Casstech Limited (CTL) is an unlisted Australian Public Company that has embarked on development of the Burdekin Integrated Cassava Project. The project will plant 6,000 hectares of cassava to produce high quality native tapioca starch, stock feed and renewable energy.
Cassava trials have commenced in the Burdekin to provide sufficient quantities of stem to enable large-scale cassava plantings in 2009 for operational starch production in the second quarter of 2011. A farm – factory – feedlot site has been selected south of Home Hill, about one hour below the Port of Townsville.
The Burdekin has abundant water in a fertile delta. It is Australia’s largest and most productive sugar cane growing and processing area as well as being a large producer of cattle in the hinterland. Townsville – to the North – is a major industrial centre for copper, lead and nickel refining as well as meatworks processing.
The region is characterised by:
Cassava – Manihot esculenta Crantz – is a perennial shrub belonging to the family Euphorbiaceae. Despite it not being grown commerically in Australia, it is the fourth most important basic food after rice, wheat and maize. The tropical plant consists of:
Cassava can be planted and harvested all year round. It will perform well on marginal land but responds well to nutrient management. Once established, it is very drought tolerant and will grow best under a range of temperatures from 25 to 30°C. The plant produces cyanogenic glucasides which break down during processing. It is resistant to most major pests. Cassava flour, also referred to as tapioca flour, does not contain gluten and as such is widely used in gluten-free products, particularly in baked goods and as sauce thickener.
Tapioca starch is flavourless, colourless, odourless starch produced from the cassava root. After crude oil, starch is the most versatile feedstock.
It is a widely used additive in food and beverages as well as industrial applications like paper making, oil drilling, etc. More recently, substantial growth in bio-ethanol and bio-plastics have further demonstrated the usefulness of starch produced from the cassava plant.