FLEETWOOD, Pa. (AP) _ Sam Yoder decided a few years ago to turn his back on the gasoline companies and make all his vehicles run on vegetable oil salvaged from local restaurants.

Now, Yoder is taking his pursuit of self-sufficiency even further.

Yoder has planted 10 acres of sunflowers at his Berks County farm as part of a cooperative organized by the MidAtlantic Renewable Energy Association, which hosts an annual renewable energy festival in Kempton.

Yoder, an association board member, said the cooperative wants to show that farmers can grow their own fuel to run their tractors or help heat their homes. The 10 acres of sunflowers are expected to yield about 1,000 gallons of oil, Yoder said.

Earlier this year, Yoder modified two tractors to run on vegetable oil. He plans on using the sunflowers for his small fleet of vegetable-oil powered vehicles.

"If you talk to farmers, they are happy about corn prices but not the cost of fuel and fertilizer," Yoder said. "This is a way to get them out of the loop."

For years, large-scale farming operations have used soybeans to produce biodiesel fuel. A recently adopted state law gives biodiesel producers a 75-cent-a-gallon credit for using Pennsylvania soybeans.

On average, soybeans yield about 40 gallons of oil an acre, Yoder said, adding that's far less than the 100-gallon-an-acre yield from sunflowers.

Also, sunflower oil holds up better in cold weather, he said.

Yoder planted his sunflower

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crop in May, setting aside acreage normally used for oats and hay. The crop was planted organically to avoid using chemicals and fertilizers produced by fossil fuels.

The sunflowers growing in Yoder's field have passed their brilliant flowering stage. Their large heads, weighed down with seeds, hang over the ground like a field of shower heads.

Next month, the cooperative expects to harvest the sunflowers and extract the oil using a press Yoder has set up in his barn.

It will take 24 hours for the oil to settle out after pressing. After that, it will be ready for use.

Sunflower seeds are 50 percent oil, and the leftover material can be used as a feedstock for animals.

Tim Bock, a Greenwich Township farmer and member of the cooperative, will use his converted combine to help with the harvesting. Bock will receive a share of the oil and use it to run his tractors.

"With the price of gasoline, and the outlook for oil availability in question, the appeal of this project should be self-evident," he said.

Yoder said he hopes the experiment will show that farmers don't have to rely on petroleum to run their operations.

Since the federal government has not established a national energy policy, it is up to individuals to find the best way to become oil independent, he said.

"We are trying to force the issue because the government is not doing it," Yoder said. "We are trying to empower people."