Unlikely as it may sound, giant pandas Ya Ya and Le Le in
the Memphis Zoo are making contributions toward shifting production of biofuels
away from corn and other food crops and toward corn cobs, stalks and other
non-food plant material.
Scientists presented an update today on efforts to mine Ya
Ya and Le Le’s assets for substances that could do so during the 246th National
Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS), the world’s
largest scientific society. And if things work out, giant pandas Er Shun and Da
Mao in the Toronto Zoo will be joining the quest by making their own
contributions.