Cottons cousin, kenaf, may be more attractive than it used to be to farmers because ARS researchers recently found new uses for black liquor, a byproduct of making paper from kenaf. Black liquor is usually burned for fuel or chemical recovery, but small paper mills cant afford expensive incinerators for its disposal, says ARS chemist Thomas P. Abbott. He leads research to develop products and markets for alternative crops. U.S. farmers could plant kenaf in place of corn, soybeans, cotton, or rice. But making such a change hinges on getting an economic return on their investment. To help, employees of ARS and of Vision Paper, Inc., of Albuquerque, New Mexico, rolled up their sleeves and got their hands dirty. In the end, they turned a waste product into something of value.

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