Jatropha is a family of plants that grows in Central America, Africa, the tropical countries of Asia and Australia. These plants are extremely hardy, can stand very dry and harsh weather condition and are known to be able to resist pests to a great extent. On the con side, this tree produces some toxic materials such as saponin, lectin, and phorbol. Recently, these plants are becoming objects of much interest and speculations around the world because they are claimed to be the best sources of biodiesel.

The jatropha seeds, commonly known as the physic nuts, contain up to 40% oil. The jatropha oil can be used directly as biofuel or can be converted into biodiesel for a more efficient performance. When raw or mixed jatropha oil is directly used in an automobile or even plane engines, there is some residue, which can be used as biomass in power plants to produce electricity.

As these plants can grow in very harsh weather conditions and has amazing adaptability, it can be cultivated in large barren areas in any country. In India, the government has undertaken many projects to cultivate jatropha in unused lands in order to produce biodiesel in the future. The three-wheeled public vehicles in India, known as auto-rickshaws are going to use only biodiesel in near future. Also, the railway authority in India is running many railway engines on biodiesel.

In Brazil and Philippines, biodiesel is already being produced from jatropha oil. Brazil is one of the forerunners in the world in producing biodiesel. As a result of this, a lot of fuel stations in Brazil now sell biodiesel.

However, the toxicity of jatropha trees may pose a major problem to widespread cultivation of these plants. There are not enough scientific researches conducted to learn its impact on soil and environment. Even though in countries like Brazil, Mali and India, jatropha trees are being cultivated successfully, these are relatively recent developments. We do not know for sure, if the toxicity of jatropha seeds will affect the soil adversely in the long run or not.

As of now, the cultivation of jatropha trees is being promoted by the governments of almost all countries. One major advantage of cultivating jatropha in a country will be that the country will not have to depend heavily on the Middle East for crude oil. If a country manages to produce a good amount of jatropha oil, after meeting the domestic demands, she can export it to other countries also.