Add Climate Change: Growing Doubts Over Chip Fat Biofuel
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<br>Climate change: Growing doubts over chip fat [biofuel](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608)<br>
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<br>21 April 2021<br>
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<br>remarks<br>
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<br>354 Comments<br>
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<br>New research [questions](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) the [environmental](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited) effect of [rising imports](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159346/mission-newenergy-delivers-maiden-biodiesel-production-to-global-oil-major-24476.html) of used cooking oil (UCO) into the UK and Europe.<br>
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<br>Chip fat and other oils are thought about waste, so when they are [utilized](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) to make [biodiesel](https://biodieselmagazine.com/articles/felda-global-buys-missions-kuantan-port-plant-for-11-5-million-9053) it conserves carbon emissions by displacing fossil oil.<br>
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<br>But such is the need across Europe that imports now [account](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) for more than half of the UCO that's made into fuel.<br>
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<br>According to the study, external, there's no method to prove these imports are sustainable.<br>
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<br>Without any screening of what's being available in, experts think it is also ripe for fraud.<br>
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<br>Used cooking oil might boost deforestation<br>
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<br>Consumers posture 'growing threat' to tropical forests<br>
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<br>Reducing emissions from transportation is proving to be among the most difficult difficulties for governments all over the world.<br>
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<br>They have actually encouraged the use of biofuels as an essential means of curbing carbon from [vehicles](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US) and trucks.<br>
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<br>[Biofuels](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86) are normally a mix of nonrenewable fuel source and oil made from plants or vegetables.<br>
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<br>The reality that these crops can be [re-grown](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) and absorb more CO2 indicates they counteract the carbon discharged when used in engines.<br>
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<br>Soy and palm oil were once commonly used as [elements](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) of [biodiesel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159346/mission-newenergy-delivers-maiden-biodiesel-production-to-global-oil-major-24476.html) however this practice has been commonly challenged since it motivates deforestation.<br>
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<br>So for the last years or two, the usage of utilized cooking oil has expanded enormously as an alternative feedstock for fuel.<br>
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<br>Chip fat and other waste oils have ended up being an essential component of [biodiesel](https://www.abnnewswire.net/companies/en/31347/%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%97-Mission-NewEnergy-%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94.html/4) with an efficient market emerging throughout Europe to gather and process the item.<br>
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<br>But with the amount of [biodiesel](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) made from [UCO increasing](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86) by around 40% every year considering that 2014, there just isn't enough chip fat to walk around.<br>
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<br>According to a report from the campaign group Transport & Environment, external, over half of the UCO used in Europe is imported.<br>
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<br>Their study recommends this is extremely problematic when it concerns influence on the [environment](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048).<br>
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<br>While UCO is considered a waste product in the UK, in China, Indonesia and Malaysia it has actually long been used to [feed animals](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86). The report raises the concern of what people in these nations are changing the UCO with, when it is exported.<br>
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<br>In 2019, Malaysia exported 90 million litres of UCO to the UK and Ireland. Figures for their exports to other European nations aren't readily available however the flow of UCO is most likely to be similar.<br>
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<br>With a [population](https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/51278-86) of around 33 million, that's close to 3 litres per head of used oil that's gathered and exported to the UK and Ireland alone.<br>
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<br>By comparison, Thailand, which has a population of 70 million individuals, handled to gather around five million litres of UCO in 2019.<br>
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<br>"Because we are buying it, they have less used cooking oil to use on the things that they were formerly utilizing it for," said Greg Archer with Transport & Environment.<br>
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<br>"And they're simply buying more virgin oil and that virgin oil is mainly palm oil, since that's the most affordable oil readily available.<br>
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<br>"So indirectly, we're simply motivating more deforestation in [Southeast Asia](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html)."<br>
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<br>Another significant issue with UCO is the suspicion of scams.<br>
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<br>Because of demand from Europe, the rate of UCO is typically higher than palm oil. The concern is that some unethical traders are simply watering down deliveries of UCO with palm.<br>
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<br>As oils of various types are blended in bulk for transport, and no screening of the materials is brought out, some specialists think scams is rife.<br>
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<br>The suggestion of scams anywhere along the chain of supply is rejected by the European Waste-to-Advanced Biofuels Association (EWABA), who say there are robust accreditation schemes in location.<br>
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<br>"It is extensively known that the European Commission has taken relevant steps to completely curb unsound market practices in [biofuel](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) markets," stated Angel Alberdi, EWABA's secretary general.<br>
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<br>He says a new database being developed by the EU will ensure that trading, accreditation and sustainability information on all bio-liquids will have to be registered.<br>
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<br>"The mix of modified certification schemes and the pan-EU track and trace database will guarantee that no [sustainability](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) problems emerge in the entire biofuels and bio-liquids supply chain," he told BBC News.<br>
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<br>Others in the field are concerned that the database idea, which was first mooted in 2018, might not work in stemming presumed scams.<br>
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<br>The report from Transport & Environment points out that with shipping and aviation seeking to decarbonise by using biofuels, demand for UCO might double over the next years.<br>
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<br>"Rising the need beyond sustainable supply levels would increase these issues, and risks of utilizing 'fake' UCO, possibly causing indirect effects such as logging."<br>
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<br>Follow Matt on Twitter @mattmcgrathbbc, external.<br>
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<br>Related topics<br>
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<br>COP26<br>
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<br>Paris environment contract<br>
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<br>Climate<br>
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