the use of potentially toxic substances. The 2002 and 2008 Farm Bills require the federal government to purchase biobased products.

If you manage or maintain vehicles, there are a number of commercially available biobased products for use in your operations. Many government agencies are now using biodiesel and other biobased products, and have found that they perform comparably, or better, than their petroleum counterparts.

The following are examples of products that could be used in vehicle fleets:

• Penetrating Lubricants – Biobased penetrating lubricants can be used to provide lubrication in various applications including frozen nuts and bolts, power tools, gears, valves, chains, and cables.
• Hand Cleaners & Wipes – Waterless biobased hand cleaners can be used in the shop to remove a variety of substances, including lube grease, engine oils, adhesives, tar, lacquers, paint, and ink from hands.
• Parts Cleaners/Degreasers – Biobased parts cleaning and washing fluids can be used for hand wiping, in dip tanks or parts washers to remove oils, carbon, and grease from a variety of vehicle and shop parts.
• Adhesive and Graffiti Removers – Biobased adhesive and graffiti removers can remove glues; sticker, decal and tape residue; gum, ink and crayon marks; tar; and graffiti from a variety of surfaces on and in vehicles.
• Glass Cleaners and Metal Cleaners – Biobased glass cleaners can be used to clean vehicle windshields and windows and metal cleaners can be used to clean vehicle wheels.
• Spill Absorbent – Biobased absorbents can be used to cleanup oil spills on shop floors.

Carpet, Furniture, Insulation and More…

But, soy biobased products reach far beyond fleet-related products. For example, soy is increasingly being used in the foam for furniture cushions and mattresses, as well as in carpet backing. There are also a number of building weatherization products that contain soy, such as spray foam insulation and roof coatings. These products have proven to be not only energy efficient, but cost effective as well.

For more information on soy biobased products visit, www.soybiobased.org. The United Soybean Board (USB) maintains an ongoing catalog of soy-based products and manufacturers as they become aware of them. The catalog can be accessed at, http://www.soynewuses.org/ProductsGuide/Default.aspx.

Marty Ross grows soybeans as well as other crops and poultry at his family farm near Delmar, Del. Read Marty's full bio.

Have a question about biobased products? Ask a question.

People around the globe are celebrating the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day this month. Thousands are expected to gather in Washington, D.C. on the National Mall. I’m proud that USB is helping by providing biodiesel to power the generators for the event.

Soybean farmers have year-round sustainability efforts described at http://www.usbthinkingahead.com/

USB is also sending representatives to talk about biobased products at environmental programs in April. You can find some of our team at the Department of the Interior’s Environmental Conference in Portland.

We will also be at biobased discussions in May at the General Services Administration’s Expo that draws thousands of federal employees.

Are you wondering how to find biobased products? The United Soybean Board just updated its searchable products catalog to help you.  Here’s the link.  A new federal biobased label is in the works that will make it easier for you as well.  The U.S. government agencies are finalizing a biobased label to go on biobased products.  The U.S. Department of Agriculture proposed a draft label last year and the final label could be published in the next few weeks.

Did you see the new peer-reviewed life cycle profile that documents multiple energy and environmental benefits of U.S. soybean farming and processing? I think it is particularly exciting to see the numbers on how soybeans remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.

The 3.36 billion bushels of soybeans in the United States in 2009 removed the carbon equivalent of taking 21 million cars off the road when the figures are computed using the Environmental Protection Agency’s Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator. You can find more details on this website.

I’m about to head to the fields to plant some more soybeans this spring. USDA projects U.S. soybean farmers like me will be planting 77 million acres of those greenhouse-gas catching soybeans that simultaneously offer food for people, feed for livestock and biodiesel fuel.

Nutek founders Cathy Horton and Kim Novotney debut Nutek’s environmentally-friendly products at the Atlanta Home Depot in 2008.

Nutek LLC, based in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, manufactures environmentally friendly soy-based lubricants and biodegradable cleaning wipes. These products are available at leading national retail outlets including Kroger Stores; Ace; Home Depot; True Value; Northern Tool, Tractor Supply and Jerry’s Home Stores. They are also widely available for government purchase and are listed on USDA’s BioPreferred list.  The company is currently working to open additional sales channels in the industrial and automobile sectors.

According to Nutek CEO Cathy Horton, “Our mission extends far beyond offering environmentally-friendly alternatives to toxic household and industrial products; we support the local economy by creating green job opportunities and selling our products in local stores.”

Nutek LLC, based in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, manufactures environmentally friendly soy-based lubricants and biodegradable cleaning wipes.

Horton’s company was born in 2007. After finding a rusted can of petroleum-based household lubricant, with its plastic spray straw stuck to a closet shelf, Cathy Horton and her business partner Kim Novotney were inspired to make a change for the better. Here was a product billed as an anti-corrosive in a completely rusted can. Horton knew the product was a hazard for her and her family, and the environment. The two partners collaborated to ensure household consumers and industrial users had safe and high-performance alternatives to toxic products on the market. 

Nutek’s lubricants are well-received by professionals who work in the automotive industry.  David Heath, owner of 4-Start Equipment Services stated, “It works better than WD40®. WD40 will smoke and dissipate; Lūbfix™ smokes, but adheres. I rebuilt a small engine, cleaned it and left if sitting over night with a cover of WD40. It rained and the moisture caused the engine to rust. I tried cleaning it, and my son said to use Nutek’s Lūbfix™. I did. The engine then sat for two weeks outside in the weather waiting for parts. None of the Lūbfix™ ran off, not a bit of rust reappeared either.”

In addition, Nutek’s wipe products are a must-have for anyone who needs a high-performance solution that will not disintegrate during use. Jim Montgomery, Senior Director for a major airline operation gave Nutek’s Grime Off® a positive review. “I have never used anything that made that task (cleaning brake dust) so easy! They truly do work.”

For more information, visit http://www.nutekformulations.com/default.asp.

It is amazing to consider how far the biobased industry has come in the last decade. In 2000, few people had heard of biobased products and even fewer companies made them. Now there are thousands of biobased products available from companies across the nation. And, government procurement programs are helping lead their use. The 2002 Farm Bill forged the legislation that calls on the Federal government to buy biobased. Furthermore, President Obama’s new Executive Order references biobased products as it sets sustainability goals for Federal agencies and focuses on making improvements in their environmental, energy and economic performance. Federal agencies have set goals under Executive Order 13514 to reduce greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets; increase energy efficiency; reduce fleet petroleum consumption; conserve water; reduce waste; support sustainable communities; and leverage Federal purchasing power to promote environmentally-responsible products and technologies. Glad there are lots of biobased products available to help meet those goals. U.S. farmers like me planted more than 77 million acres of soybeans last year. We are eager to get back into the fields this spring to grow the abundant supply of soybeans to simultaneously produce food for humans, feed for livestock and ingredients for biobased products.

It is amazing to consider how far the biobased industry has come in the last decade. In 2000, few people had heard of biobased products and even fewer companies made them. Now there are thousands of biobased products available from companies across the nation. And, government procurement programs are helping lead their use. The 2002 Farm Bill forged the legislation that calls on the Federal government to buy biobased. Furthermore, President Obama’s new Executive Order references biobased products as it sets sustainability goals for Federal agencies and focuses on making improvements in their environmental, energy and economic performance. Federal agencies have set goals under Executive Order 13514 to reduce greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets; increase energy efficiency; reduce fleet petroleum consumption; conserve water; reduce waste; support sustainable communities; and leverage Federal purchasing power to promote environmentally-responsible products and technologies. Glad there are lots of biobased products available to help meet those goals. U.S. farmers like me planted more than 77 million acres of soybeans last year. We are eager to get back into the fields this spring to grow the abundant supply of soybeans to simultaneously produce food for humans, feed for livestock and ingredients for biobased products.