Bee’ahTandeef has launched a used cooking oil recycling service, aiming to reduce the negative impact of typical disposal methods while contributing to a zero-waste future. In homes, used cooking oil is usually poured down the drain, where it stresses plumbing systems, creates clogs, and ultimately leads to expensive, time-consuming maintenance work for municipalities and sewage treatment companies. Or, used cooking oil is disposed of in landfill, where it generates greenhouse gasses. With the new service, Bee’ahTandeef is working to counter these challenges, while realising value from waste cooking oil and accelerating efforts towards a circular economy.
Speaking about the initiative, Khaled Al Huraimel, Group CEO of Bee’ah, said: “We recognised that the typical way to dispose used cooking oil has detrimental effects on the environment, burdens public infrastructure, creates inconvenience for people in their homes and poses a risk to a good quality of life. At the same time, used cooking oil offers the opportunity to sustainably create products like biodiesel. By launching the used cooking oil recycling service, Bee’ahTandeef is turning these challenges into an opportunity to realise a zero-waste future.”
Once collected, Bee’ahTandeef will turn the waste cooking oil into biodiesel. In turn, the company will use the biodiesel to fuel its own fleet of waste collection trucks, closing the loop to create a circular economy while greening its own operations. Bee’ahTandeef plans to have several used oil collection machines across the UAE, where community members can deposit used cooking oil in specific bottles provided by the company. Community members can call 800 TANDEEF (826333) to receive their first used cooking oil collection bottle. Whenever a bottle is deposited, the collection machine also dispenses a new empty bottle. This makes it easy for people to continue collecting used cooking oil at home, soon after making a deposit at the collection machine.
Rafael Sanjurjo Lopez, CEO of Tandeef, highlighted that the used cooking oil recycling service is one of the many services provided by Bee’ahTandeef, aligning directly with the company’s efforts towards a zero-waste future.
“Through source-segregation and a robust waste collection network, Bee’ahTandeef has already helped Sharjah realise the highest waste diversion rate away from landfill in the Middle East. With the addition of the used cooking oil recycling service, we want to further contribute to a circular economy, turning waste oil into biodiesel and new, sustainable products,” Lopez said.
The first used cooking oil collection machine has been installed near the parking lot of the Sharjah National Park. It is fully operational and ready to collect deposits from community members. With every deposit, the machine will also dispense an empty bottle for users to take home. Each bottle can hold up to one litre of used cooking oil, has a wide mouth and an airtight cap to prevent spillage during filling and top up. The bottles also have a lifecycle of 5 years and are completely recyclable.
Tandeef plans to roll out collection machines in more communities in Sharjah and across the UAE. All the machines will be operational 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year.