An experimental agave farm in Australia could seed a new biofuel industry.Agave is native to the Americas and is the source crop for tequila.The agave bioethanol could be used to help fill crisis demand for hand sanitizer.Scientists in Australia think hardy agave plants could be the next big biofuel source.

Yes, it’s energy-rich on its own, the same way sugarcane and corn are rich in energy potential

“Although its Land Use impact, measured by land occupied per unit ethanol output, is 98 [percent] higher than corn and 2 [percent] higher than sugarcane, agave can be grown on arid land that is not suitable for food crops,” the researchers say

The plants are comparable or better across a variety of criteria

“Our study shows that ethanol yields from agave are comparable to Brazilian sugarcane and higher than US corn ethanol

[A]gave outperforms current first generation biofuel crops in Freshwater Eutrophication (96% lower than corn and 88% lower than sugarcane), Marine Ecotoxicity (59% lower than corn and 53% lower than sugarcane) and Water Consumption (46% lower than corn and 69% lower than sugarcane).” Could the future lie in the bottom of a bottle of tequila—or, more accurately, Australian spirits