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October 7, 2008
-Bio Driven to cut costs and carbon footprints for UK food brands-
Bio Driven, an innovative UK company dedicated to the production of high
quality, compliant biodiesel, has launched a series of new facilities and
strategies to provide sustainable solutions for the food industry.
It has been calculated that 225,000 tonnes of used cooking oil is thrown
away every year in the UK. If this was all collected and refined, the
resulting biofuel could generate more than 13,000-megawatt hours of
electricity per year, the equivalent to the annual average consumption of
around 2,200 householdsi. Based in Canterbury, Kent, Bio Driven offers
a small commercial facility producing sustainable, compliant biodiesel for
high-end users using only waste cooking oils and avoiding virgin or palm
oils.
The needs and demands of food manufacturers, food logistics companies and
commercial caterers have been investigated since the company was established
in2006. Bio Driven currently works with Carnival UK, Fred Olsen, Norwegian
Cruise line, Royal Caribbean (including the largest cruise liner in the
world called ‘The Independence of the Seas’) and others. The company plans
to work with national and multinational food companies in the near future
assisting with their waste management stream, promoting environmental
awareness and cutting costs.
David Chalk, managing director of Bio Driven, said: “Our aims are to
expand the envelope for currently available feedstock through R&D to the
commercial production of Algae to compliment our available feedstocks.
Ultimately we promote sustainability, acceptance and competitive price
points for our products.”
Quality is paramount to Bio Driven’s production: biodiesel is processed using
equipment sourced throughout Europe. The reactor vessels and filtering process
are to food grade standards and the company’s is committed to becoming carbon
negative with the installation of on-site combined heat and power from
biodiesel/glycerine in the not too distant future. The production process is
already carbon neutral.
Chalk explains the company’s core activities: “We take in bulk oils
from clients for processing and refining, which we sell on as biodiesel, but
our expertise does nonstop there. We have, through The Environmental
Industries Commission and The Renewable Energy Association, developed
industry networking and franchise opportunities to accommodate high volumes
of bulk feed stock for biodiesel production within the UK to reduce fuel
miles and costs.”
Bio Driven offers three areas of activity:
- A simple cash purchase for bulk waste cooking oil for conversion to
biodiesel within the Bio Driven plant and network facilities.
- For
companies wanting to use their own waste cooking oil for biodiesel in their
logistics fleet, Bio Driven will introduce a fully-automated mobile facility
nearly 2009 using its trained staff to undertake the conversion on site,
delivering biodiesel at no capital cost, reducing road miles, converting the
waste stream to a cash asset and providing a sustainable solution to their
waste cooking oil.
- Bio Driven has the expertise to advise, install
and train staff to operate a fully automated biodiesel plant tailored to
each individual company’s requirement, for those with on-site bulk waste
cooking oil.
Chalk commented: “Within the food processing
industry, forward buying and hedging prices for feedstocks offers price
stability, which is transferrable to a company's logistics/transport
requirements, when converting the waste cooking oil to biodiesel. Working with
Bio Driven will result in fuel price stability, significant savings and a
greater understanding and positive contribution to current environmental
issues.”
Contact details
For more information about Bio Driven and its work within the food industry
please contact David Chalk at Bio Driven on +44 (0) 1227700288, email:
info@biodriven.co.uk or visit the
website at
www.biodriven.co.uk.
What is biodiesel?
Biodiesel is the name of a clean burning alternative fuel, produced from
domestic, renewable resources both virgin and waste cooking oils. It contains no
petroleum, but it can be blended at any level with petroleum diesel to create a
biodiesel blend.
Bio Diesel EN14214 is a European based standard designed to be used in
compression-ignition (diesel) engines with little or no modifications. It is
biodegradable, non-toxic, and essentially sulphur free. Although derived
from vegetable oils biodiesel EN14214 has undergone extensive chemical
processing and analysing and has no detrimental properties unlike
unprocessed vegetable oils.
Biodiesel also has lubricating properties causing deposits from previous
hydrocarbon diesel oil deposits in the engines fuel supply to be released.
Therefore it is important to monitor and change when necessary the vehicles
fuel filter.
Bio Driven avoids manufacturing biodiesel using only environmental
sustainable waste oils avoiding palm oil. The production of palm oil and its
use in biodiesel does raise concerns regarding its impact on the environment
from unsustainable production and has gelling properties below 2°C causing
potential starting problems in winter months.
When using Biodiesel EN14214 it is recommended to consult your vehicle
manufacturer's warrantee, as there are major disparities with manufacturers,
some allowing 100% and others as low as 5%.
1
http://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/NR/exeres/9AD22833-50E6-429B-ABBD-5DFF42B7063A.htm
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