Last year proved to be a good year for soy-based products as, thanks in part to the United Soybean Board (USB), 26 new soy-based products hit the market. USB’s New Uses program provides funding to scientists and industrial partners to research, develop and commercialize products containing soybeans.

USB directs its funding toward several categories, including adhesives, coatings, printing inks, lubricants, plastics, fibers and solvents. For more information on USB’s New Uses programs, click here. Consumers can find some of this year’s new products, like a soy-based degreaser and adhesive remover, available at retail outlets such as The Home Depot and Ace Hardware. Other products, such as a soy-based adhesive used to manufacture plywood, will garner more attention from industrial users.

Some of the soy-based adhesives introduced last year include:

• Soyad—soy flour adhesive for use in wood panels from H2H
• Soythane TM 90—100% solids, multipurpose polyurethane adhesive based on soy polymers from Bondaflex Technologies
• Multibond MX 100—a one-component soy-based polyvinyl acetate adhesive for hardwood plywood from Franklin International

To see a complete list of soy-based products introduced as a result of USB support, click here.

While USB works to promote soy-based products in a number of other categories as well, the common thread is that soy-based products are sustainable and boost the demand for U.S. soy. USB works to advance the sustainability movement, in part, by developing and promoting soy-based products. Many of the projects USB funds have led to products that use soy as a replacement for petrochemicals, making them more renewable, sustainable and environmentally friendly than their non-soy-based counterparts.

USB will continue to promote industrial uses for soy, which present a sustainable alternative to petrochemical-based products and increase the demand for soy. USB remains thankful for our industrial partners in the adhesives and sealants industry and other industries, and looks forward to 2010 being another banner year for new soy-based products.

If you’re interested in staying current on all soy technology, sign up for Biobased Solutions by clicking here.