It seems that will researchers will experiment with just about any substance to see if it can be converted into biofuels. Scientists in Japan are currently working to see if they can give sour milk and rotting jellyfish a useful purpose whlie some California engineers are testing table scraps from local restaurants. Ever wonder how they get that caramel into the Caramilk bars? Researchers from the University of Birmingham in the U.K. don't care so much about that as they do about the potential of using the discarded caramel - as well as nougat and other confectionary waste - from the Cadbury Schweppes plant for alternative sources of energy.

These attempts have spawned from the need to find other food crops besides corn and sugarcane, which are currently wreaking havoc on the food industry and the environment as farmers rush to plant corn instead of wheat, causing a significant shortage in the global wheat supply. Instead, scientists hope to find new sources of energy from fast-growing crops and the food waste that is current crammed into landfills. The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has released a report that indicates garbage may be used in the production of 15 per cent of the Pacific Northwest's biofuel.

With a potential wheat crisis on the horizon, it is especially encouraging to see scientists exploring other options, especially ones that utilize waste that would otherwise be diverted to landfills. Now that some experts predict we'll be stuck with high food prices for the next decade, these developments can't come soon enough.

There is a lot of scientific explantion behind these efforts, which you can read more about by hitting the jump.

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