U.S. soy turf to cover more ground than ever in 2021

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Soybean Alliance, with support from the United Soybean Board and SYNLawn Indiana, is kicking off a new partnership with the Indianapolis Colts.

The partnership features soy-backed SYNLawn artificial grass to be used during 2021 pre-game and traveling educational exercise programs, which will be held once COVID-19 limitations end.

“SYNLawn is a leader in the use of U.S. soybean oil to offer both performance and sustainability to its products,” said United Soybean Board Director Jim Carroll III, an Arkansas soybean farmer and former USB Chair.

“Through soy checkoff farmer investments, USB has collaborated with SYNLawn to introduce the benefits of U.S. soy to their customers in diverse locations ranging from New York City to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida.”

This partnership helps further the educational efforts on the many benefits offered by U.S.-grown soybeans, as well as the soy checkoff’s positive impact on building new markets for the industry.

Participating children and adults will have the opportunity to learn about soy while enjoying the Colts’ popular “Touchdown Town” 40-yard dash across SYNLawn.

On game days and all year round, kids throughout the state will have fun learning about football, fitness and soybeans on the soy-backed synthetic grass rolled out for the Colts’ traveling interactive football experience.

From rooftops to road medians and rocket-launch viewing sites, SYNLawn has installed 82 million square feet of U.S. soy-backed grass across 200,000 installations in the United States and 19 other countries since 2008.

For 2021, North America’s largest manufacturer of artificial grass is set to add more soy than ever to its products, which will increase its use of U.S. soy by 10%.

“SYNLawn is pleased to announce that our success with U.S. soybean oil will grow in 2021,” said SYNLawn Executive Vice President George Neagle.

“Thanks to strong domestic as well as international demand for our grass, we are experiencing double-digit market growth,” he said. “We see a bright future for our use of soybean oil and look forward to further collaboration with U.S. farmers on the United Soybean Board.”

Use of soybean oil and other plant-based renewable materials qualifies multiple SYNLawn products for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Certified Biobased Product label. Through their displacement of petroleum, biobased products reduce greenhouse gas emissions that exacerbate global climate change.

“There are more than 1,000 different soy-based products available on the market today, including everything from artificial grass to machinery lubricants to tires and asphalt,” said John Jansen, USB vice president of strategic partnerships.

“Supporting the partnership between SYNLawn, Indiana Soybean Alliance and the Indianapolis Colts demonstrates the value and positive impact of investments the soy checkoff makes on behalf of U.S. soybean farmers.”

According to a report the USDA released in July 2019, biobased products contributed $459 billion to the U.S. economy in 2016 — a 17% increase from 2014 — and supported, directly and indirectly, 4.6 million jobs.

The report’s research team estimates the reduction of fossil fuels and associated GHG emissions from biobased products is equivalent to approximately 12 million metric tons of carbon dioxide prevented in 2016.

The increased production of renewable chemicals and biobased products contributes to the development and expansion of the U.S. bioeconomy — where society looks to agriculture for sustainable sources of fuel, energy, chemicals and products.

Additionally, SYNLawn’s soy-backed grass is recyclable and conserves water. Its use eliminates emissions from lawn mowing and when installed on road medians, workers no longer mow in hazardous locations. The product lasts for multiple years, which further contributes to its cost-effectiveness.