McDonald's Vegetable Oil Used for Fuel in UAE

posted on: Jul 5, 2011

McDonald’s is fueling its trucks in the United Arab Emirates with oil from its own vats.

Dubai-based Neutral Fuels announced Sunday that it had reached a deal to convert used vegetable oil from McDonald’s outlets in the UAE into 100 percent biodiesel to power the fast food giant’s delivery trucks across the Gulf country.

It started testing the biodiesel last year and started producing it for McDonald’s at the end of May.

“This one in particular is exciting because I don’t think anyone has really tried that hard to sell this sort of fuel back to the Arabian Peninsula,” said Karl W. Feilder, the chairman of the Neutral Group.

“It’s the first time we are doing it with a fuel that burns 50 percent cleaner than normal diesel and has a lower carbon footprint because it’s coming from a waste vegetable product.”

McDonald’s said the biodiesel initiative was part of larger plans in the UAE, which is flush with crude oil but is also trying to stake its claim as a leader in renewable energy. Among other things, McDonald’s is a partner in one of the country’s main environmental watchdogs, the Emirates Environment Group.

“McDonald’s UAE has demonstrated a passionate and long-term commitment to investing in environmental initiatives,” said Rafic Fakih, managing director and partner of McDonald’s UAE.web.

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