Ex-First Lady Aims To Make Alabama A Bamboo Power

Several investors including former Alabama first lady Marsha Folsom say they plan to build a bamboo processing plant in Alabama and turn the state into "the Silicon Valley of bamboo." Folsom has joined the founders of bamboo flooring company Teragren and two other partners to launch Resource Fiber LLC. Officials say Folsom will head plans to build an Alabama processing plant that will employ about 100 and open next year. Folsom said bamboo is a $25 billion industry centered in China, and Alabama is uniquely situated to capture a piece of the market. She said "we plan on being the epicenter of bamboo in the U.S" Folsom, whose husband Jim Folsom Jr. was governor from 1993 to 1995, will be CEO of Resource Fiber/Alabama LLC Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.