Animal fat-to-biodiesel plant planned for Watsonville

The Watsonville Planning Commission has approved use and design permits for a new biodiesel production facility in California.

The plant, which will be owned by North Star Biofuels, will be run by seven local residents and produce 65,000 gallons a day of biodiesel.

The project will be built on 19,000 sq ft and follows developments at the company’s test facility which has been producing 3,000 gallons of biodiesel in Redwood City, California since July 2011.

North Star’s CEO Jim Levine says he expects the plant will put Watsonville ‘on the map as far as renewable fuels go’.

The type of biodiesel that will be produced is B100 and will be made 100 times faster than the competitors’ processes, according to the company.

The biodiesel will be derived from animal fat and the byproduct, glycerine, will be sold for soap and other product production.

The animal fat is to be supplied by Agri Beef, a company based in Idaho, which previously sent the fat to Mexico.