Why Guayule Is Good For Your Wallet And The Environment

Green is good. That is the daily message we receive from the media. The focus that we, as consumers, maintain should be on green cars, green buildings, green plastic and now even green rubber. With products made from a desert plant called guayule, (such as latex gloves especially) this is proving easier and easier to do.

Most rubber is derived from hevea, a para rubber tree product. Native to Brazil, para rubber trees were transplanted to Southeast Asia where they have been bred carefully to increase hevea production. Today, most rubber comes from this region of the world, with the synthetically produced balance from petroleum. While most rubber is inherently organic, it's true that it's not necessarily "green"-at least not as green as guayule.

The benefits of using rubber derived from the environmentally-friendly plant guayule are simple to see, beginning with proximity. Guayule can be grown in the southwestern United States and northern Mexico, whereas hevea, the other natural source of latex rubber, must be grown overseas in tropical climates. Since guayule is grown so close to home, the cost to the environment is lower than importing hevea-based rubber from overseas because of reduced fuel usage.

Guayule's location presents a second green benefit. Guayule, unlike the common hevea rubber produced from the para rubber tree grown in tropical areas, is a tremendously hearty plant. It does not require any chemical pesticides to keep its health because it's naturally resistant. Para rubber trees are tremendously susceptible to leaf blight, so they require chemical pesticides to remain healthy. Chemical pesticides have been associated with various health and environmental risks, so guayule's natural pest resistance is significant.

Guayule's third green attribute is that it can be used as an ethanol feedstock. Guayule is not a food source, unlike corn, which is commonly used to make ethanol, and therefore doesn't impact the world's food source in price or availability. The demand for corn produced ethanol, in some situations, has impacted the food supply in the market. But that isn't an issue since guayule is not a food source.

Finally, an excellent source of hypoallergenic natural rubber latex is guayule. A serious issue is hevea latex allergies. It's estimated that 10 percent of the U.S. population has a latex allergy. Currently, most hypoallergenic latex is synthetic rubber derived from a petroleum base. Obviously, a natural hypoallergenic rubber source is fundamentally superior to rubber synthesized from petroleum.

Guayule gained popularity throughout the 20th century because of import restrictions, leaf blight decimation, and common latex allergies among health care providers. Although a single para rubber tree can produce more rubber than a guayule plant, the locale, energy-producing potential, hypoallergenic qualities, and overall greenness of the guayule plant is unbeatable.

Now the question is how do green-conscious consumers support this product? Local farmers in the southwestern U.S. and northern Mexico, along with the Yulex Corporation, are working to produce the crop and manufacture latex products from it. Finding ways to support these entities is a sure way to invest in the success of the environment and the affordability of guayule produced rubber products.

Article Source: http://www.search4allinfo.com

Author Jason Lancaster is a devotee of up-and-coming biotechnology agriculture. Learn more about guayule at GuayuleBlog.com.

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