Convert2Green and 3663 have secured a contract with T.G.I. Friday's (UK) Limited
to collect and turn waste cooking oil from around 50 restaurants in the UK into
carbon savings. The waste oil will be collected by Convert2Green, refined into
bio-diesel at its plant in Cheshire and will be used to fuel 3663's trucks;
T.G.I. Friday's supply chain partner, to deliver the food to the restaurants.
"Converting our used cooking oil to bio-diesel to fuel the trucks is part of
T.G.I. Friday's wider social responsibility charter - its just one of many ways
we're working to meet our ambitious targets," explains Alyson Scott, Head of
Supply Chain, T.G.I. Friday's (UK) Limited.
"We have clear goals to reach in terms of recycling and energy savings - our aim
is to totally eradicate all landfill by 2012 and reduce our energy consumption
by 15% by the same date - and we're well on track to achieving both of those
targets.
"Like most restaurant groups, we produce large quantities of waste cooking oil
per annum - which might otherwise go to landfill and may even cause
environmental problems, but recycling it to high quality bio-fuel can help
T.G.I. Friday's to reduce carbon emissions by up to 90%."
Faye Reeve, Senior Buyer, 3663 comments: "3663 is delighted to welcome T.G.I.
Friday's into the recycling scheme. We rely on being able to work with our
customers to gain mutual environmental benefits from this initiative which has
resulted in gaining an assurance to ISO 10464 (part 2).
"It is this assurance which allows us to give T.G.I. Friday's a validated carbon
saving within their supply chain. The use of bio diesel in our fleet is a
fantastic way to reduce our carbon emissions while also offering a solution to
recycling a waste product and retaining the benefits of this in a secured supply
chain."
Convert2Green also works in partnership with other key clients in the food and
hospitality industry, including Robinson's pubs, Cygnet Foods and Tamar foods to
reduce carbon emissions and cut costs.
"It's great that T.G.I. Friday's is thinking about the disposal of its waste
cooking oil. By allowing Convert2Green to refine it, the waste to energy cycle
passes on carbon savings through the supply chain, in this case via supply chain
partner 3663," said Brian Rowlands, business development director,
Convert2Green.
"Many of our customers find that initiatives of this kind are giving them a real
competitive edge in the marketplace, as buyers are looking to their supply chain
to provide real carbon savings through their procurement strategies."