From the 1990s into the 2000s, ILSR’s Carbohydrate Economy project explored technical and policy innovations to move our oil based economy toward one based on plant matter. This page hosts the archived content of that work.
New technologies, new laws and an increasingly aware public are ushering in a new materials base for the 21st century – plant matter. Carbohydrates, the building blocks of plant matter, can be converted into chemicals, energy, textiles, building materials, paper, and many other industrial products. We call this new materials base a “carbohydrate economy.” A carbohydrate economy reduces pollution, builds stronger rural communities, and supports a rooted farmer-owned manufacturing sector.
The Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) created the Carbohydrate Economy Clearinghouse to provide accessible, up-to-date information spanning all facets of the carbohydrate economy. We provided comprehensive information on plant matter-based products and the cutting edge companies and cooperatives producing them, reports on developments in this rapidly expanding field, research publications, a newsletter, and more.
This 1992 report by David Morris and Irshad Ahmed was one of the first comprehensive looks at how plant matter derived products could replace many...
This August 2005 report by David Morris addresses the never-ending question "Doesn’t it take more energy to make ethanol than is contained in the ethanol?"...
The carbohydrate economy could transform agriculture as well as energy, reviving producer co-ops, and giving farmers a hedge against voilatile commodity prices. For the first...
This 2000 piece by David Morris describes an industrial system with two distinctive features 1. Carbohydrates replace hydrocarbons 2. Cultivators and their surrounding regions capture...
This February 2008 report by David Morris criticizes the authors of two recent studies published in Science for advancing a conclusion not supported by their...
This 2000 paper by David Morris and Jack Brondum examines how the MTBE crisis taught us the need to do a comprehensive evaluation of the...
This 2006 report by David Morris is an expanded version of an opinion piece published in the New York Times.
This January 2007 report by David Morris provides an analysis of federal policies that are both good and bad related to creating a viable cellulosic...
This February 2006 paper by David Morris provides a snapshot of today's biofuels industry and a roadmap to ensure that local farmers see significant benefits.
This September 2006 report by David Morris examines federal policies supporting cellulosic ethanol production and advocates that the Federal government adopt strategies that support farmer-owned...
This January 2007 paper by David Morris argues that Congress must recognize the dramatic benefits of clean, renewable energy on rural communities and then ensure...
This 2004 report by David Morris describes a promising domestic energy strategy that relies on biofuels and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) as a solution...
This June 2008 report by David Morris describes how commercially available technologies today could transform our petroleum powered transportation system into one powered by electricity...
This October 2001 paper by David Morris looks at how plant matter must be an important element in a sustainable economy because it is the...
This 2005 analysis concludes that the Minnesota 1994 biomass mandate, rather than jump-starting a new industry using new energy crops, has become little more than...
This 2002 piece by David Morris examines how both conservatives and liberals love to hate ethanol and how they might change their minds if they...
This 1997 report by Michelle Carstensen and David Morris reviews some available plant matter based products and explains how printers can save money.
This 1997 report by Michelle Carstensen and David Morris explains how products made from plant matter can prove economical, in part by eliminating regulation and...
This 2001 report by Jessica Nelson examines how vegetable oil-based lubricants are emerging as a high-performance environmentally friendly alternative to petroleum oil lubricants.
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Host John Farrell is joined by ILSR co-founder and Senior Fellow, David Morris, as well as ILSR Research Associate, Maria McCoy, for a timely discussion on energy policy as it relates to Thanksgiving. First up, John and David chat about the perils of burning turkey waste to generate energy. Then Maria joins John to talk about the health risks of cooking with gas. They also discuss: