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Grease theft roils Oregon biodiesel industry; up to 40 percent stolen, renderer says

June 10, 2008

In Oregon, grease theft is threatening the stability of the Oregon biodiesel industry. Grease collector Eugene Chemical and Rendering Works told Oregon Live that as much as 40 percent of their grease is stolen weekly. Meanwhile, grease prices have increased to $2.50 per gallon, up from 57 cents in 2000. More than 90 percent of Oregon biodiesel comes from waste vegetable oil, as biodiesel producers face economic constraints with other feedstocks as well as food vs. fuel concerns.

Grease theft background

In Washington state, Standard Biodiesel in Arlington said that “there’s some piracy going on” as grease bandits have moved into the Pacific Northwest. A company spokesperson told the Seattle Post Intelligencer that waste oil “is becoming quite the commodity,” Grease banditry has been reported in 10 states, with low-level organized crime moving into a field that steals grease valued at as much as $2.00 per gallon from restaurant disposal areas.

Grease thieves continue to appear in the news, interrupting the biodiesel supply chain in the US, prompting a feature story in the Christian Science Monitor on cases in Kentucky, Taxes, Florida, Missouri, California and Arkansas. Theft ranges from petty operations by home brewers to truck-based efforts yielding up to $6,000 in stolen grease in Texas, to gang-related grease theft in Arkansas.

Texas attorney Jon Jaworski, a self styled “grease lawyer” has defended more than 150 clients, and lost only one court case, said that “Juries are amazed by the time and effort put in to try to convict
people for stealing stuff that is rancid”, although grease now sells for $0.32 per pound, up from $0.12 per pound in 2006.

In Nevada earlier this year, a 49-year old man was arrested for stealing grease from a Burger King grease trap, intending to convert the grease into biodiesel. Burger King has a collection contract with San Jose Tallow, who contacted police when they saw the man transferring grease from the restaurants trap to a 5,000 gallon tank car. The theft is the latest in a spate of crime among “grease thieves”, attributed to the rising cost of biodiesel fuel and the corresponding rise in the value of grease as a feedstock.

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    Written by Jim Lane · Filed Under Producer News 

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