How to Choose the Right Fryer Oil Collection Service

The best thing you can do for the environment is to prevent as much waste as possible from going into the trash, and the landfills. Today, used cooking oil is one of the most generated wastes, both in restaurants as well as homes, with about 3 billion gallons coming out of the kitchens annually.

But the good thing is that the recycling industry has risen to the occasion and today, not even a drop of used liquid oil needs to go to waste, or to the landfills. Even better is the fact that any oil, be it vegetable oil, butter, or any other can be recycled.

For efficiency, you need to choose the best fryer oil collection service. Checking online, you will see so many collection services, but not all of them are good for you.

So, how do you subscribe to a good used frying oil recycling service? Here the most important factors to bear in mind:

Their recycling history

As a responsible business, you want to sell your used cooking oil to a company that has been in business for some time. That way, you will be sure they can handle any amount of used oil you generate, and as your fast food business grows and you open more branches, they can grow with you.

Also, cooking oil recycling companies pay for the used oil in favorable rebates. In this case, well established companies offer better rates than newbie companies.

This does not mean that you should not give small, upcoming recycling companies a chance. You can, but if your business generates a lot of used frying oil, you would be better off working with a well-established company.

You can look at the other business that they recycle used cooking oil for, and the more the better. If they recycle the grease for the who-is-who in your city, they are good, and you can work with them.

You also need the assurance that the oil you release to the recycling companies is handled right, and safely for the environment. That is the whole point of recycling your used frying oil.

Even if they are a free service that does not pay you anything for your grease, you need to ask them what they do with the oil. If they recycle it to biofuel, that’s even better because they help to reduce the carbon footprints of your business, and others.

How efficient they are

Again, the efficiency of the used oil recycling company depends on how well established the company is. First, they need to give you the sturdy containers where you will transfer all of the used oil from your kitchen.

Secondly, they need to collect the oil on time, so that you do not have too much of the same lying around your premises and occupying precious space.

Thirdly, since they will be interacting with your employees, you want to know that they get along well, with everyone. You don’t want rowdy people in your business when they come to collect the used oil. Also, they should have the right equipment for the job so that there are no spills.

They should follow a regular schedule for collecting the oil. That way, your employees can be aware when the recycling company is coming, and plan their day around that.

If they come once a week, they should keep to that. If they come thrice a week, or more regularly, they should maintain that schedule, and so on. This makes working with them so easy.

Check for compliance

Even before you look at EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) and other licenses, you need to find out how serious the company is about recycling old fryer oils.

For instance, it would be such a confidence booster if the trucks coming to collect the used fryer oil from your premises are powered by biodiesel. This would show you that they mean business, and that they are actually serious about their work.

On their website, look for licensing details. You want to be sure that the company you are working with is complying with the local, and national authorities.

You can also find out whether they have any certifications, for quality, environment, and health/safety. A recycling company that is ISO-certified is confidence inspiring.

As much as they are handling waste frying oil, you still want to know that they are putting your “trash” to good use.

They take all types of old cooking oil

A restaurant will be dealing with all types of cooking oil. Some of it will be vegetable oil, mostly used for deep frying.

There will also be butter oil, and other types as well. The last thing you want is the company to tell you that they don’t take certain types of oil for recycling.

Also, if you offer a day when the local residents can bring their used grease, you want to be sure that this company will take that too.

Ask whether they can handle your grease tank emptying too. If they do, that is even better than having a separate grease tank company coming to your premises.

Their website and contact information

When you visit the website of the recycling company, you should get enough education about handling the oils.

For instance, it feels good to learn tips for managing oil spills in the kitchen. A good company shares helpful tips with their clients, online.

Also, it should be easy to reach their customer support team, just in case you experience a huge frying oil spill and you don’t know how to handle it.

Sometimes, the containers they provide could fill up faster than anticipated, when you a busy week comes up. During such times, you want to reach out to them to dispatch a team to collect.

Conclusion

Hopefully, you can now gauge the performance of used cooking oil recycling company even before you hire them.

However, if you still need to know more, you can contact a few businesses that they serve, for reviews. Find out what kind of experience they have had dealing with the service provider, so that you can know what to expect.

Most importantly, find out whether they offer rebates for any used frying oil they collect from your premises.

Do they charge you a fee for collecting the oil, or is their service totally fee-free? Every company operates under different terms, so ask beforehand.