CanolaBiodiesel.org is managed and delivered by the Canola Council of Canada. The Council is a non-profit association representing the entire Canadian canola industry — growers, input suppliers, researchers, crushers, processors, exporters and marketers.
The machines that power the Canadian economy – heavy equipment, long haul trucks, farm machinery, municipal fleets, generators – are powered by diesel fuel. In almost every instance, these engines cannot run on gasoline, ethanol, fuel cells or any fuel other than diesel, making biodiesel the best alternative to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and clean the air.
A canola-based biodiesel industry in Canada represents the opportunity to generate $620 million in capital investment in this country and inject an additional $2.4 billion into the economy annually.
We have a choice to make. Create a value-added agricultural economy here at home – through biodiesel production and distribution – or export raw canola south of the border and import biodiesel back into the country. We think the choice is clear. Let’s keep the jobs, investment and expertise here in Canada.
In December 2006 the federal government announced support of a national renewable fuel strategy calling for a 5% renewable fuel standard in all Canadian fuel, including a 2% mandate for renewables in diesel by 2012.
The Canola Council is working with the Canadian petroleum industry to demonstrate the ability of biodiesel to meet performance standards in Canadian conditions. The Council is confident that growers and industry can build the necessary infrastructure to meet a 2% biodiesel requirement by 2010 – two years ahead of the government’s 2012 timeline.
Canada’s canola growers are ready to make a Canadian biodiesel industry happen -- now. Over the past 40 years we have built the canola industry from the ground up to a $14 billion-a-year industry in Canada, and international customers are already seeking Canadian canola as a desirable feedstock. We’re committed to using that experience to build a biodiesel industry at home.