The hazelnut-sized, almost black seeds of the poisonous Jatropha plant – known to us as Barbados nuts – contain up to 80% oil. In the long run, this plant could become foundation for the mass production of biofuel.

The unassuming Jatropha plant grows on 33 million hectares of wasteland in India. One hectare of wasteland with approximately one ton of oil seeds generates 0.5 tons of biodiesel. With the possible output of 16.5 million tons of biodiesel, India can satisfy 40% of its annual requirements for diesel fuel without CO2 emissions.

Professor Klaus Becker, agricultural expert from the University of Hohenheim (Germany), works on the optimization of the plant. "The plant grows in soil, in which nothing else could prosper“ says Becker. In the long-run, the cultivation of Jatropha can actually make the wasted soil fertile again.