In New Zealand, companies are recycling beer waste to make biofuel. The new type of fuel is said to be cleaner compared to regular diesel or petrol.
Independent reported that the new biofuel, called Brewtroleum, was made by Gull fuel and DB Export brewers. It is made from ethanol taken out of yeast remaining from local beer brewing and regular fuel.
Brewtroleum is actually the first commercial fuel in the world made from brewing by-products — the result is gasoline with eight percent less carbon dioxide compared to normal fuel.
The concept started in February 2015 and it is currently available at filling stations across the North Island in New Zealand. Gull initially made 300,000 liters and plan to make more if the new fuel is well-received by drivers in the country.
To come up with 300,000 liters of Brewtroleum, 30,000 liters of ethanol is taken out of 58,000 liters of yeast slurry. Slurry is usually thrown out as waste or given to farm animals. The initial batch will be good for around six weeks. Vice.com revealed that Brewtroleum is 90 percent petrol and 10 percent ethanol, which has a similar ratio as the E10 at any standard service station. Almost all modern cars can run on Brewtroleum. The AA stated that 30 liters of biofuel can save over 250 kilograms of carbon dioxide emissions every year.
“We’re helping Kiwis save the world by doing what they enjoy best – drinking beer,” Sean O’Donnell, spokesman of DB, told the New Zealand Herald.
"It's a case of testing consumer demand and assessing the feasibility of ongoing production and logistics,” O’Donnell added.
Popular Science wrote that the use of ethanol to power vehicles is not a new idea. In the United States, corn is grown to be converted into biofuel. In Brazil, companies have also recycled sugarcane waste to make ethanol.
Since 1996, Molson Coors, the big beer company, has been making ethanol from beer. There is even a better beer-based biofuel than Brewtroleum, introduced in 2008 at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. It was better because it had 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline. A number of cars may not run on biofuel with a very high ratio of ethanol to gasoline.
Brewtroleum will only be available for a few weeks in the meantime. If drivers in New Zealand are satisfied with the quality and continue filling up their vehicles with the new biofuel, Gull will make more of the environmentally friendly product.