Bio-diesel fuels environmentally positive transport route

As more and more leading organisations recognise the increased importance of sound ethical and environmental practices, Green Routes, based in Winnington, Cheshire, lays claim to be the first company in the country to offer a dedicated bio-fuelled transport solution.


This North West firm provides a fleet of vehicles fuelled entirely from renewable sources, ensuring more economical and environmentally friendly distribution services.

The Green Routes fleet runs exclusively on bio-diesel, made entirely from waste vegetable matter rather than fossil fuels (crude petroleum). The company spells out the many advantages offered over petroleum-based diesel: as well as improved product performance – the bio-diesel delivers more miles per gallon – it does not release harmful carbon emissions and therefore makes no net contribution to global warning. It also burns more cleanly and efficiently than fossil fuels, further reducing pollution, says Green Routes.

The company offers a considerable pedigree, as the brainchild of Stephen Whittaker, a pioneer in the bulk production of bio-diesel, and Jack McEvoy, former Managing Director of Grocery Logistics, with over 20 years’ experience in the transport and distribution industry.

Mr Whittaker has been at the forefront of the UK bio-diesel market for a number of years. From its site in Northwich, Cheshire, his company, Ebony Solutions, is now capable of producing over 400,000 litres of bio-diesel a week to supply existing customers and sustain Green Routes’ own fleet of vehicles.

Commonly known as bio-diesel, e-diesel is a clean burning alternative to diesel fuel, refined from vegetable oils instead of crude petroleum. The fuel can be manufactured from a wide range of organic, renewable oils including waste oil used in food production and catering.

It produces no net CO2 emissions, has a much better lubricity and higher Cetane Number than diesel fuel, and can be used in all diesel engines without any modification. Typically, e-diesel is supplied at 100%, 20% or 5% concentrations blended with Ultra Low Sulphur Diesel. The key innovation with the Green Routes service is that the fleet runs entirely on bio-fuel.

There are currently five wagons vehicles in the company’s own fleet, a number projected to grow up to around 25 on Green Routes’ own services.

A key partner in the haulage field operates 25 vehicles on bio-diesel.
“Stephen’s the bio-fuel expert and I bring the distribution experience,” says Jack McEvoy, “and between us we are developing a genuinely differentiated offer – a green transport company which can ensure more economical and ecologically sound distribution services whatever the industry.”

“More and more leading companies are recognising the commercial and marketing value of corporate social responsibility (CSR) programmes, and recycling initiatives and the use of ‘green’ products and services are very demonstrable examples of CSR in practice,” says Stephen Whittaker.

In his experience, this has certainly been an important consideration for many established users of his bio-diesel, including United Utilities and several local authority customers.

Jack McEvoy concludes: “We are seeking to provide transport services to companies that take their corporate environmental responsibilities very seriously and we intend to prove that ethical business is good business.”

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