The little pea-sized soybean could eventually join switch grass and corn kernels as promising alternatives to help curb America’s addiction to foreign oil.
While the folks at Southfield, Mich.-based Lear Corp. won’t pitch the idea that the main ingredient in tofu could cut the U.S. need for oil imports, they did announce Thursday they’ve reached the next step in developing car-seat foam and interior materials using soy-based oil.
“We’re ready to provide this product right now,” said Ash Galbreath, director of foam and comfort engineering at Lear.
The automotive supplier touted its product, known as SoyFoam, as a greener alternative to petroleum-based foam in head restraints, armrests and seat cushions.
The nonedible SoyFoam offers several advantages over the traditional material used to make comfortable seats and interiors.
It’s lighter than traditional foam, and the soybean market is much more stable than the petroleum market.
It contributes to a company’s eco-reputation and plays to consumers’ desires to buy environmentally friendly materials. And in the long term, using a soy-based foam could save the company money.
The price of raw materials such as oil and precious metals has cut into auto-supplier profits.
With 30 to 40 pounds of foam materials in each new vehicle, the potential savings with SoyFoam are significant. But Galbreath said Lear hasn’t reached a point where it’s seeing those savings.
