12-31-2008, 04:40 PM
I did a little bit of research on Jatropha a while back. I thought it might be a good crop for Eastern Washington. It appears that it would probably grow OK here, but it sounded like the oil is actually pretty toxic until it is refined. India is making a big bet on Jatropha, as are several African nations. The pressing of the seeds is tricky because the oil can be absorbed through the skin and has some type of toxin in it. There are some sources for the plants, but they were difficult to get into the US.