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United Biscuits (UB) is a leading
international biscuit manufacturer
whose baking heritage goes back
generations, with many recipes passed
down since the 1800s. A leading
international manufacturer of biscuits,
cakes and snacks, UB has extended
an industry leading initiative that
leverages waste cooking oil to power
its delivery vehicles. UB now has a total
of sixteen vehicles running on Ultra
Biofuel, which generate carbon savings
of up to 97% compared to traditional
diesel.
UB’s 44 tonne vehicles have been
converted and operate a duel fuel
system with Ultra Biofuel being 85% of
the total fuel consumed. This generates
an overall CO
2
saving of 82.5%, which
is the CO
2
equivalent to removing 1.5
million truck miles from the road per
year.
UB converted an additional six Euro
VI vehicles to Biofuel as a result
of the project’s success following
the initial launch in 2012, when the
company formed a consortium with
Convert2Green and the University of
Leeds Energy Institute and participated
in the Department for Transport’s Low
Carbon Truck Trial. The University of
Leeds carried out extensive testing
and analysis in real world conditions
during the trial and published three
papers containing the results. In
addition to proving the CO
2
benefits,
there was also a significant reduction
in particulate emissions with no
deterioration in engine performance or
fuel consumption.
Reduce roadmiles
The move to Ultra Biofuel is part of
a series of commitments from UB
to reduce carbon emissions across
its logistic operations, which have
already seen a total decrease of 43%
in CO
2
since 2005. This includes the
introduction of 62 two metre longer
trailers to UB’s delivery fleet, operating
under an extended Department for
Transport trial. These trailers carry 15%
more pallets and help to reduce road
miles by 450,000 per annum.
In September, the UB partnership
won the ‘Low Carbon Fuel Initiative of
the Year’ at the Low Carbon Vehicle
Champions Awards and earlier this
month these and other initiatives were
also recognized in UB being awarded
the ‘Freight Operator of the Year’ at
the National Transport Awards. Both
projects form part of the company’s
multi-award winning ‘Fewer and
Friendlier Miles’ campaign, which has
removed a total of 30 million truck
miles from UK roads since launching in
2005.
Rob Wright, Head of Distribution,
United Biscuits comments:
“The success of our Biofuel project has
surpassed all our expectations and has
been inspiring for all those involved,
demonstrating the huge potential of
power from waste. The benefits of
recycling waste cooking oil from our
food factories is another step along
United Biscuits’ green journey, which
has already seen us make significant
gains in reducing carbon emissions
across our logistics business.
“It is estimated that the UK generates
250 million litres of waste oils a year,
and we are delighted to be able to
demonstrate a sustainable use for this
waste material with potential to deliver
significant CO
2
savings from transport
within the UK. We firmly believe
that this approach and technology
is scalable and we hope to set a
precedent that other organisations will
follow. We are open to working with
suppliers, customers and competitors
to share our experiences and
expertise.”
Reducing
transport emissions
The picture shows a UB vehicle fuelled by waste oil coupled with a longer trailer. This vehicle combination
generating a 95% CO
2
saving compared to a conventional tractor unit and trailer.
20
Logistics Business Magazine | November 2015
ROAD TRANSPORT