Bridgestone Americas Inc. is investing an additional $42 million to establish commercial operations of guayule as a domestic source of natural rubber, with additional investment and expansions planned.
The company says it will partner with local U.S. farmers and Native American tribes to increase capacity of up to 25,000 additional acres of farmland for planting and harvesting guayule at scale. Bridgestone is targeting sustainable commercial production of guayule-derived natural rubber by the end of the decade.
“We’re extremely bullish on the potential for guayule as a domestic source of strategically critical materials, such as rubber, hypoallergenic latex, building material adhesives and renewable fuel, just to name a few,” says Nizar Trigui, chief technology officer and group president, solution businesses, Bridgestone.
Bridgestone launched its guayule research initiative in 2012, when it broke ground on a processing and research center in Mesa, Ariz. Today, the company operates the research center in Mesa and a 281-acre guayule farm in Eloy, Ariz. Bridgestone has invested more than $100 million in its efforts to commercialize guayule.
