Bayer to acquire camelina assets from Canadian firm to expand its position in feedstock market

Bayer announced Jan. 9 a deal with Canada-based Smart Earth Camelina Corp. to acquire its camelina germplasm, intellectual property and materials to expand its global-leadership position in biobased-feedstock markets.

Bayer said the acquisition underlines its goal to help decarbonize the transportation sector and to deliver regenerative-agriculture solutions through the investment and development of intermediate oilseed crops to meet the demand of the growing renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) markets, which is estimated to increase from 14 billion to 40 billion gallons by 2040.

Camelina is a novel intermediate oilseed crop with a promising low-carbon intensity for renewable fuel. (Photo: Bayer)

Camelina is a novel intermediate oilseed crop with a promising low-carbon intensity for renewable fuel and can be grown in both spring and winter.

Bayer intends to use its expertise in oilseeds to further develop this product.

“We are committed to supporting farmers’ ability to deliver on growing demand for low-carbon biomass-based feedstocks, through investments and development of new intermediate oilseed crops like camelina and advancing sustainable-cropping systems,” said Frank Terhorst, Bayer crop-science division’s head of strategy and sustainability.

“Bayer is going to continue to lead the way with alternative biomass-based feedstocks and regenerative-agricultural solutions,” he added.

Biofuels play a key role in decarbonizing the transportation sector since electrification is not feasible in all transportation systems like aviation or marine.

Biofuels can be produced from renewable organic materials like corn, soy, canola and novel alternative oilseed crops like camelina and CoverCress.

These drop-in fuels have a lower carbon intensity than fossil fuels and can significantly reduce greenhouse-gas emissions compared to traditional fossil fuels, playing a key role in mitigating climate change.

In addition, they can provide farmers with new revenue streams through the cultivation of biomass-based feedstocks.

“We are excited about the acquisition of camelina germplasm from Smart Earth Camelina Corp., which enables us to offer farmers a profitable low-carbon intermediate crop option,” added Jennifer Ozimkiewicz, Bayer crop-science division’s head of crop strategy, soy and biofuels.

“Camelina is a short-season and drought-tolerant crop, offering growers an alternative low-input crop for marginal land or to be grown in-between crops,” she said.

Jack Grushcow, president and CEO at Smart Earth Camelina Corp., said, “Smart Earth Camelina Corp. has been at the forefront of camelina development for over 20 years, and camelina is now poised to join the ranks of the other major oilseed crops. We believe Bayer is the ideal party to scale camelina production to a level that drives meaningful advancements in sustainable agriculture and significantly reduces global CO2 emissions.”

Bayer said 2025 is set to be a transformative year for the company in establishing new renewable fuel value chains to deliver fuel with lower carbon intensity than traditional fuel sources.

This includes the introduction of camelina to farmers as a profitable alternative oilseed option.

As part of Bayer’s biofuel strategy, the introduction of camelina will complement Bayer’s existing work with CoverCress, and the recent announcement on scaling winter canola in the U.S. as a biomass-based feedstock to meet growing demand for renewable fuel.

Bayer aims to launch hybrid TruFlex winter canola in the U.S. in 2027.