Japan Airlines initiates household UCO collection for utilization as SAF feedstock

Japan Airlines announced Feb. 28 that it has signed a partnership agreement with Yokohama City to establish and implement a system for collecting used cooking oil (UCO) from households for its utilization as sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) feedstock.

Both Japan Airlines and Yokohama City are participants in the Fry to Fly Project, which aims to decarbonize society through domestic resource recycling and promote initiatives for SAF production by utilizing UCO feedstock.

Starting in March, efforts to collect UCO from households in Yokohama City will be initiated at the Aeon Food Style Kamoi store operated by Daiei.

The initiative involves establishment and social implementation of a comprehensive system for utilizing UCO as SAF feedstock and raising awareness among citizens regarding the recycling of UCO into SAF.

Households will collect their UCO in a dedicated collection bottle and pour it into a collection box installed at the store.

Empty bottles can be reused at home.

When the collection box is filled with a sufficient amount of UCO, collection operators will collect and transport it to a manufacturing plant for conversion into SAF.

The resulting SAF will then be used by airlines to reduce CO2 emissions.

According to Japan Airlines, the actual utilization of UCO as SAF feedstock is scheduled to start after 2025.

Until then, however, the collected UCO will be used as feedstock for biodiesel and other purposes.

Japan Airlines said it is committed to replacing 1 percent of its total jet-fuel consumption with SAF by 2025 and 10 percent by 2030.

To accomplish this, Japan Airlines is procuring SAF domestically and internationally and is supporting the manufacturing and commercialization of domestically produced SAF by collaborating with stakeholders across industries within Japan.

In Sakai City, Osaka, the construction of Japan’s first SAF manufacturing plant is underway with the goal of commercializing domestically produced SAF by 2025.

While UCO is expected to be the primary feedstock of SAF for this plant and future plants, a large amount of household UCO is being disposed of without being utilized.

Japan Airlines aims to promote the spread of collection systems for these unused resources from households and plans to expand this initiative from Yokohama City to other regions nationwide.