Biodiesel fuel: Out of the frying pan into a vehicle

TO prevent used cooking oils from ending up in the sewers and polluting the water, Gecco, a company based in Lille, France, recovers used edible oil from professionals, but also from individuals, to recycle it into biodiesel.

ETX Studio presents "Protecting the planet one step at a time," a regular feature in partnership with Energy Observer Solutions.

Running vehicles on used frying oil is a no-brainer for Gecco in Lille. A patented process, it enables this food waste to be recovered and converted into biodiesel.

Improving the reputation of chips...

In France's northernmost regions, chips are considered an institution. Belgians, Walloons, the Flemish and the Dutch, each lay claim to the invention of these fried strips of potato.

In fact, the inhabitants of Hauts-de-France use some 5,000 liters of frying oil each year. Seldom reused, this oil quickly ends up in our pipes.

The water in the cities' pipes is highly polluted as a result and requires treatment that costs several hundred thousand euros.

Gecco strikes oil

Gecco was created with the aim of benefiting ecological and interdependent transition, by offering solutions for the local and innovative recovery of waste, thus helping to reduce it. Since 2007, Gecco has specialized in catering waste.

In this way, the Lille-based company has been recovering cooking oil from professionals and individuals to recycle it into biodiesel.

Today, it recovers oil from over 2,050 establishments, collecting some 4,000 tonnes of waste in 2019. Once collected, the oil is treated, filtered and mixed with ethanol.

Up to 30% of it can be incorporated into a traditional diesel fuel. Consequently, the company's director, Michel Milaeres, plans to operate his business according to an interdependent, social model.

Energy Observer is the name of the first hydrogen-powered, zero-emission vessel to be self-sufficient in energy, advocating and serving as a laboratory for ecological transition. Criss-crossing the oceans without air or noise pollution for marine ecosystems, Energy Observer sets out to meet women and men who devote their energy to creating sustainable solutions for a more harmonious world.