Biofuel Thieves Steal Restaurant Grease 165
TMB writes "In a move that The Simpson's foretold, thieves have begun stealing inedible kitchen grease for use in biofuels. From the article: 'It's known as inedible kitchen grease, or IKG, which was once deemed waste and used in animal feed, though now is "an elixir in the booming green economy," according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture. "The grease’s value as a biofuel is being increasingly recognized," the agency said last month. "IKG is now coveted, which makes it a target for theft.."
Could be worse (Score:5, Informative)
Well, at least it's not likely to get mixed with sewage to make lard for human consumption like in China [nytimes.com].
One hopes so, at least.
This is old news (Score:5, Informative)
Back when I was making my own fuel out of WVO (thats Waste Vegetable Oil, IKG is a new term to me), stores would GIVE US their grease for free. They were paying Rendering farms to haul it off for them. To be turned into dog food usually.
Then biofuel got big, and the renderers started to actually pay a small amount for the oil that they use to get paid to take.
Then, in CA, they got a law passed that said if you haul used veggie oil, you have to have a business license and insurance. It was a scare tactic to get the small time home brewer out of the loop, so that the renderers wouldnt have to compete with home brewers. They even got it classified as a hazardous product!
By the way, the process of turning grease into biofuel is the same as turning it into soap (aka Fight Club), its just a different ratio of the same chemicals. Some Methanol, and some Caustic lye or caustic soda, depending on what your source oil is. Shake and serve!
Re:If it's IKG and therefore no use to the restaur (Score:4, Informative)
FTFS: it's not the restaurants that are reporting this, it's a Government Agency
Yes the issue of a broad theft problem is being reported by a GA, and the GA is talking about taking action, but the GA wouldn't know about the problem unless it was reported by the independent restaurants first.
The implication that the restaurants don't care, only the government and its oil lobbyists care, is completely unfounded.
Oh, and also wrong according to TFA:
NPR blogger Nancy Shute reports on how restaurants and recyclers are now putting barrels of so-called yellow grease under lock and key because, as the National Renderers Association told her, it has become "the new copper."
I guess you were under the impression that only the government and the thieves, not the restaurants, knew that IKG could be valuable?
Re:Not just for fuel in California (Score:5, Informative)
Most of our manufactured crap comes from there, but (aside from apple juice) our food supply is not completely overrun yet. Trader Joe's completely avoids Chinese suppliers.