The FARM to Fly initiative’s purpose is to “accelerate the availability of a commercially viable and sustainable aviation biofuel industry in the United States, increase domestic energy security, establish regional supply chains, and support rural development”.
In addition, USDA committed to work on feedstock for biojet fuel through its bioenergy and biomass programs, and the three partners agreed to use regional opportunities and pilot programs (in particular the Sustainable Aviation Fuels Northwest – SAFN – and the Midwest Aviation Sustainable Biofuels Initiative - MASBI) to assess and evaluate means for meeting their mutual goals.
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Airlines for America (A4A), Boeing Company, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)
The report concludes that Federal Government leadership and assistance are needed to create a bridge to an aviation biofuels industry that can be sustained exclusively by private capital. The focused commitment of limited government resources in the near term to support investment in biofuels innovation can help secure a future in which domestic businesses are the primary funders of a large share of commercial-aviation renewable fuel production.
The report provides a complete overview of the initiative supported by USDA which contributes to the development and deployment of aviation biofuels.
The report was accompanied by industry recommendations to government and other stakeholders. Industry underlined that support is needed to achieve proof of commercialization of aviation biofuel, i.e. to validate the business model for all elements of the supply chain. Having at least two successful commercial-scale projects in appropriate parts of the country was seen as a necessary precursor to private investment and scalable production on a broader national scale.
Farm-to-Fly report: Link