Kozhikode city will now be part of RUCO (Repurpose Used Cooking Oil), a project of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), to ensure that cooking oil is not reused in the food industry. The Commissionerate of Food Safety and the Kozhikode Municipal Corporation launched the project in the city on Monday and the collection of used oil from restaurants and bakeries in the city will begin in a week.
RUCO was launched in August 2018 and the project ensures repurposing of cooking oil by converting it into biodiesel. There are 12 biodiesel aggregators approved by FSSAI for the purpose.
In Kerala, Raw Hawk fuels will collect the fuel to be handed over to Eco Green, the biodiesel manufacturers.
Launching the project on Monday, Mayor Thottathil Raveendran said that it would ensure that edible oil used in restaurants and bakeries was not reused for cooking. The Kerala Hotel and Restaurants Association has extended support to the endeavour. Corporation Secretary Binu Francis said that participation in RUCO would be made mandatory for the licensing of food-based enterprises in the city.
Merchants interested in being part of the project may contact the office of the Assistant Commissioner of Food Safety in Kozhikode on 0495-2720744. Used oil will be purchased from them and the price will be based on the Total Polar Compounds (TPC) of the oil, which will be determined in a mobile laboratory. By FSSAI standards, the TPC in cooking oil should not be more than 25%.
Assistant Commissioner of Food Safety M.T. Babychan said that enforcement drives would be held in the city to ensure compliance with the project.
