STRICTLY BUSINESS: KENAF: ANCIENT CROP MAY ADD VALUE TO FARMS

Only 4,300 acres of kenaf were harvested in the United States five years ago.

Little, if any, kenaf was grown in Missouri.

The U.S. acreage has increased to more than 16,000 acres, and the state has a number of experimental plots.

"Kenaf" (pronounced "kuh NAFF") could become the miracle fiber of the next century.

A couple of farmers want to become part of the kenaf pioneer movement in Southeast Missouri.

Brothers Boyd and Chris Vancil are from a fourth-generation farm family that operates a 1,000-acre farm near Poplar Bluff, producing rice, soybeans and milo.

The Vancils also operate Industrial Ag Innovations, a company that focuses on industrial applications of agricultural products.

The Vancils' idea is to grow experimental plots of kenaf and identify markets for the product.

"We want to start a pilot mill for processing small plots of kenaf," said Chris Vancil. "We'll be identifying markets such as mats and padding, to be used in animal bedding and for padding in furniture. We'll also be looking at oil absorbent materials."

The Vancils have already purchased separation equipment for the harvesting process and hope to be ready to go by fall.

The brothers want to find some new wrinkles for an ancient crop.

The Vancils will grow between 20 and 30 acres of the crop this year and have made arrangements with other farmers for an additional 20 to 30 acres.

"We'll be looking at 50 to 60 acres of kenaf throughout a tri-state area -- Southeast Missouri, Southern Illinois and western Kentucky," said Chris Vancil.

The brothers want to find some new wrinkles for an ancient crop.

Kenaf, a cousin to cotton and okra, was used in ancient Africa to wrap mummies. Throughout history, its fiber has been used for textiles, rope, rugs, clothing, paper products, forage and livestock feed.

It can be a promising alternative to trees.

Kenaf, a member of the hibiscus family, is a wood plant that grows up to 15 feet tall in four to five months and promises to become an alternative to trees in the making of wood pulp.

The plant produces a high-quality paper strong enough to be run through a photocopy machine with no deterioration. It is an ideal material for newsprint because it doesn't yellow. And it requires less ink because it isn't as porous as wood fiber, and the ink tends to not come off on the hands.

Kenaf won't work well in fax machines, however, because it creates too much friction.

There is a problem with kenaf -- it is expensive.

It can cost twice as much as virgin or recycled stock.

But a spokesman of Kenaf International, headquartered at McAllen, Texas, explained that its high cost is a simple case of supply versus demand. "More farmers need to get on the bandwagon before prices can become competitive."

One reason for the high cost is lack of processing mills, which has been the biggest obstacle to increased kenaf production.

In short, the fiber needs a public relations campaign.

People like the Vancils can promote kenaf and how it can be used.

Most people, including farmers who might grow kenaf as a viable cash crop, don't know that it exists, said the spokesman of Kenaf International. The plant has been cultivated in the Middle East for thousands of years, but the Western Hemisphere is only now discovering its usefulness.

As a crop, kenaf yields about the same amount of usable product as pine trees -- seven to 10 tons an acre. Its outer layer, equivalent of bark in trees, is highly insect resistant, making pesticides unnecessary.

In getting the kenaf business off the ground, the Vancils are receiving help from the University of Missouri Office of Value-Added Agriculture Outreach, a new statewide network that helps producers recover more value from end products created from the state's raw commodities.

The Value-Added office at Columbia provides business planning, marketing, economic and technical support.

"Kenaf can be grown all over Missouri, said Harry Minor, MU extension crops testing specialist, adding that some plots have been successful in the St. Joseph area. Minor said the product has also been grown in Columbia.

The only problem in Missouri is that kenaf flowers too late to produce seed, creating the need for growers to buy seed each year.

Minor is conducting some observation plots this spring for the second year as part of the ongoing university fiber crop research.

Kenaf is cut in the field after about 120 days. The long outer fiber is separated from the core fiber.

A typical processing facility, said Minor, could employ 10 to 20 workers and handle kenaf from 1,000 to 2,000 acres a year.

The facilities could be built with reasonable capital investments in rural farming areas.

With family farms exploring alternative crops and approaches to increase their income, the role of value-added, non-food fiber crops may be a viable alternative, said Dennis Heldman, director of the value-added office.

If successful, it could generate jobs and add value to Missouri-grown raw commodities.

Many farmers could grow kenaf in their nomral crop rotations. Harvesting will be different because of cutting the stalks, but current farm equipment can be used to prepare the ground and plant the crop.

B. Ray Owen is business editor for the Southeast Missourian.