Cargill breaks ground on Chicago soy foam plant

Cargill Inc. said Tuesday that it broke ground on a $22 million plant -- to be based on Chicago's Far South Side -- that will use soybeans instead of petroleum products to make an ingredient used in plastic foam for automotive, furniture and bedding products.

The plant, which will be based at an 80-acred site on South Torrence Avenue that houses Cargill's existing operations, will make Cargill's BIOH-branded, soybean-based polyols, which are used in making urethane products.

Closely held Cargill, a Minneapolis food-ingredients producer, is seeking to expand its production of environmentally friendlier chemicals derived from renewable sources such as plants.