--- --- # Farm waste turned into biofuel produces healthy profit  _This content was paid for and prepared by China Daily, an official publication of the People's Republic of China. The TIME editorial and advertising departments were not involved in the creation of this content._ Workers operate an agricultural machine to arrange bales of straw to be used to make biofuel for winter heating in Nenjiang, Heilongjiang province, in October. LIN JINCHUN/XINHUA By ZHOU HUIYING,LIU KUN and HOU LIQIANG Several major grain-producing regions have been proactively leveraging their abundant agricultural and forestry residues to aid the low-carbon transition, converting waste into renewable energy and organic fertilizers. As the country’s largest grain-producing region, Heilongjiang province in Northeast China is developing its bioeconomy, with a focus on producing biogas, according to the Heilongjiang Development and Reform Commission. According to the commission, the province produces around 99 million short tons of straw annually, with a potential collection rate of nearly 86%. The province’s 49 million acres of forests are estimated to create 10.6 million tons of waste each year. The province’s substantial livestock and poultry industry also serves as a reliable, consistent source for biomass energy production, generating 99 million tons of manure annually, it added. Recognizing the ample available resources, Heilongjiang has identified biogas as a key emerging sector in the development of renewable energy, and has rolled out a slate of measures to maximize its potential. In 2022, the province unveiled an action plan, pledging to transform the region into a model demonstration base for large-scale biogas development in China’s cold north. According to the plan, Heilongjiang aims to gradually develop mature biogas production technologies suited to the climate characteristics of northern regions by the end of this year, with a series of large-scale biogas demonstration projects completed and put into operation. By fully utilizing waste from the agriculture, forestry and livestock sectors, the province expects the biogas industry to thrive and become a key emerging sector for renewable energy. Heilongjiang has encouraged its major livestock farming counties and grain-producing areas to integrate the harmless treatment of livestock and poultry manure with the comprehensive utilization of straw for biogas demonstration projects. The commission highlighted the establishment of a complete biogas industrial chain as a priority in its work regarding biogas development. To date, seven biogas production projects have been put into operation in Heilongjiang, the combined annual capacity of which has reached roughly 1.8 billion cubic feet, the commission said. Another six projects with a total annual production capacity of 989 million cubic feet are still under construction. Once the six projects are completed, the biogas-producing facilities in the province will be able to annually consume 700,000 tons of straw and harmlessly treat 1.1 million tons of livestock and poultry manure, it said. The commission said Heilongjiang already boasts several key enterprises with proprietary technologies for biogas production, including Heilongjiang Boneng Green Energy Technology Co. Boneng plans to establish 30 centers utilizing its dry anaerobic fermentation technology to produce biogas by 2028, according to Shi Hongying, the company’s general manager. Each of the centers will have an annual capacity to dispose of 77,000 to 110,000 tons of livestock and poultry manure and 33,000 to 55,000 tons of straw, outputting 141 million cubic feet of biogas. Once operational, the company’s 30 centers will be able to annually process 2.3 million tons of manure and 1.7 million tons of straw, she said. In addition to reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 3.3 million tons per year, the company will also capture 200,000 tons of greenhouse gases for industrial use. “In recent years, the government has been promoting a shift in energy consumption from coal to natural gas, and the relatively stable price of natural gas has ensured consistent revenue,” Shi said. Farm waste turned into biofuel produces healthy profit ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/china-daily/farm-waste-turned-into-biofuel-produces-healthy-profit/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/china-daily/farm-waste-turned-into-biofuel-produces-healthy-profit/"},"headline":"Farm waste turned into biofuel produces healthy profit","datePublished":"2026-06-18T14:28:41.362Z","dateModified":"2026-06-09T07:28:08.092Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/branded-content/china-daily/farm-waste-turned-into-biofuel-produces-healthy-profit/","keywords":[],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[],"articleSection":"","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/china-daily/farm-waste-turned-into-biofuel-produces-healthy-profit/","name":"Farm waste turned into biofuel produces healthy profit"}}]}] ```