SPAIN – Food and beverage giant, PepsiCo, has launched a pilot project to convert over 40,000 liters of used oil into hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) at its snack plant in Burgos, Spain.
The 100% vegetable-based biofuel, HVO, generated will be used to power the company’s fleet of lorries that transport PepsiCo products and is estimated to save 380 metric tonnes of CO2 per year.
As HVO is a ‘drop-in’ fuel, it can be used as a direct replacement for diesel without any modifications to the vehicle.
Biofuels are being promoted as a low-carbon alternative to fossil fuels as they could help to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the related climate change impact from transport. However, its availability is limited.
As a result, PepsiCo, whose primary, secondary, and fleet transport accounts for 11% of its emissions in Spain, Italy, and Portugal, shifting to this type of initiative and extending its use to eliminate the use of diesel in the medium term.
Starting November last year, PepsiCo in the UK, transitioned to power more than one million miles of truck journeys annually with HVO.
Working with PepsiCo’s haulage partner Pollock (Scotrans) Ltd, the Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil will replace diesel for truck journeys between the Quaker Oat mill in Cupar and Leicester. Every mile powered by HVO will have 80% less GHG emissions when compared with conventional diesel.
Starting this month, PepsiCo UK will power more than one million miles of truck journeys annually with used cooking oil. Working with PepsiCo’s haulage partner Pollock (Scotrans) Ltd, the Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (HVO) will replace diesel for truck journeys between the Quaker Oat mill in Cupar and Leicester.
Every mile powered by HVO will have 80% less GHG emissions when compared with conventional diesel.
PepsiCo UK is sourcing the HVO fuel generated with used cooking oil from its third-party supplier but is investigating whether the company could eventually use its supply.
“Waste oil from our manufacturing sites [is] repurposed into fuel and we’re exploring how we can use this to close the loop in the future,” Simon Devaney, Sustainability Director at PepsiCo, said.
“But thanks to our efficient processes, we have very little waste, so it would not be enough to power our fleet.”
The company has also launched a pilot test in collaboration with Spanish supermarket chain Dia for transport with ‘duo-trailer’ trucks in the country. The truck features two trailers attached “like a train carriage” and enables transportation of up to 6 tonnes of snacks.
Javier Pérez Martínez, head of sustainable transport for PepsiCo Europe, said: “These are pilot tests that we hope will bring us very positive results and can be implemented definitively.”
“We want to and must be part of the solution and with initiatives like these, we are doing our bit to reduce greenhouse gases and advancing our sustainability strategy at the heart of PepsiCo positive.”
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