Fun Fertilizer Fuel Facts From UC Berkeley

Here’s a factual nugget you can throw out the next time you want to impress someone that’s stuck sitting next to you on a crowded train.

Approximately 1 percent of the world’s fuel is consumed in making chemical fertilizers, according to Jay Keasling, a professor of bioengineering and chemical engineering at UC Berkeley speaking at the Global Technology Leaders Conference at the university. Keasling, who is also one of the recognized leaders of synthetic biology, pointed out that bit about fertilizer to demonstrate the need for things like self-fertilizing plants. The world population is expected to increase by about 50 percent to 9 billion by midcentury as well, so expect the amount of food matter—and hence the need for fertilizer absent a better solution—to increase.

Unfortunately, the quest for self-fertilizing plants over the last 35 years hasn’t yielded very good results. Synthetic biology, a sophisticated form of genetic engineering that attempts to harness genetic and metabolic capabilities from several species, could help. Keasling is one of the founders of Amyris, a nearby startup in Emeryville that has come up with genetically enhanced yeast that can turn sugars into medicines or fuels.

Keasling also noted that biofuels will likely play a large role in certain segments of the energy market. Cars might go electric, but batteries won’t work in every market.

“There are no batteries for jet engines,” he said. “Therefore you need biofuels.”