McDonald’s UAE poised to set biofuel milestone

This content was originally posted in 7DAYS UAE website at: McDonald’s UAE poised to set biofuel milestone McDonald’s UAE is on track to hit a milestone when its vehicles become the first to reach five million kilometres running on 100 per cent recycled vegetable oil. The food chain introduced the initiative in the UAE more than four years ago with the aim of using waste oil collected from its franchises to fuel the 16 lorries that transport its goods in the Emirates. Rafic Fakih, Managing Director and Partner at McDonald’s UAE, said: “At McDonald’s UAE we are committed to protect and preserve the environment for future generations and we are aiming to continue using our planet’s resources efficiently.” Based on 2015 UK government figures, McDonald’s UAE has saved 99 per cent of CO2e throughout the four years by using biodiesel compared to normal petrodiesel. According to the figures, driving the five million kilometres on normal diesel would have produced a carbon footprint of 4,427,759kg of CO2e, whereas the use of biodiesel created 56,385kg of CO2e. By World Bank calculations, this saving is equivalent to the annual carbon footprint of 214,283 UAE citizens. The biodiesel campaign has received praise at home and abroad. In February 2012, the Dubai Road and Transport Authority recognised McDonald’s and the clean tech firm Neutral Fuels for their commitment to sustainable transport when HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai, awarded them with the Dubai Award for Sustainable Transport in the Environmental Protection Category. Karl Feilder, Chairman of Neutral Fuels LLC, which produces the biodiesel from McDonald’s waste cooking oil, said: “This milestone demonstrates long-term commercial innovation in action and proves beyond a doubt that biodiesel is the most viable commercial alternative to old-style fossil fuels. “As McDonald’s has shown, using biodiesel is so easy and sustainable that anybody could be running their diesel vehicles on this clean fuel. The UAE should be very proud of hosting the first truck fleet in the world to achieve five million kilometres on pure biofuels.” business@7days.ae Read the original story at: McDonald’s UAE poised to set biofuel milestone