Green Marketing

Golden algae

The idea of algae as an alternative source of fuel is gaining currency, but has not yet hit consumer awareness in a big way. Most companies exploring algae-derived fuels are in the startup phase or trying to secure financing. Scientists are already defining the parameters for viable production and distribution, and markets and producers will probably catch up quickly, in about five years or so, once they have worked out the challenges in making and selling algae fuel productive and profitable. That's when you should expect the more conventional greenwashing to take place in this market segment, with oceanic imagery, vibrant shades of blue and green, and claims of an endlessly renewable, harmless, free resource.

A company called Solazyme, based in south San Francisco, is getting close. The firm's site is in more general, inclusive language, but a recent Technology Review article explains very nicely what Solazyme is about as regards algae-based fuel:

"The company recently demonstrated its algae-based fuel in a diesel car, and in January, it announced a development and testing agreement with Chevron. Late last year, the company received a $2 million grant from the National Institute of Standards and Technology to develop a substitute for crude oil based on algae.

"The new process combines genetically modified strains of algae with an uncommon approach to growing algae to reduce the cost of making fuel. Rather than growing algae in ponds or enclosed in plastic tubes that are exposed to the sun, as other companies are trying to do, Solazyme grows the organisms in the dark, inside huge stainless-steel containers. The company's researchers feed algae sugar, which the organisms then convert into various types of oil. The oil can be extracted and further processed to make a range of fuels, including diesel and jet fuel, as well as other products.

"The company uses different strains of algae to produce different types of oil. Some algae produce triglycerides such as those produced by soybeans and other oil-rich crops. Others produce a mix of hydrocarbons similar to light crude petroleum."

Solazyme defines itself in broader terms: 

"Solazyme is a synthetic biology company that unleashes the power of marine microbes to create clean and scalable solutions for the renewable energy, industrial chemical, and specialty ingredient markets."

And elsewhere:

"With Solazyme's rapid, highly flexible, and proprietary screening-based directed evolution technologies we are capable of improving single proteins, single metabolic pathways, and even whole cellular systems in their efficacy and productivity. In order to capitalize on this, Solazyme has selected specific areas within the target markets where its proprietary technologies provide opportunities for creating a sustainable unfair advantage over competitors that will result in value creation for Solazyme and its strategic partners and customers." 

More than likely, Solazyme's communication is most directly aimed at potential partners, investors, and licensees, who should take note.

Algae are plentiful in the Seattle area, as the natives will confirm. A local company, Inventure, is pursuing algae along with other alternative fuel sources. Imperium Renewables, which has supported Solazyme with financing, has done the same for Inventure. Inventure does not appear to be as far along as Solazyme, but that might just be a question of time and money. The two companies might get to compete, unless they merge first.

More on biodiesel: If you don't like cars, one day there may be a train for you.

Earlier this week, we talked about Diesel fuel for cars, limitedly available in Seattle. If you find biodiesel interesting but don't much care about cars, I can empathize. How about trains, though? You're not in a hurry, right? A business newsletter we received this week told us about a company called Green Diesel, Inc., which will develop biodiesel production for the locomotives operated by its parent company.

Richland biodiesel firm “on track” for locomotive fuel

Green Diesel, Inc., an associate firm of the Tri-City & Olympia Railroad Co., has begun research and development in biodiesel production for its own locomotives. Since the summer of 2007, the Kennewick, Wash. company has invested more than $175,000 in biodiesel-refining equipment and is seeking to purchase 33 acres at the Richland Horn Rapids industrial park for the Green Diesel Biodiesel Research Facility. The land sale has been recommended by Richland’s Economic Development Committee and will be considered by the Richland City Council in February. The company plans to make biodiesel from canola oil from ConAgra.  The processing and use of the biodiesel are part of Green Diesel’s research efforts to find the most efficient and economical blends for use in railroad equipment. Eventually, the firm will expand its biodiesel operations using a variety of feedstocks and going beyond locomotive fuel developments. Contact Jack Farrell at (509) 727-5360 or jackfarrell@tcry.com.

If you go to the the company's Web site today, there's not much there yet except for a handy summary of headlines related to biodiesel news, both on the homepage and in a section titled Links. Don't be disappointed. I'm sure Green Diesel will add content as time allows, and eventually the biodiesel news will be even more interesting and actionable. Today, a brief scan will rapidly tell you that the rest of the world is progressing rapidly, while biodiesel in the United States is still more of a cottage industry.

By the way, the Green Diesel parent, the Tri-City & Olympia Railroad Co., may be seriously committed to biodiesel for its own operation, but, like its industry peers, will continue to transport coal and other items of a less than stellar environmental reputation. Check out the news release by Union Pacific featured on the Tri-City & Olympia Railroad Co.'s Web site. There's plenty of coal traveling across the country, in case you worried about supplies drying up.

UP also announced the following monthly SPRB coal delivery records:

• A record 1,159 coal trains were loaded in November, surpassing September’s record of 1,114 trains loaded in a 30-day month.
• A daily average of 38.63 trains loaded in the SPRB in November versus the previous daily average record of 37.13 trains loaded in September.
• A single-day loading record of 46 trains were loaded on November 29 to eclipse the previous record of 45 set on September 29.
• A consecutive seven-day record set was set twice during the last week of November with 293 and 284 trains loaded versus the previous consecutive seven-day record set during the last week of September with 278 trains loaded.
• Coal train size records of 15,460 tons per train and 130.6 cars per train were established in November. Both metrics are more than 2 percent higher than last year.
• The entire Energy commodity group, that includes SPRB, Colorado/Utah, Southern Illinois, Hanna Basin and coke, had best-ever records for any month regarding tons and carloadings. The total tons record of 23.9 million tons surpasses the August 2007 record of 23.6 million tons. The total carloadings record of 205,462 topped the August 2007 total of 203,759.

I see you're still using that car. Got Diesel?

If you still drive, you will from time to time need fuel. For most of us, that still means heading to one of those nice-looking, attractive gas stations and enjoying a few moments of downtime as you fill up the tank and watch other people, who like being there as much as you do, although their reasons may be different.

Consider the alternatives, but don't feel urged to ditch the poor old car. It can be difficult to go without. If you're like me, it might be easiest to change usage patterns gradually. Alternate fuel sources are by and by becoming available. If you need to get around in the Seattle area and happen to drive a vehicle that runs on Diesel fuel, Propel offers the vision of "fueling change." The company, a member of the Washington Clean Technology Alliance, sells biodiesel. Two different products, designed for best environmental benefits in one and fleet efficiency in the other case, replace traditional petrodiesel.

Are you one of these people who love joining programs and getting confirmation that you did good (and are not overly worried about information protection)? All you need to do is register your credit card or fleet card, use the same card to fill up, and Propel will provide a personalized emissions report within 24 hours. The program is called CleanDrive and is probably critical for Propel in generating repeat business and keeping customers happy. Getting to the company's fuel is not yet overly convenient, and any enhancement of the consumer experience might help.

Today, you can get Propel's products at one of just three stations in the Greater Seattle area. If you're lucky, one of them is close to you or you are committed enough to seek it out even if it's out of the way. To help more fueling stations get behind biodiesel, you can download a letter, customize it, and take it to a station you like to request that the owners consider offering Propel fuel. At the same time, it is suggested you contact Propel, so they can get in touch with the station and work at building their business.

If you're a station owner, Propel will gladly help you get into biodiesel sales. "Increase profits, zero cost to you" appears somewhat hyperbolic, but at this early point in the competition to bring biodiesel to consumers, there may be a competitive advantage in staking your ground today rather than tomorrow. Propel does offer a cleanly designed and properly branded fueling station that you can add to your existing facility.

From a green marketing perspective, Propel appears to be relatively solid and free from vapid claims. The company offers a strong-sounding guarantee:

You can be sure Propel Pureformance is the highest-quality biodiesel available, so drive with confidence knowing we’ll fix or replace any damage to your fuel system if our fuel was determined to be the cause of that damage.

That warranty statement might develop substantial holes if challenged (how easy or inexpensive is it to demonstrate that the biodiesel product damaged a fuel system?), but the implied commitment to customer value is refreshing. You can preview a sample emissions report. Personally, I think testimonials credited with a person's first name only are mostly worthless, and the Propel site offers a few of those. But it's relevant that Bernie's Automotive, a well-respected gas station in Ballard (a Seattle neighborhood) is on record along with other gas stations to support the company's value proposition for their businesses. The Propel blog looks at first glance to be a bit of an extended advertisement, but that is deceptive: If you dig around, you actually find lots of interesting, recent content on the topics of biodiesel, pertinent industry developments, legislation, and resources. All well worth a visit, especially if you consider purchasing a vehicle or just inherited management duties of a fleet.

The design of the Propel pages seems to follow current best practices in green marketing presentation online: Offer some green and organic forms, but don't hit people over the head with them. Use simple, friendly layouts and write in language that is professional and friendly, not jargony or patronizing. Use some blue color to show you're rooted in a rational business world. Provide a little animation to make your point and demonstrate creativity.

Propel looks like a green winner, if it can capture enough business from diesel drivers. And that's a big "if," because those are definitely a minority. You're dealing with roughly 3 to 5 percent of the total passenger car market, depending on which statistic you believe. For vendors, biodiesel would pay off in the best way if they could support fleets. Not something your neighborhood station is likely to pull off.

Will we fly again?

So, having received a gift certificate, I decided to try out the TerraPass method of carbon offsetting for recent flights to and from Florence, Italy. TerraPass delivers a smooth, sinless shopping experience. I'm still bothered by the self-congratulatory tone of much of the content on the company's pages and I have doubts about the validity of the "offset" concept. But it certainly appears verifiable that a traveler's purchase contributes to the generation of energy from renewable sources in order to balance out the use of conventional fuel.

A site visitor can select categories for offset consideration, including flight. A basic diagram explains how TerraPass works.

You can use a calculator to figure out how much environmental damage your flights caused and what it would cost to offset it with a TerraPass certificate. If you decide to purchase such a certificate, you can be on your way again shortly.

TerraPass does provide some disclosure in case you wonder where the money goes or how the flight calculator works. Calculations are based on assumptions that use protocols defined by the World Resources Institute, an environmental 'think tank'.

Especially around Florence and Pisa, one can easily see the layer of smog from airport and highway traffic, obscuring views and shrouding the hills. A group of influential business people in Siena is intent on expanding the small local airport at Ampugnano for tourist travel, with passive support from the mayor and vigorous resistance from many of the people who live in the area. I hope the expansion won't happen, but it has a good chance of success.

What are practical alternatives to flying for international travelers?

Sin, pay, move on. Repeat as needed.

I'm about to spend a few weeks in Italy, where businesses can buy energy from the Green Network. That sounds like a good, environmentally responsible thing, doesn't it? However, if you read about the company's goals, as stated to prospective purchasers, it's all about savings and getting a good deal on power purchasing. According to Green Network, that became easier after the European Community deregulated its energy market in 1999. So don't be confused by the pictures of waterfalls and mossy tree trunks. The green here is of a more conventional kind.

Anyway, it's probably a good idea to be a little prudent in checking out a company site where the latest bits of "environmental" news are from November 2006. Green Network advertises widely in Italian magazines such as Panorama or Espresso. The printed ads often imply some degree of environmental gentleness. However, even though the glossary includes many environmentally related terms, I don't see any claim that the company markets electricity from renewable resources. But the allusion is certainly obvious.

My boss gave me a gift certificate for TerraPass so I could see how this scheme for offsetting a person's environmental impact works. I'll do that soon after my return and will share the experience at the time, but it sounds like a traditional indulgence -- the kind of thing Martin Luther (one of the more conservative voices at the time) rebelled against in the early 16th century. Logically, it almost makes sense -- you do a not-so-good thing, but give somebody else money so they can do something good with it in order to balance your transgression. However, your initial action may have consequences that long outlast the actual event. And the redeeming balancing act may be completely unrelated or comparatively weak in impact.

Finally, there's the accountability factor to consider. My spam filters have not yet retained any messages asking to send money to somebody to offset my environmental trespasses, but it might happen any moment.

PS. I will be back blogging in mid-November. See you then.

Where did my pretty green car go?

Is there such a thing as a "green truth" anymore? Was there ever? It can be really difficult to sort out what's true, what's not, and what's in flux in what direction. If anybody has any "best practices" to share, please comment (politely if possible).

For example, NYT columnist and business writer Thomas Friedman takes Toyota to task for resisting effective fuel standards:

Representative Edward Markey, the Massachusetts Democrat who heads the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, said to me that Toyota could meet a 35 m.p.g. standard in Japan and Europe today, "but here—even though they bombard Americans with ads about how energy efficient Toyota is—they are fighting the 35 m.p.g. standard for 2020."

Mr. Markey said he has tried to persuade Toyota that "a lot of people have bought Priuses or Camry hybrids to fight global warming and reduce our dependence on foreign oil" and "they would be shocked to find out" that Toyota is lobbying against the highest m.p.g. standards for America.

Sad. If Toyota were to take the lead on this front, it could enhance its own reputation and spur the whole U.S. auto industry to become more globally competitive. Hey, Toyota, if you are going to become the biggest U.S. automaker, could you at least bring to America your best practices—the ones that made you the world leader—instead of prolonging our worst practices? We have enough people helping us commit suicide.

In the meantime, consumers harshly, occasionally unfairly and insightfully, debate the merits of the company's claims for the Camry Hybrid and other cars.

And Toyota's Irv Miller, Group Vice President of Corporate Communications, builds a case for the company's green accomplishments on Irv's Sheet, his realm within the corporate blog.