29 June 2010, PRWEB, Indonesia

JATRO’s Domestic Indonesian JV Partner awarded BEST PERFORMING FORESTRY PROJECT for 2009
Officially recognizing that the unique plantation, reforestation and social farming model is protecting Indonesia’s rainforests, JATRO Waterland’s Jatropha Plantations have been selected as the Best Forestry Project in Indonesia for the year 2009. This is in addition to Best Forestry Project 2007 award received together with KPH Kendal Unit 1 run by administrator M. Widianto. JATRO Waterland together with the Indonesian government are helping to re-forest and protect old growth rainforests.

“Winning this award twice proves the viability and success of our operations” stated Dr. William Nolten, Technical Director of JATRO Waterland. “It may seem that there are bountiful companies producing bio-fuels worldwide but the truth is there are a limited number of successful companies in our field. None can compare with the scale and success of JATRO Waterland” he added.

Rainforests once covered 14% of the earth's land surface; now they cover a mere 6% and experts estimate that the last remaining rainforests could be consumed in less than 40 years, William Nolten stated “It hurts me to know that we are losing our planets greatest treasure, the rainforests. I believe all of us must do our part to help stop this destruction.”

Since the beginning JATRO Waterland’s plantations have been employing thousands of local farmers as part of JATRO Waterland's social business model. These farmers may have been cutting down old growth rainforest trees for personal energy use or for commercial benefit. Now, these farming communities are earning a respectable wage and deforestation has been greatly reduced in the area of the plantations. In order to combat deforestation due to the need of firewood for personal energy use, JATRO Waterland has joined forces with the Bosch and Siemens Home Appliance Group (BSH) to hand out the Protos Stove to local communities. As was recently reported, JATRO Waterland will supply the Jatropha oil for use with these stoves.

Conventional land development methods for most bio-fuel producing plantations involves clear-cutting (the removal of the entire forest cover) which is then replaced with biofuel producing plants. “This is absolutely, 100%, not the case with JATRO Waterland’s Jatropha’s plantations” added Dr. Nolten. “Our partnership with the Indonesian government mandates that our Jatropha plant re-forest large tracts of land.”

At least 80% of the developed world's diet originated in the tropical rainforest. Its bountiful gifts to the world include fruits like avocados, coconuts, figs, oranges, lemons, grapefruit, bananas, guavas, pineapples, mangos and tomatoes; vegetables including corn, potatoes, rice, winter squash and yams; spices like black pepper, cayenne, chocolate, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, sugar cane, tumeric, coffee and vanilla and nuts including Brazil nuts and cashews. In addition, the U.S. National Cancer Institute has identified 3000 plants that are active against cancer cells. 70% of these plants are found in the rainforest. Twenty-five percent of the active ingredients in today's cancer-fighting drugs come from organisms found only in the rainforest. Vincristine, also sold under the brand name Oncovin by Eli Lilly and Company is extracted from the rainforest plant, periwinkle, is one of the world's most powerful anticancer drugs. It has dramatically increased the survival rate for acute childhood leukemia since its discovery. Today, over 100 pharmaceutical companies and several branches of the US government, including giants like Merck and The National Cancer Institute, are engaged in plant research projects for possible drugs and cures for viruses, infections, cancer, and even AIDS.

JATRO Waterland is regarded as a one-of-a-kind success story in the bio-fuel industry. Good for the people and good for the planet. “Our company continues in its mandate to produce the world’s best biofuel while benefiting the environment. We are proud of the awards we have received and are honored to be recognized by the government for our success” concluded Dr. Nolten.

About JATRO Waterland:
PT JATRO Waterland, a subsidiary of JATRO AG (http://www.jatrofuels.com) is an agricultural technology enterprise with headquarters in Jakarta, Indonesia. The Company has developed high yielding Jatropha plants which give a superior yield and oil content which is a result of years of research and development. JATRO Waterland is leader in Jatropha research and development in Asia and together with its partners have successfully established first class research and technology bases in Indonesia, Germany, The Netherlands, India, Vietnam and Malaysia that are accelerating the commercialization of next generation biofuels and renewable power generation. Combining agricultural and technological innovations, intellectual property rights and extensive hands on operational plantation experience, JATRO Waterland controls all aspects of Jatropha research, development, and cultivation, including bio-engineering, high tech conversion technologies, commercialization of valuable by-products and the processing of high grade biodiesel. The Group currently produces Jatropha oil from over 12,000 hectares that have reached production status and the Group currently has over 60,000 hectares of planted Jatropha that will come into production this year. The Group cornerstone is its social farming model where it endeavors to empower the local farmers with the aim of bringing prosperity, independence and self-sustainability to the communities surrounding the forest on a commercially sustainable basis.