French Fry Oil as Fuel

Collecting tubs of grease may appear as a dirty job, but Steve Feerrar sees these leftovers from area restaurants and schools as a bit of a treasure trove and another means of supplying alternative energy. 

The vegetable oil used by cooks to fry chicken fingers, vegetable tempura, and the occasional shrimp dish, is usually viewed as a messy byproduct by establisments. But Feerrar formulates the grease into cheaper and cleaner fuel.

Feerrar, 59, started Sustainable Energy Alternatives LLC (SEA) in 2009, which provides the collection of vegetable oil waste. It is then processed into environmentally friendly products, replacing petroleum-based diesel fuels that the country is so dependent upon. 

Feerrar is not a radical environmentalist. Instead, he is part of a small group of businessmen, who see a rationale in removing these oils away from the food chain.

“A lot of oil waste goes to rendering companies,” says Feerrar, who started his career as a chemical engineer and is also affiliated with Green Revolution, an energy conservation company. “My thought is, I don’t want the animals that I eat, eating this.” 

Although Europeans have been on the front lines of the biofuel movement for some time, the United States has been slow to catch onto the bandwagon, with just a handful of companies involved in the industry. But Feerrar says the demand for biofuels could grow, as the rise in petroleum increases.

And many states have been encouraging biofuel companies by offering tax incentives. According to Feerrar, New Jersey is one state that has been active in alternative energy movements—proponents have seen wind energy as a plus. So, he’s hopeful that more interest will increase toward biofuels.

Feerrar, who lives in Moorestown with his wife and two daughters, was motivated to be more earth-conscious while sitting on the advisory panel of the NASA program at Burlington County College. The program aims to get students more interested in the sustainable sciences.

“I knew there was probably a better way to get and use fuel” and leave less of an environmental footprint.

SEA provides collection containers—at no cost—to its clients. Once 250 to 300 gallons is gathered, the grease is sent to a biofuel refinery, where it is filtered to remove any food waste.

“Normally, restaurants have to pay to have grease hauled away,” Feerrar says of the economic benefits for restaurant owners partnering with SEA.

Biodiesel fuels are blended into regular diesel fuels and then sold to diesel truck drivers.

“I do not know of any stations in the Moorestown area that sell biodiesel blends,” Feerrar adds, “but a number of stations in more rural areas of this region sell biodiesel.”

Farm trucks and some PSE&G utility trucks run on biodiesel, and it’s also used for home heating oil and in some marine applications.

Lisa Zheng, co-owner of Akira 2 on Main Street says that having someone take away her trash is easier for her, plus she feels good about the grease being recycled.

“I know that I’m helping the environment, too,” Zheng says.

Feerrar says he also has contracts with l and , both in Moorestown; Forno’s Pizzeria & Grille in Maple Shade; and Cork Restaurant in Westmont. School districts participating are Cherry Hill, Collingswood, Haddonfield and Haddon Heights.

“I’m committed to this business,” Feerrar says. “It’s important for today and our future generations.”