Cross Plains Solutions’ SoyFoam TF 1122™ is the first and only firefighting foam GreenScreen Certified® at the Gold level. Through their soy checkoff and the United Soybean Board, U.S. soybean farmers have supported much of the extensive testing of SoyFoam environmental and performance benefits for use as a safer firefighting foam. GreenScreen Certified, owned by the non-profit Clean Production Action, is an independent, certification program that promotes the use of PFAS-free and preferred chemicals in materials, products, and manufacturing.
SoyFoam TF 1122™ extinguishes and controls fires safely while removing harmful chemicals, ensuring a secure foam blanket that is safe to touch. SoyFoam TF 1122™ is proudly 100% free of fluorines and intentionally added PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), ensuring a safer and more sustainable firefighting solution.
Firefighting SoyFoam is 100% free of intentionally added per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly called “forever chemicals.” There are also no detectable fluorines (less than 1 parts per billion) in the composition of the foam concentrate. EPA reports PFAS are found in water, air, fish, and soil at locations across the nation and the globe. Since the 1950s, PFAS were used to put out fires, repel oil and water, reduce friction and more in a wide range of products. They can leak into the environment where they are made, used, disposed of, or spilled. Exposure is linked to several adverse health effects including certain cancers, thyroid dysfunction, changes in cholesterol, and small reductions in birth weight. As a result, governments are prohibiting firefighting foams that contain intentionally added PFAS
“U.S. soybean farmers are excited that the crop we grow now offers a sustainable solution to benefit the health of firefighters, all our communities and the environment in general,” said USB Director Neal Bredehoeft, a Missouri soybean farmer. “SoyFoam is made with U.S. soy flour and is an important new market opportunity too.”
Jeff King, Kentucky soy farmer and assistant fire chief, demonstrates SoyFoam TF 1122™, a new product that holds the potential to safeguard fellow firefighters from PFAS-related illnesses.
“We are proud to partner with the United Soybean Board to launch this breakthrough firefighting foam for use by fire departments across the nation,” said Cross Plains Solution’s Managing Partner Alan Snipes. “Our manufacturing plant in Georgia is ready to produce SoyFoam now so fire departments can ask their suppliers to offer it. We also see demand for numerous additional applications, ranging from canisters to sprinkler systems.”
SoyFoam is a wetting / smothering agent capable of extinguishing Class A (ordinary combustibles) and Class B (flammable liquids) fires. It is certified ready biodegradable by the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development and is certified as 84% biobased through the U.S. Department of Agriculture BioPreferred® program. The Department of Defense and U.S. Forest Service are also doing further evaluations.
Cross Plains Solutions’ SoyFoam TF 1122™ emerging from a firefighter training building, demonstrating its ability to maintain a stable foam blanket and resist burn back even after direct flame exposure. The groundbreaking SoyFoam TF 1122™ is 100% free of intentionally added per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly called “forever chemicals.” There are also no detectable fluorines (less than 1 parts per billion) in the composition of the foam concentrate.
It is compatible with existing foam inductors and aerating nozzles so does not require staffing changes to a fire department’s existing standard operation procedure for Class A and Class B fires. Cross Plains Solutions’ SoyFoam meets the firefighting foam requirements as specified in NFPA 18, the National Fire Protection Association’s standard for wetting agents. It is available in common firefighting supply options, such as 5-gallon pails, 55-gallon drums and 250-gallon and larger totes.
Because of the potential for biobased products to create new markets for soybeans, U.S. soybean farmers have invested millions of dollars to research, test and promote biobased products. Much of this work was done through the United Soybean Board, which is composed of 77 U.S. soybean farmers appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture to invest soybean checkoff funds. As stipulated in the Soybean Promotion, Research and Consumer Information Act, USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Services has oversight responsibilities for the soybean checkoff.