Rice Straw to Biogas (R2B) Project - Reflections and Lessons Learned

Rice is the world's number one food crop and Asia accounts for 91% of global production. For every kilogram of rice, a kilo or more of straw is produced as a by-product. There are currently few commercial uses for rice straw, so around 300 million tonnes of it are simply burned in the field each year across Asia. Governments are now banning this practice, because of its harm to human health and the environment. Straw Innovations Ltd has set up an innovative 1,000m3 pilot plant in Laguna, Philippines, to demonstrate rice straw collection and processing to make biogas (methane) as clean cooking fuel. The biogas is purified, compressed into cylinders and distributed to local markets in a world-first technology and business model. This presentation will highlight lessons learned as well as conditions needed for replication at scale.