INVESTING CHECKOFF DOLLARS
DUST BOX IN THE
Soy-based planter box lubricant could be the 'next big thing' BY MATTHEW WILDE
A
gray steering wheel. Dirty, stained clothes. A grayish film on electronics. And health concerns. Iowa Soybean Association (ISA) director Dave Walton no longer deals with these issues when planting. He quit using an 80/20 graphite and talc blend in his planter to keep seeds flowing and parts from wearing out. Walton now uses DUST, a soybased dry planter box lubricant sold by Low Mu Tech of Calamus. The Wilton farmer says it’s a safe, clean product with excellent lubricity that has another big advantage over competitors — it increases soybean demand. The United Soybean Board (USB) invested about $300,000 in soybean checkoff funds to determine if DUST is a viable alternative to graphite, talc
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and Bayer’s polyethylene-based Fluency Agent for planters. Initial findings from lab and infield tests from four universities show the soy product works as well or better than the competition. Walton tested DUST and is sold on the product as a new use for soybeans. “We’ve been using it as a complete replacement for graphite and talc,” he says. “I don’t come home all dirty since graphite sticks to everything. It’s a soy-based product that’s 100 percent natural, so there are no environmental or health issues.” Walton contends there’s no difference in planter performance with DUST. The seeding rate was more consistent with the soy product, he says. “And best yet, the increase in
soybean demand could be in the millions of bushels,” Walton adds. Four to 5 million bushels to be exact, according to Low Mu Tech and USB officials. That is if DUST can capture 40 to 45 percent of the planter box lubricant market. Brian Tulley, the co-founder of Low Mu Tech, says its achievable. But it will take time.
Growing sales DUST became commercially available last year — officially introduced during Commodity Classic in Anaheim, California — after 7 years of development and testing. First-year sales were about $100,000, which covered 35,000 to 40,000 acres of various crops.
