Neste to phase out use of edible feed stocks

Neste Oil will eventually cease producing biofuels from edible feed stocks due to concerns over land usage and sustainability, said Simo Honkanen, vice president, marketing and stakeholder relations, for the company’s renewable fuels business. “The company has committed to move out of edible feed stocks by 2020,” Honkanen said. The industry’s use of edible feed stocks including grains and vegetable oils for fuel production has been blamed for exacerbating global food price inflation. The use of palm oil has also been criticized for driving deforestation in Indonesia, as producers make way for new palm oil plantations. The Finnish company is focusing its research and development on alternative feed stocks, particularly those that don’t compete for food-producing land and resources. An algae-based biodiesel is one of the potential solutions but it will take some years before any alternatives to edible feed stocks become commercially viable, Honkanen said. Earlier this month, the company’s renewable fuels business launched its renewable diesel product, which Neste says delivers between 40% and 60% greenhouse gas savings and can be blended with conventional diesel fuel. The product is being supplied to the Helsinki market but will eventually also supply key biodiesel markets within the E.U., including Germany, the U.K., Belgium, France and Sweden, Honkanen said. (May 21, 2008)