Apr 12, 2011 10:21 AM

US Foodservice has purchased the assets of Bluffton SC-based WVO Industries. WVO collects and removes water, food particles, and other impurities from waste vegetable oil then ships the bio feedstock to a processing company that produces an 80/20 diesel/biodiesel blend known as B20 that will be used to fuel hundreds of food delivery trucks at the US Foodservice–Columbia Division in Lexington SC.

Use of biodiesel made from cooking oil reduces lifecycle carbon emissions by 80% over carbon-based diesel, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency.

US Foodservice has been the exclusive collection agent for WVO since 2009, providing it with waste cooking oil from restaurant deep fryers. Waste vegetable oil is collected in specially designed, sealed cans that are convenient and easy for restaurants to use. The oil collection trucks are separate and distinct from US Foodservice food delivery trucks to ensure the quality and safety of transported food. Outbound food never comes in contact with inbound waste vegetable oil.

“The purchase of WVO will establish US Foodservice as an industry leader in fleet sustainability,” said Durwood Owens, division president, US Foodservice–Columbia. “We’re also helping customers achieve their sustainability goals by offering an easy, reliable way for them to recycle their waste cooking oil instead of sending it to landfills.”

US Foodservice–Columbia will relocate the WVO assets to a new “tipping station” at the Lexington distribution center to store waste oil for processing and blending into biofuel. The tipping station will be operational by late 2011, and be able to convert 5 million pounds of waste oil into 400,000 gallons of bio feedstock each year. The division plans to use approximately 200,000 gallons of converted waste vegetable oil for biodiesel annually, which would allow the remaining gallons to be made available elsewhere in the company or as a supply source for outside companies.

A member of the Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co Green Portfolio Program, US Foodservice has improved its sustainability profile since 2007. By improving fleet efficiency by 5% and increasing distribution center energy efficiency by 15% between 2007 and 2009, US Foodservice avoided 101,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, the equivalent of taking more than 8,000 cars off of the road and taking more than 8,600 homes off the electrical grid.

To learn more, visit www.usfoodservice.com.