Can dandelions and shrubs replace rubber in the U.S. in future?

In the U.S. state of Arizona, the guayule plant thrives amidst drought, its blue-green leaves set apart from dry dirt at a research and development farm operated by the tire company Bridgestone. 

Katrina Cornish, a professor at Ohio State University of the United States who studies rubber alternatives, spends her days raising dandelions and desert shrubs. The stretchy rubber substances produced from these plants can be added into condoms, medical gloves and parts for trachea tubes.

Cornish thinks the desert shrub, guayule or the rubber dandelions that bloom with yellow petals could forever alter the landscape of agriculture in the U.S.

Most rubber processing happens outside of the U.S., and the country isn't prepared to process rubber domestically. But Cornish says the threats of disease, climate change and international trade tensions also mean that it would be a smart investment to work on growing and processing domestic alternatives.

Guayule is "clearly a specialty crop and probably always will be" in terms of acres grown, said Bill Niaura, Bridgestone's executive director of sustainable innovation. He said that Bridgestone's work on guayule has been strictly in the research and development realm for about the last 10 years, and only within the past two years or so has the company been transitioning it into an exploratory business.

With climate change bearing down on agriculture around the world, the need for crops that can withstand extreme weather like persistent drought is especially important in parts of sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia where smallholder farmers rely on just a few acres of land. Some of the breeding programs for those crops are based in the U.S., but they are much less frequently included in the American diet or lifestyle.

That's why specialty markets will be critical if these crops have any hope of taking off in the U.S., Cornish said. She thinks that, just as Tesla opened up the possibility of mainstream electric cars by first marketing the product as a luxury good, premium goods like condoms, trachea tube parts and radiation-rated surgical gloves need to be made with dandelion and guayule to inspire producers to grow more meaningful amounts of either of those crops.

(With input from AP)