A weed that Central Illinoisans see along roadways, at the edges of fields or at construction sites has been domesticated in Central Illinois into a crop that researchers say has the potential to help combat climate change and provide additional income to farmers. The high-protein seed oil that derives from the pennycress plant, with genetic modifications, has a plethora of environmental positives. Read more in this article from The Pantagraph (Bloomington, IL).

The board of directors for CoverCress Inc., a company aiming to commercialize the nation’s first “cash cover crop,” has named Mike DeCamp as its new president and CEO and a member of the board. DeCamp takes the helm after one year of serving as chief operating officer.

Pennycress, also called “stinkweed” for the odor it gives off when it’s crushed, contains a lot of oil in its seeds, and that oil can be turned into fuel for jets or diesel trucks and cars. Two researchers at The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) just began a study to create the most resilient, high-yielding varieties of pennycress for farmers to grow. Read more in this article from The Ohio State University.

Named for its coin-shaped, oil-rich seedpods, pennycress has colonized much of the globe as a common weed. But those oily seeds, unsuitable for human consumption, are an ideal crop for biodiesel and jet fuels. Read more in this article from the Washington State University Insider.

Pennycress is being handled similarly to how canola was developed into an oilseed crop. Iowa State University Professor of Genetics John Sedbrook explains how pennycress can be used for jet fuel and biodiesel.

At a time when farmers are urgently seeking ways to maximize profit in their corn-soybean rotations, university researchers in Illinois, Ohio, Minnesota and Wisconsin, along with a startup company in Missouri, are working to develop pennycress into a crop that could give farmers more dollars. The effort involves enhancing pennycress’ characteristics to make it a better oilseed for fuel, a more palatable feed for livestock and a viable cover crop that Midwest farmers can sandwich between corn harvest and soybean planting. Read more in this article from the Rock Island Dispatch-Argus.