This video from the Iowa Soybean Association highlights a real-world demonstration of using B30 biodiesel across a John Deere farm equipment fleet during spring field operations. The project shows that farmers can significantly increase their use of homegrown, soybean-based fuel while maintaining the performance, reliability, and productivity required for demanding agricultural operations.
The video emphasizes the natural connection between soybean production and biodiesel: farmers can grow soybeans that are crushed for protein-rich meal and soybean oil, with that oil serving as a feedstock for biodiesel that can then help power the equipment used to plant and harvest crops. This creates additional domestic demand for soybeans while displacing a portion of petroleum diesel with a renewable fuel produced in the United States.
The demonstration also illustrates the opportunity to move beyond traditional lower biodiesel blends in agricultural equipment. John Deere now approves B30 biodiesel in its Final Tier 4 and Interim Tier 4 engines, while Tier 3/Stage III A and older engines are approved for biodiesel blends up to B100, provided the biodiesel meets applicable fuel-quality standards.
A central takeaway is that higher biodiesel blends offer agriculture a practical, near-term pathway to reduce lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions without requiring farmers to replace existing diesel-powered equipment or invest in entirely new fueling infrastructure. Biodiesel allows farms to lower the carbon intensity of their operations using equipment they already own.
Overall, the project demonstrates how biodiesel can help farmers support soybean markets, strengthen domestic energy security, reduce reliance on petroleum, and lower the carbon footprint of agricultural operations while continuing to use the diesel equipment on which modern farming depends. John Deere’s expanded B30 approval for Tier 4 engines, combined with B100 approval for Tier 3 and older engines, significantly expands the opportunity for farmers to increase their use of soybean-based biodiesel.
Learn more about John Deere’s approval of B30 and B100 in older engines here.