Energy: Turning Animals into Green Fuel

It's not just rabbits that are being used to heat homes. Reindeer, moose, horses, pigs and cows are all thrown into an incinerator run by a firm called Konvex near Lake Vanem, southeast of Stockholm. Using a new method that was developed with the help of E.U. funding, raw animal material is crushed, ground and then pumped into a boiler where it is burned together with wood chips, peat or other waste to produce heat.
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In Britain, big supermarkets send unsold and expired meat to companies that convert it into fuel to heat homes. Since 2001, the German biofuel company Saria takes greasy animal fats and cooking oil from caterers and restaurants and then turns it into renewable energy used for power stations and manufacturing plants. Saria found using animal oil instead of vegetable oil is not only a cheaper alternative, but it also produces less harmful emissions, delivers better engine efficiency and reduces noise pollution.

Corporate America is getting into the animal-based biofuel market as well, thanks to U.S. government subsidies. Like Europe, the U.S. has a law that bans dumping raw meat into landfills. In July 2007, energy company, ConocoPhillips teamed up with meat giant Tyson to make biofuel from chicken and pork fats that would otherwise have been added into makeup, pet foods or soaps.
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