The government, in its infinite foolishness, has spent a million quid or thereabouts to get researchers to develop a process for converting draff and pot ale, by-products of the distillery business, into butanol for use as a biofuel. The people involved are now seeking another considerably larger wad of cash from the taxpayer to scale the process up.
According to Wikipedia, "[i]n addition to the biofuel, the production process will also produce acetone, ethanol, animal feed, and other sustainable chemicals".
Uh huh. And what are draff and pot ale used for now? For animal feed.
My suspicion is that by subsidising this process (as will inevitably have to happen if it is to have a future), the government will produce expensive biofuel and animal feed of a low nutritional value, which will no doubt be shunned by farmers.
Perhaps the government could subsidise it to ensure it gets used up?