186 



AARC 



Altemativ* Agricultural Research & Commercialization Center 



Kenaf Revival Could Launch 

 Texas Newsprint Industry 



One of the world's oldest fiber crops 

 — kenaf — could become a major 

 source for newspaper "newsprint" 

 and for fiber panels. With more than half of 

 the nation's newsprint imported (adding 

 about S3. 8 billion to the U.S. trade deficit 

 each year) kenaf newsprint could save both 

 trees and money. 



Drawing on more than 20 years of 

 active U.S. research into kenaf production 

 methods and potential markets for this 

 annual, hot-climate crop, Kenaf Internationa] 

 of McAllen, Texas, plans to build a S50-mil- 

 lion pulp mill designed to produce 30,000 

 tons of newsprint per year. The first S20- 

 million phase of this project will produce 

 pulp for use in "Gridcore''''^" fiber panels 

 and for sale to paper mills. Phase two wall 

 add equipment to produce newsprint. 

 After repeated commercial-scale 

 tests, kenaf is acknowledged as a cost- 

 competitive source of newsprint. 

 Compared with wood-pulp paper, research 

 shows kenaf paper as stronger, whiter, less 

 yellowing, capable of sharper photo repro- 

 duction and more user-friendly due to better 

 ink adherence (thus requiring less ink and 

 resulting in less ink ruboffon readers' hands). 

 The proposed plant is designed to produce 

 newsprint from a mix of kenaf and recycled 

 newspapers, with the ratio varied depending 

 on the availability of the two components. 

 Kenaf International General Manager 

 Charles Taylor explains that kenaf newsprint 

 pays economic and emironmental dividends 

 because; "A tree-free paper that requires rela- 

 tively minimal chemical inputs in either field 

 or mill operations reduces both costs and emi 

 ronmental concerns. Energy consumption is 

 15 to 25 percent lower for kenaf than that 

 required to pulp southern pine. . . and the 

 treated waste water can be used to irrigate 

 nearby fiber crops." 



The Alternative Agricultural Research and Commercialization Center, a branch of the U.S. Department 

 of Agriculture, is investing a repayable SI 00.000 this year to help Kenaf International prepare materials for 

 a project financing plan for presentation to potential investors and lenders. To supply the proposed 

 newsprint plant, the 25 Texas farmers now growing 3,000 acres of kenaf for research purposes would have 

 a steady market for far larger acreages of kenaf 



Kenaf International Ltd., TX 



Sponsor's Contact: Charles S. Taylor, (210) 687-261 9 



Raw Material: 

 Product: 



AARC: 



Kenaf 



Newspaper & Specialty Products 



$100,000 



Cooperators Contributions (est.): $100,000 



USDA-AARC CENTER • 12th & C St. S.W. • Washington, DC 20250 

 Telephone: (202) 401-4860 • Fax: (202) 401-6068 



Printed on recycled paper using soytean-aased ink 



