The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has launched a major initiative to convert London's food waste into eco-fuel to cut landfill rates and carbon emissions.

Every year, London produces a nearly three million tonnes of organic waste, mainly from food. Nearly two thirds of this waste is currently burnt in incinerators or buried in landfill, which produces potent climate change gases. Launched at a major waste industry conference, the Mayor's 'Foodwaste to Fuel Alliance' will bring together developers, food producers, energy companies and others key parties to provide the new infrastructure needed in London to extract the fuel from the capital’s leftover food. This will act as an alternative to fossil fuels to produce a greener energy to heat and power homes and power public transport and other vehicles.

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The Mayor wants the Alliance, supported by London's Waste and Recycling Board, to deliver five exemplar new 'bio-fuel' plants in the capital by 2012. This could include the development of anaerobic digestion plants to produce renewable energy, bio-diesel refineries, (bio-diesel is a renewable transport fuel made from cooking oil to fuel buses, taxis and minicabs), hydrogen from waste or the use of compost material for the city's allotments. The Board has £84million to spend over the next three years to reduce waste and boost recycling with £31million earmarked for projects that will create energy. It is hoped that the Olympic Games will also offer opportunities to convert its food waste into energy.

Mr Johnson, said: "London is currently throwing away valuable food waste that could be used instead to produce an eco-fuel for businesses and homes. Whilst we can all take steps to throw less food away in the first place, it is extraordinary that we are losing this resource by simply chucking it out.

"I am absolutely determined to see that London’s reservoirs of used oil and mountains of leftovers are converted into a greener fuel saving millions of pounds off energy bills. This will also save tonnes of the climate changing gases that are damaging the planet.

"Three cheers to the forward thinking businesses that have signed up today to solve this problem and I urge others to now come forward to do the same."

(CD/JM)