The Biden administration is investigating certain biodiesel producers due to growing concerns that some of these fuels may be made with misleading ingredients that breach federal regulations.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is conducting these audits amid increasing pressure from farm groups and lawmakers to address issues related to used cooking oil (UCO) — a crucial component for producing renewable fuels — which may be fraudulent.
These audits aim to trace the origins of UCO, according to sources familiar with the situation.
The investigations, initially reported by Reuters, are prompted by a surge of UCO imports from China that are flooding the U.S. market, affecting American producers of domestic feedstocks like soy and corn oil.
An EPA spokesperson described these inspections as part of a “routine evaluation of compliance” with U.S. biofuel policies.
“EPA has conducted inspections of renewable fuel producers, which include assessing the sources of used cooking oil collected for renewable fuel production,” the agency stated in an email. The EPA did not provide further details or disclose the names of the producers involved.
It remains unclear whether the EPA suspects specific instances of fraud, such as UCO from Asia being mixed with fresh vegetable oils like palm oil, which could distort commodity values and compromise U.S. biofuel regulations.
Palm oil, a widely used vegetable oil, is controversial due to its association with labor abuses and significant deforestation, particularly in Indonesia.
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