SOYBEAN DUST SUPPRESSANT WILL BE TESTED IN SOUTHEAST MISSOURI

BENTON -- Another use for a soybean product will be tested near here Friday.

"A soybean oil dust suppressant will be tested on a gravel road," said Terry Herndon, superintendent of the Scott County Highway Department. "Scott County has been selected as the first test site in Southeast Missouri for this dust control agent."

On hand for the test will be officials of the Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council headquartered in Jefferson City and a number of area Missouri Highway and Transportation Department representatives.

"Dust can be a problem to people who live along or drive on unpaved roads," said Mike Mills of the soybean merchandising council. "This new soybean-based dust control product offers a cost advantage over alternative products, and may allow road districts to solve dust problems for more people."

"If the product trials are successful here, it may be used on gravel roads throughout the summer months," said Herndon.

The road oil is a byproduct of the refining process of soybean oil.

The product that will be tested in Scott County is produced by Valley Products of Memphis, Tenn.

Officials of the council said the soybean dust control product holds a cost advantage over other products. It's also biodegradable, locally grown and is a renewable resource.

"The soybean product is about half the price of asphalt dust suppressants," said Mills.

"It is not corrosive to auto paint," said Mills. "After about an hour the product will not get on vehicles, but if it does it washes off vehicles easier than some other dust control products."

In Southeast Missouri more than 30 million bushes of soybeans are produced each year.

Two nearby counties are ranked third and fourth of the state's 114 counties in soybean productions. Mississippi County, ranked third, has more than 150,000 acres of soybeans and produces about 5.5 million bushels a year, and Stoddard County, ranked fourth, raises about 165,000 acres a year, with productions totals over 5.3 million bushels.

Scott County ranks 12th in the state, with 94,000 acres producing about three million bushels a year.

Statewide this year projections are for 4.2 million acres, the same as 1993. Soybean production last year totaled 117 million bushels, which is down more than a fourth (27 percent). Farmers harvested only 3.5 million of the 4.2 million acres planted because of severe flooding.