Iogen's Cellulose Ethanol - Straw-Powered Cars

During the G8 meeting next week, the cars used by the representatives and leaders of the eight most industrialized countries will run partly on ethanol made from straw. The process developed by the Ottawa-based Iogen Corp. (their motto is "Cellulose ethanol is ready to go.") uses enzymes to turn straw and other agricultural waste into biofuel, which, we think, is the best way to make ethanol (and not directly with corn or sugar crop, or any other relatively energy intensive kind of agriculture). Well, the G8 cars thing is more symbolic than anything else: "The leaders' cars will be powered by a mixture of 95 percent gasoline and five percent cellulose ethanol -- the maximum that European engines can handle." But it doesn't make the technology any less promising, and should convince biofuel detractors that the technology is improving.