Waste oil, tofu swap kills 3 birds with 1 stone

The Yomiuri Shimbun

FUKUSHIMA--When is used cooking oil not considered waste? Households in Samegawamura, Fukushima Prefecture, think they have the answer. When the excess is exchanged for locally produced tofu, and refined to produce biofuel used to run official vehicles.

Residents expect a local project--which fully got off the ground on July 1--to "kill three birds with one stone."

The exchange of waste oil for tofu may raise demand for local soybeans, a Samegawamura specialty. Residents who consume a greater amount of tofu also may improve their health. Using diesel fuel created from refuse to run the local government's cars is another benefit.

The project began when a machine that purifies waste oil and creates biodiesel fuel (an alternative to light oil) was purchased in March.

Excess oil produced when cooking school-provided lunches at a village primary and middle school has been recycled into fuel for the school's lunch delivery truck.

A more recent suggestion implemented by village officials was to collect waste oil from local residents' houses to run government vehicles.

It was believed there would be more of an incentive for Samegawamura's 4,200 residents to donate the oil if it was exchanged for locally produced tofu.

Named "Tassha no Tofu," the tofu is sourced from 100 percent locally grown soybeans and sold at a village-run agricultural shop called Temamekan for 150 yen per block.

Temamekan produces about 150 blocks of the tofu per day, which has gained a reputation for its flavor.

When waste cooking oil is brought to Temamekan, participants are supposed to get a card stamped for every 0.5 liters of oil donated. Once five stamps are collected, they receive a block of tofu.

As of Aug. 15, about 60 liters of waste oil have been exchanged for 24 blocks of tofu.

A 44-year-old restaurateur in the village said she received three cakes of tofu in exchange for the tempura oil that was used in her restaurant.

"It was a pain in the neck to dispose of the waste oil. [Now the village] picks it up and gives us tofu. I'm so glad," she said.

Government officials have budgeted 180,000 yen for the 1,200 cakes of tofu it expects to offer for waste oil by the end of this fiscal year.

"We've had a bigger reaction than expected. The awareness to not discard used oil has increased, which also helps children learn about the environment," said Yohei Ishii, an official from the village's agricultural and forestry section.